Growing up, one of my favorite vegetable dishes was yaki nasu, or grilled Japanese eggplant, simply served with shoyu and garnished with katsuo bushi and fresh grated ginger. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) Most kids don’t like eggplant, and I might be deemed weird, but growing-up, I loved most all vegetables with the exception of the “forbidden three”: brussels sprouts, bell peppers and bitter melon. My favorite was eggplant,...
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For as long as I can remember, my Mom used to keep a re-used glass jam jar filled with little orange candied kumquats or kinkan kanro-ni in the back of our refrigerator. It never looked appealing to me, and as a child, I recall trying several of these kinkan kanro-ni over the years, but I never found the sweet, sour, and slightly bitter flavor of the candied kumquats to my liking. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) As I got older, the little glass jar...
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Today, I share with you a Chinese style pickled cucumber that is very easy to make and it’s so simple that you’ll definitely want to give it a try. I love the flavor of fresh cucumber slices, and chyuka kyuri no tsukemono is one of my favorite ways to enjoy cucumber. In Japanese cuisine, there are so many variations of kyuri no tsukemono, or pickled cucumbers, it will make your head spin. I’ve eaten countless variations...
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Edamame gohan (brown rice with soybeans) is a simple mixed rice dish of edamame, nametake (Japanese mushrooms) and seaweed. This combination of ingredients really brings plain ol’ rice to life. It’s the perfect alternative for folks such as myself who don’t really like rice. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) As a child, my parents made me sit at the dinner table until I finished my rice, but I was a stubborn child. I would just...
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Gindara Misozuke, a family favorite. Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha Nobu’s miso marinated black cod, or gindara misozuke as it is known in Japanese, is so delicious! This recipe won’t disappoint and will prove to be versatile for use on other types of fish such as grilled salmon. The first time I ever tasted this miso black cod was when the daughter of my Mom’s friend shared some of the fish that she marinated and baked for us....
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