Toshikoshi Soba Tsuyu Broth 蕎麦つゆ

Toshikoshi soba are buckwheat noodles traditionally eaten on New Year's Eve in many households throughout Japan. The long soba noodles have the significance of longevity and are part of the rituals associated with ushering in the New Year.

The soba tsuyu or soba broth can be purchased in bottles at most supermarkets now, even in America. It is an intense, slightly sweet soy broth. I prefer to make this at home as it is easy and will keep in the fridge for a long time, although we usually go through it in about a week.

This soba tsuyu comes from Kazunari Yanagihara.

Soba Tsuyu
3 Tbsp mirin
2 Tbsp sugar
3/4 cup soy sauce

Bring the mirin to a boil and then add the sugar and soy sauce. Stir until the sugar dissolves and then remove from the stove.

Allow to cool and it is ready to use.

When serving, cook the soba noodles, add your toppings and in a separate bowl make your soba sauce. I find it easier to dilute the soba tsuyu in hot water this way. In the past when I tried to put the soba tsuyu in the bowl with the noodles and dilute with hot water it is hard to control.

For toppings for this year's toshikoshi soba we served broiled chicken, spinach and shiitake mushrooms. The spinach and shiitake were cooked then marinated in a soy and mirin broth. Garnish with yuzu peel and shichimi tougarashi.

Best wishes for 2012. Japan has had one of its most trying years with the triple disaster in Tohoku. We are all hoping for a new start and for a better year this year.

Kombu and Enoki Tsukudani えのきと昆布佃煮

Tsukudani is a dish we often have in our fridge. As we are often making dashi from scratch we have kombu that can be recycled into a new dish. Tsukudani can be kombu simmered in a sweet soy sauce by itself, or you can add items like mushrooms to it.

For this version of Tsukudani, I have added some enoki mushrooms that I had on hand.

It is a bit intense in flavor so I always serve this with some rice. Start with reconstituted kombu, not dry kombu.

1/2 cup kombu, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup enoki, cut into small pieces (or shiitake)
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp sake
1 Tbsp mirin
1 Tbsp sugar

Bring the soy sauce, sake, mirin, and sugar to a boil and then add the kombu and enoki. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until most of the liquid dissipates.

Will keep for about a week in the fridge.

Sanma Sashimi 秋刀魚刺身

Sanma is perhaps most often eat salted and grilled whole. The bitter innards are considered a delicacy, especially when paired with a dry sake or glass of shochu. In our house though the preferred preparation with a truly fresh sanma is sashimi.

The kanji for sanma is autumn sword fish (秋刀魚). In season in the fall and resembling a shiny sword this fish is in season in the fall and winter.

Make two filets, and be sure to peel away the thin skin.

We love sanma with sesame oil and Maldon salt. When having it this way Shinji usually cuts the salmon into thin strips as in the photo and we'll either toss the sanma in the sesame oil and salt or just dip it in. If Shinji is making a sashimi platter then he'll cut the sanma into thicker slices and we'll have it with soy sauce and wasabi.

If you get the chance to try sanma as sashimi please try it. It is a very fishy fish.

Futomaki 太巻き

Who doesn't love futomaki? Sushi rolls stuffed with savory, and sometimes sweet fillings. I have long struggled to properly roll any makizushi (rolled sushi) unless they are temakizushi (the hand rolls). I have decided that I can no longer fear the futomaki and decided that practice makes perfect and the best way to learn is to just jump in and do my best.

Here is the first stab. Not great, but much better than I expected. And, definitely worth the time to put these together.

First, get your fillings in order, including cooking the rice. This is the time consuming part. Once you have everything in order, rolling is the easy part.

In back there is sweet tamagoyaki (Japanese omelet), cucumbers, sauteed Spam (from Minnesota!), braised spinach, and hoshi shiitake (dried shiitake) simmered in a sweet soy sauce.

I would have liked to included kampyo (dried gourd), sakura denbu (a sweet, pink colored flaked fish), and carrots simmered in the same sweet soy sauce as the hoshi shiitake, or Korean kimchi.

As for bamboo rollers, for me I found the larger one (30 cm x 30 cm) much easier to work with than the standard one. If it gets dirty, rinse in water and be sure to hang up to dry.

Add the rice to the nori, to the edge on the side closest to you and leaving about an inch on the far side. Then add the toppings and take a deep breath. It's time to roll.

Bring the edge of the roll closest to you to the far end and squeeze somewhat tight, but don't strangle the roll.

When slicing, use a wet towel to clean the knife after each slice. Also, don't cut it too thick or it will be hard to eat.

Lessons learned from my first attempt? Place the nori to the edge of the bamboo rolling meat closest to you. And squeeze a little bit harder (my rolls were too loose).

Carpe diem. Don't avoid the roll. It was good fun and I will continue to practice.

Quick & Easy Ankimo Monkfish Liver 鮟肝

Ankimo is often called foie gras of the sea. The liver of the monkfish resembles foie gras, without the fattiness. It's lighter in flavor and delicate on the palate. I am a big fan of foie gras so would never compare the two, but wanted to mention it here as this is how it is most often referred to. It's in season right now and is a great partner for sake or shochu.

Most Japanese monkfish liver is consumed at its harvest port so it’s very rare to find it in the market. Most monkfish liver in the market is imported from the USA or China. Monkfish liver from the USA is fresher than Chinese, and as a result the price is often double the price of Chinese monkfish liver.

It's very easy to cook at home, if you can get your hands on some.

First, remove the bloodline. Then salt the liver, let it sit for twenty minutes, and then remove the excess water. Sprinkle it with sake to rid it of its fishiness. Wrap it in aluminum foil in the shape of a sausage and tie up each end. Steam for twenty minutes. Cool it in ice water. Slice into thin slices. Serve with grated daikon radish and some citrus dressing and soy sauce. This is how the Japanese traditionally eat monkfish liver.

The photo is some ankimo we made recently. Shinji plated it with julienned myoga, kombu, daikon, and shiso.

The steamed monkfish liver can also be pan-seared with some olive oil like foie gras. This can then be served with a Western-style sauce.

Crunchy Cucumber and Takuan Furikake カリカリきゅうりとたくあんふりかけ

Crunchy cucumber and takuan soft-type furikake by Ohmoriya.

This is a fun furikake that I picked up recently. I was curious to try it after catching the words "kari kari" (crunchy) on the package. Ohmoriya also makes a kari kari furikake with umeboshi that I like.

True to its name, it is very crunchy. The pickled daikon (takuan) and cucumbers are a nice contrast to the soft rice. I am going to try this with fried rice. I think it will be nice with some pork. I think it may also be a nice touch to a hot and sour soup.

Other furikake posts:

Furikake Popcorn

Furikake Tasting (reviews a few furikake)

Shirasu Pasta しらすパスタ

Yesterday's post was on ikura pasta. We were so happy with having pasta and Japanese ingredients that our next version was shirasu pasta. Shirasu are tiny anchovies that have been quickly blanched in salt water. Usually we have it on a bowl or rice as shirasudon. Or, sometimes we'll grate some daikon to make daikon oroshi and add the shirasu to it.

This pasta was simply some angel hair pasta with shirasu and extra virgin olive oil. Again, easy, quick, and delicious.

I would have liked to have added some pickled takana leaves or nozawa if I had some on hand to add some color. But this was a spur of the moment throw together dish and it wasn't necessary. This dish went very nice with a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.

You may also want to consider making an uni pasta.

Ikura Pasta いくらパスタ

Italian and Japanese ingredients often make for the best fusion cuisine. Part of it must be the simplicity of the ingredients so when they are put together it is never too much on the palate. It is so popular that there are restaurants that do outstanding Japanese pastas like Basta Pasta NYC. 

One of the first things that I thought was the perfect combination of Italian and Japanese ingredients was mentaiko pasta. Spicy cod roe with pasta, usually angel hair, sometimes topped with butter, or mayonnaise. Really good and addictive.

When we have ikura in the house we usually have it over rice. But after a day or two of ikura donburi we get the craving for a change-up and putting it over tagliatelle seemed like a good idea. It was. To this I only added some good quality extra virgin olive oil. Simple and delicious. Life doesn't have to be complicated.

If you want to make uni pasta it is quite easy. Here are directions for an uni pasta we make quite often at home.

December Seasonal Japanese Seafood １２月旬の魚

I love seafood this time of year. I think part of it has to do with the fact that I met Shinji around New Year's and one of the first days we spent together he took me on a tour of Tsukiji Market (he was working as a buyer at Tsukiji then).

Some of our favorite seafood for sashimi include kinmedai (splendid alfonsino), hirame (olive flounder), kawahagi (thread-sail filefish), and kanburi (winter Japanese amberjack). Shinji loves kanburi so much that part of our honeymoon was spent trekking to one of the ports famous for harvesting winter buri and having it for breakfast. And, if the kawahagi is fresh, you can eat the liver raw - a real treat.

Wakasagi (Japanese smelt) is lovely when simply dredged in some flour and fried up. Eat it whole and serve it with some sake. We love to use ankou (monkfish) for nabe and to steam the ankimo (monkfish liver) in sake. Some say it is better than foie gras. Having studied at the French Culinary Institute and having a soft spot in my heart for French cuisine, I would have to say that I prefer foie gras, but that ankimo is a close second - and excellent with some sake or shochu.

Shijimi (corbicula clams) are best enjoyed in miso soup. Asari (littleneck clams) over pasta with simply extra virgin olive oil just can not be beat.

Shinji loves to grill hata hata (sailfin sandfish), especially if they are komochi (full of eggs). I have tried to come to like the hard eggs but it's an acquired taste. I love fish eggs of all kinds, but these are very hard and crunchy and surprisingly big in size.

Crab is in season this time of year - perhaps best enjoyed simply steamed. I love uni - as sashimi, sushi, or when I am craving some Western preparation I love to make uni pasta.

Finally, the photo above is of kinki (thornhead). This is an amazing fish when simply simmered (nitsuke). Tender, delicate, and sweet flesh that falls off the bone.

* If you click on the name of the fish in Japanese you will be able to see a photo of the fish.

December Japanese Seasonal Seafood

Akagarei – 赤鰈 flathead flounder (Hippoglossoides dubius)

Amadai – 赤甘鯛 tilefish (Branchiostegus japonicus)

Ankou– 鮟鱇monkfish (Lophiomus setigerus)

Asari – 浅利 littleneck clams (Ruditapes philippinarum)

Bora– 鯔flathead gray mullet (Mugil cephalus cephalus)

Buri– 鰤Japanese amberjack (Seriola quinqueradiata)

Fugu – 河豚 blowfish or puffer fish (Takifugu porphyreus)

Hata Hata – 鰰 sailfin sandfish (Arctoscopus japonicus)

Hirame – 鮃  olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus)

Honmaguro – 本鮪 bluefin tuna (Thunus thynnus)

Houbou – 魴 gurnard (Chelidonichthys spinosus)

Hoya – 海鞘 sea squirt (Halocynthia roretzi)

Inada–  イナダ young Japanese amberjack (Seriola quinqueradiata)

Kaki – 牡蠣 oyster (Crassostrea gigas)

Kanburi – 寒鰤 Japanese amberjack (Seriola quinqueradiata)

Kawahagi – 皮剥 thread-sail filefish (Stephanolepis cirrhifer)

Kinki – 喜知次 thornhead (Sebastolobus macrochir)

Kinme – 金目 splendid alfonsino (Beryx splendens)

Kurumaebi – 車海老 Japanese tiger prawn (Penaeus (Melicertus) japonicus)

Madara – 真鱈 Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus)

Makarei – 真鰈 littlemouth flounder (Pleuronectes yokohamae)

Managatsuo – 真名鰹 silver pomfret (Pampus punctatissimus)

Madara shirako – 白子 milt from Pacific cod

Mebaru – 目張 rockfish (Sebastes inermis)

Meji maguro – young maguro  

Mizudako – 水蛸 North Pacific giant octopus (Octopus dofleini)

Mutsu – むつ gnomefish (Scombrops boops)

Namako – 生子 sea cucumber (Stichopus japonica)

Nametagarei – 婆鰈 slime flounder (MIicrostomus achne)

Saba– 鯖 Pacific mackerel (Scomber japonicus)

Sakuraebi – 桜蝦  sakura shrimp (Sergia lucens)

Sawara – 鰆  Japanese Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus niphonius)

Sazae – 栄螺 horned turban shell (Turbo cornutus)

Shijimi – 大和蜆 corbicula clams (Corbicula japonica)

Sukesoutara – 介党鱈   Alaska pollack (Theragra chalcogramma)

Suzuki – 鱸  Japanese sea perch (Lateolabrax japonicus)

Uni –  sea urchin

Wakasagi– 若細魚 Japanese smelt (Hypomesus nipponensis)

Warasa– 鰤Japanese amberjack (Seriola quinqueradiata)

Zuwaigani – 頭矮蟹 snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio)