Category Archives: One Pot Cooking
Shabu Shabu Gift

Oh winter cold, winter dark, winter comforts so dearly embraced: it’s when friendly time beside the fire and good food is most satisfying.
A Japanese nabemono (hot pot) is a warm and convivial way of sharing and eating a meal. A pot of water or broth simmers in the center of the table, surrounded by plates of meat, fish, tofu, fruits, and vegetables. With chopsticks (or fondu forks) diners slide morsels of food into the simmering stock to cook, then lifts them out to a plate.
I have not gotten around to buying a table-top heat source to present such an entertaining feast
This Christmas, my sister and my daughter changed all that: they surprised me with an induction cooktop and prepared a lovely Christmas Eve shabu shabu!
Shabu Shabu Gift

Oh winter cold, winter dark, winter comforts so dearly embraced: it’s when friendly time beside the fire and good food is most satisfying.
A Japanese nabemono (hot pot) is a warm and convivial way of sharing and eating a meal. A pot of water or broth simmers in the center of the table, surrounded by plates of meat, fish, tofu, fruits, and vegetables. With chopsticks (or fondu forks) diners slide morsels of food into the simmering stock to cook, then lifts them out to a plate.
I have not gotten around to buying a table-top heat source to present such an entertaining feast
This Christmas, my sister and my daughter changed all that: they surprised me with an induction cooktop and prepared a lovely Christmas Eve shabu shabu!
Shabu Shabu Christmas

It’s been many years since I decorated for Christmas.
This year has been different. I discovered the faux stained glass installation I made in 1979. I’d displayed them for several years, then we moved to apartments/house with small windows so they went into deep storage. When I found them a few weeks ago, my first impulse was, “Bah! Humbug!” and toss them into the recycle bin. But both husband and daughter said, “NO!!”
Shabu Shabu Christmas

It’s been many years since I decorated for Christmas.
This year has been different. I discovered the faux stained glass installation I made in 1979. I’d displayed them for several years, then we moved to apartments/house with small windows so they went into deep storage. When I found them a few weeks ago, my first impulse was, “Bah! Humbug!” and toss them into the recycle bin. But both husband and daughter said, “NO!!”
Duck for Rosh Hashanah
Japanese food/Jewish holiday
Serving duck makes any meal a special occasion. Duck is especially suited to a celebration.
Happy New Year: Rosh Hashanah 2012.
My family celebrated the holiday one day early, a sad and happy occasion.
Duck for Rosh Hashanah
Japanese food/Jewish holiday
Serving duck makes any meal a special occasion. Duck is especially suited to a celebration.
Happy New Year: Rosh Hashanah 2012.
My family celebrated the holiday one day early, a sad and happy occasion.
Oden: Japanese Hot-Pot おでん
Oden is a Japanese hot-pot dish in which an assortment of fish-cakes and dumplings are cooked in dashi, kombu stock, and/or chicken stock, with other ingredients including daikon, konyaku, hard-boiled eggs, and potatoes. The delicacies you might choose for your oden hot-pot include hanpen, atsuma-age, iwashi tsumire, chikua, shrimp balls, kagosei ika maki, sankaku ganmo ichimasa, tako bei, konnyaku, shirataki, kamaboko…and many others
Oden: Japanese Hot-Pot おでん
Oden is a Japanese hot-pot dish in which an assortment of fish-cakes and dumplings are cooked in dashi, kombu stock, and/or chicken stock, with other ingredients including daikon, konyaku, hard-boiled eggs, and potatoes. The delicacies you might choose for your oden hot-pot include hanpen, atsuma-age, iwashi tsumire, chikua, shrimp balls, kagosei ika maki, sankaku ganmo ichimasa, tako bei, konnyaku, shirataki, kamaboko…and many others
Nabe with Swordfish
Mr. Tess made his famous Kajikimaguro no Yuan Yaki (Swordfish in Yuan style) accompanied with fried potatoes. The kitchen is still in the process of moving, so there was only one smallish frying pan to cook with. As a result, he fried a pan of potatoes: it was an opportunity to test the warming drawer on this stove. Then he fried only one of the two swordfish steaks. We have been cooking with gas for decades and it’s a learning curve to understand how to cook with electricity.This nabe recipe is the natural consequence of the circumstances: fish, mushrooms, and leftover potatoes to make a delicious hot pot.
Nabe with Swordfish
Mr. Tess made his famous Kajikimaguro no Yuan Yaki (Swordfish in Yuan style) accompanied with fried potatoes. The kitchen is still in the process of moving, so there was only one smallish frying pan to cook with. As a result, he fried a pan of potatoes: it was an opportunity to test the warming drawer on this stove. Then he fried only one of the two swordfish steaks. We have been cooking with gas for decades and it’s a learning curve to understand how to cook with electricity.This nabe recipe is the natural consequence of the circumstances: fish, mushrooms, and leftover potatoes to make a delicious hot pot.
Mushroom and Pork Nabe
…and melt your cold cold heart…
Oh Winter: the season for simple social nabemono. Gather ’round a hot pot and share a meal to warm your body and spirit.
I have finally begun to move kitchen things into the new house. I designed my old tiny kitchen myself to be as efficient as possible. This kitchen is large, with plenty of counter acreage, but it’s been a puzzle to figure out where things should be stored. There is plenty of cabinet space but much of it requires a ladder to reach! The drawers don’t slide well so I can’t pack too much weight into them. The bottom cabinets are deep and need slide-out trays in order to make items in the back accessible. Oh, the problems of such plenty!
At least Mikey knows where he belongs.
Mushroom and Pork Nabe
…and melt your cold cold heart…
Oh Winter: the season for simple social nabemono. Gather ’round a hot pot and share a meal to warm your body and spirit.
I have finally begun to move kitchen things into the new house. I designed my old tiny kitchen myself to be as efficient as possible. This kitchen is large, with plenty of counter acreage, but it’s been a puzzle to figure out where things should be stored. There is plenty of cabinet space but much of it requires a ladder to reach! The drawers don’t slide well so I can’t pack too much weight into them. The bottom cabinets are deep and need slide-out trays in order to make items in the back accessible. Oh, the problems of such plenty!
At least Mikey knows where he belongs.
Spicy Sesame Sauce: Buta Shabu Shabu
Chilled fruits and vegetables, cool thin slices of pork, and a spicy sesame dipping sauce make a festive summer meal. The colors are beautiful and everything can be prepared ahead of time.”Open sesame!” Seeds explode from the ripe pods on sesame plants. Depending on the cultivar, seeds will be ivory, golden, red, brown or black.
Have you ever wondered where sesame seeds come from?
Spicy Sesame Sauce: Buta Shabu Shabu
Chilled fruits and vegetables, cool thin slices of pork, and a spicy sesame dipping sauce make a festive summer meal. The colors are beautiful and everything can be prepared ahead of time.”Open sesame!” Seeds explode from the ripe pods on sesame plants. Depending on the cultivar, seeds will be ivory, golden, red, brown or black.
Have you ever wondered where sesame seeds come from?
Egg Drop and Salmon Nabeyaki Udon
Nabemono, Japanese hot-pot meals are comfortable and warming meals. The calendar says “spring” so the weather is eccentric. One can go to bed at the end of a sunny 60° day only to wake up to grey clouds, rain, and freezing wind. The grilled meal planned the day before no longer makes sense!
Egg Drop and Salmon Nabeyaki Udon
Oden—Nerimono: Ready-to-eat Japanese food
Oden—Nerimono: Ready-to-eat Japanese food
Kamo no Jibuni: Duck Prepared in Kaga-style
Jibuni is an unusual nabe (hot pot) dish among the many versions favored during winter in Japan. It comes from Kanazawa city and is the capital of Ishikawq Prefecture, located on the coast of the Sea of Japan. Duck is sliced then coated with a mixture of wheat and buckwheat flours, then added to a salty-sweet broth. Seasonal vegetables are also added to the broth. Quite a nice meal!Kamo no Jibuni: Duck Prepared in Kaga-style
Jibuni is an unusual nabe (hot pot) dish among the many versions favored during winter in Japan. It comes from Kanazawa city and is the capital of Ishikawq Prefecture, located on the coast of the Sea of Japan. Duck is sliced then coated with a mixture of wheat and buckwheat flours, then added to a salty-sweet broth. Seasonal vegetables are also added to the broth. Quite a nice meal!Egg Drop and Crab Nabeyaki Udon
…photos by Tess, food cooked and served by Tess, post design by Tess…
Egg Drop and Crab Nabeyaki Udon is a lovely warm winter soup. Satisfying and cozy though it goes together in minutes.
Egg Drop and Crab Nabeyaki Udon
…photos by Tess, food cooked and served by Tess, post design by Tess…
Egg Drop and Crab Nabeyaki Udon is a lovely warm winter soup. Satisfying and cozy though it goes together in minutes.
Currying Flavor: Karei Raisu
Curry on rice is almost a national dish of Japan—many eat it at least once a week. And why not: it’s delicious, easy to make with the widely available instant curry roux, can be made with a variety of ingredients, keeps well (even improves) as leftovers, and is inexpensive. It’s a meal I am fond of.
“Indian curry came to Japan from England,” explained Hiroko Shimbo, the Japanese chef and cookbook author. “Roux of course came from France.” It was only natural that someone would put them in the same dish, she added, then paused for a moment and laughed. “It’s perfect for Americans,” she said. “It’s a very American impulse to mix.”a recipe from Hiroko Shimbo
Currying Flavor: Karei Raisu
Curry on rice is almost a national dish of Japan—many eat it at least once a week. And why not: it’s delicious, easy to make with the widely available instant curry roux, can be made with a variety of ingredients, keeps well (even improves) as leftovers, and is inexpensive. It’s a meal I am fond of.
“Indian curry came to Japan from England,” explained Hiroko Shimbo, the Japanese chef and cookbook author. “Roux of course came from France.” It was only natural that someone would put them in the same dish, she added, then paused for a moment and laughed. “It’s perfect for Americans,” she said. “It’s a very American impulse to mix.”a recipe from Hiroko Shimbo























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