We made a meal of this when Mr. Tess returned from Philly after working there for nearly two months. As a dyed-in-the-wool noodle-lover it was the best thing I could think of to welcome him home.
I don’t think he was disappointed in the menu; at any rate he was happier than the cats were.
Sweet white miso and sweet orange carrots make a harmonious pair, a crunchy nutty flavor to savor! This unconventional combination reveals how even a common root vegetable can be exotic.
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While some pickles are made especially to preserve food, others celebrate the time of year by transforming the best seasonal vegetables into annual traditions to look forward to.
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Japanese pickles play a role similar to Korean banchan, making a dinner more than the sum of its parts. They are like little salads—almost as if one picked out the best most flavorful items without having to chew through the acres of greens, drenched in oil based dressings.
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Asparagus with Lemon and Onion from “Easy Japanese Pickling serves 4 page 19 a large bunch of asparagus 1/4 cup water 2 Tablespoons sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 4 Tablespoons vinegar 1 Tablespoon lemon juice 1 clove garlic, thinly sliced 1/4 onion, thinly sliced thin lemon slices Blanch asparagus. Spread out in a colander to…
Last year I did a recipe test called Hobak Namul. I did not think about the name of the recipe at the time, but now I’ve learned that “hobak” is a Korean squash with green skin and yellow flesh. I’ve never seen one! Namul is a Korean term for a seasoned vegetable dish. The test recipe used green and yellow summer squash, but here I’ve used only yellow squash, with carrots.
If you are trying to add more vegetables or salads to your diet, I highly recommend this book: Easy Japanese Pickling in five minutes to one day. This dressing is written to be used with small Japanese eggplants, but Ms. Ogawa suggests that cucumbers make a nice variation. It’s an easy and original way to serve either vegetable.
In the fridge was a package of baby bella mushrooms. When I’m grocery shopping the beautiful displays of fruits and vegetables inspire me to over imagine what I’ll cook. The mushrooms were fresh and firm, full of promise though I had no recipe in mind. They were on sale. That was a week ago, and they were still in the fridge. Though the following recipe calls for using a variety of mushrooms, it was very nice with only the one kind.
I made a nice welcome-home dinner because Mr. Tess is back for a couple of weeks. I had some pretty little cucumbers in the fridge, and while I love cucumbers with just a little salt, he’s not a big fan of them. To make them more special, I found a recipe called Tosa-Style Cucumbers. Without prompting, he told me the cucumbers were really delicious. I started wondering exactly what does “Tosa-style” mean?
Pickling: Tsukemono Pickles are a vast domain in Japanese cuisine with an endless variety of delicate and strong pickled foods, preserved in many different ways. The pickles I’ve made are all quick and simple to make, so I’m missing most of that variety. From “Easy Japanese Pickling—in five minutes to one day” by Seiko Ogawa…
Tess's Japanese Kitchen 