Enjoy two easy summery side dishes. You will love this sweet and tender flavorful eggplant and fresh crisp Nagaimo with pickled plum paste. Pickled plum is one of Japan's ancient medicinal foods. I like to serve these dishes with cold Soba or Somen noodles in mid-Summer to Autumn.
Serves 4
-Fried Eggplant with Tuna
Ingredients:
3 or 4 Asian eggplant, cut into 1-inch
1 can (4 to 5 oz.) tuna packed in water, drained and flaked
2 Tbs. Mentsuyu / Japanese seasoning soy sauce
1/2 cup water
vegetable oil for frying
3 Shiso leaves, chopped
Directions:
In a small bowl, stir together the Mentsuyu and water. Set aside.
In a wok or deep fry pan, heat enough vegetable oil for frying over mediam high heat. When the oil is hot, add the eggplant and cook turning often until the eggplant has softened about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer it to the bowl of Mentsuyu. Add the tuna and gently mix the eggplant and tuna.
Transfer the eggplant and tuna to a serving bowl and garnish with the Shiso.
-Nagaimo with Pickled plum paste
Ingredients:
1/2 lb. Nagaimo, peeled and slice thinly lengthwise
2 pickled plum, seeded and chopped into paste
4 Shiso leaves, chopped
Directions:
Divide sliced Nagaimo into 4 serving plate, plum paste on top then garnish with Shiso.
UMEBOSHI / pickled plum
Fight fatigue fast
Food poisoning
Hangover
Fatigue
Appetite stimulant
SHISO / beefsteak plant
Sleep easy
Insomnia
Allergies
Immune system
Food poisoning
Diarrhoea
Japanese casual and comfortable meal : donburi. Quick and perfect for weekend's lunch or main dish for dinner with miso soup.
serves 2
1/2 lb. sashimi grade salmon, skin removed, cut in small pieces
1/2 ripe avocado, pitted, peeled and diced
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. chopped scallion
3 shiso leaf, finely chopped
1/2 nori sheet, break into small pieces
1 1/2 cups cooked short grain rice
In a medium bowl, combine the salmon, avocado, lemon juice, soy sauce, scallion and
shiso leaf. Gently stir together, being careful not to break up the avocado.
Serve it on top of each bowl of rice. Finish with nori sheet. Drizzle some soy sauce if you like.
It's often served in Japanese breakfast and lunch box. In my classes, we use this omelet in decorative sushi rolls. You can get a square Tamagoyaki pan at Asian market. Alternatively, you can use a small non stick frying pan.
serves 4
Ingredients:
3 eggs
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
1 pinch salt
1 tablespoon Mirin
vegetable oil for cooking
Directions:
Combine the eggs, sugar, soy sauce and Mirin in a bowl and mix well with fork or chopsticks.
Heat a small frying pan over medium heat and pour 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil. Using paper towel spread the oil evenly. When the frying pan gets hot, turn down the heat to low.
Pour a scoop about 1/3 of the egg mixture in the pan and spread over the surface evenly. Cook it about 30 seconds or half done and roll the egg toward in the bottom side of the pan.
Spread the oil by using paper towel in the empty part of the pan and pour another 1/3 of the egg mixture. Spread evenly including under the rolled egg.
Cook it until half done and roll the egg again, this time towards the top side of the pan.
Repeat this for the rest of 1/3 egg mixture. Transfer to a cutting board and slice into 1 inch thick pieces.
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