tofu shiitake/leeks soba bowl

Bowl inspired by Harumi (for the shiitake/leeks part; here, p.182) and by Heidi Swanson (for the soba/tofu part; here and here).

Tofu Steak

With this recipe, never again will you say that tofu doesn't taste anything. Just try it. 

I promise, the next recipe I'll post will be non-Japanese!

Beef + Finely Shredded Vegetables Soup

Got the essential ingredients of Japanese cooking? So you are ready to try this beef and vegetables soup. Very easy and soooo tasty.

Salad with Ponzu Soy Dressing

I hope you like Japanese food 'cause I got "Everyday Harumi" cookbook for Christmas and I'm planning to try every single recipe (just kidding!). Here is a slight and easy start with this "crispy salad with grated carrots and ponzu soy dressing" (p.176-177). Time for you to get started and buy the essentials ingredients* of the Japanese cooking. 

* (such as soy sauce, mirin, sake, rice vinegar, kombu seaweed (dried kelp), nori seaweed, katsuobushi (dried fish flakes) and/or instant dashi stick, toasted sesame seeds, sesame oil, sushi rice,...) 

Japanese Cheesecake

I'm not a huge fan of cheesecake. But this one, I can tell you, tastes like heaven! Maybe it's because it's a "Japanese" cheesecake and I like everything about Japan... No, seriously, it's damn good and much lighter than the American version. I've followed this recipe (in French). There is a similar one in English here.

Nasu-Miso (Fried Eggplants with Miso)

Since I frequent Japanese restaurants, I always loved the way they cooked the eggplants. What I didn't know was that their "nasu-miso" (fried eggplants with miso sauce) was so easy to prepare. The recipe that I've followed is this one (in Italian though). There is a similar one here (in English).

Fried Rice

Quick lunch with rice leftovers. 

1. Put 1/2 tbs (or less) cooking oil in a pan

2. Scramble 1 egg

3. Add the rice (+/- 10 oz; 300 gr)  to the pan and stir fry, breaking up the egg

4. Add 2 ts soy sauce+1 ts sake

Done!

Miso Soup with Soba and Veggies

Miso soup is quick and easy to prepare. You only need to boil some water and stir in some miso paste. That's it! If you add some noodles (here: soba), some veggies, and some tofu, you obtain a wholesome dish. My reference recipe comes from the blog 101cookbooks, by Heidi Swanson. But there are tons of them on the web. A lot of variations exist according to your taste or to what you have in your fridge. This time, in addition to the soba noodles and the tofu, I've used green onions, broccoli florets (steamed), and zucchini (diced and cooked in the microwave oven with a little bit of water for 2 to 3 minutes). Make your own.

Rice Balls Bento Box

With yesterday leftovers...

Chicken-Tofu Rice

Three years ago my little daughter gave me a cookbook for my birthday: "Japanese Meals on the Go. Bento Boxes.", by Naomi Kijima. I did only one recipe so far, but I did it several times. The girls love it. And so do we. 

Matcha Creme Brulee (in French)

Vu le grand interet porte' a' la Matcha Creme Brulee, voici la recette en francais.

Matcha Creme Brulee

Saturday night we went to a Japanese restaurant. There were no sushi, but a great choice of yakitori and donburi. Really yummy. At Japanese restaurants we usually don't order any desserts. But on the menu there was an inspiring green tea brulee... We couldn't resist. Unfortunately we didn't have the chance to taste it. They had run out of it. So I had no choice other than to make it by myself! 

After a disappointing first try with a Japanese recipe - approximately translated in English! -, I decided to trust once again my favorite blog Il cavoletto di Bruxelles. It was a wise decision. The recipe was way better. It's in Italian though. If you need help, just ask me.

Matcha Rolls

It's so beautiful that it's like "deco", isn't it? I've stolen the recipe here (one of my favorite food blog). I did do something by myself: these matcha rolls. Not only nice, but also delicious.

C'est tellement beau que ca s'apparente a' de la deco, non? J'ai pique' la recette ici (une de mes food blogs preferes). J'ai quand meme fait ces "roules-matcha" moi meme. Non seulement beaux, mais aussi delicieux.