Years ago I bought a small bag of unsweetened, dried blueberries from Trader Joes and they aren't very good to eat, probably because they're all really dried out now. I had been experimenting with mirin (rice wine for cooking, slightly sweeter than sake, much less sweet than Chinese xiaoxing red cooking wine) this summer since procuring a bottle of it from Uwajimaya's Seattle store.
I wondered if using mirin to rehydrate dried blueberries would impart its flavor to the blueberries when used in another recipe. Well, I can't tell the difference. Perhaps in part because the blueberries were used to make blueberry pancakes. This batch turned out to be pretty tasty.
Method? I heated the dried blueberries with mirin in a small saucepan for a few minutes, then scooped out just the blueberries and put them into the pancake batter.
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Asiago Cheese Crackers
In my attempt to make flat bread crackers, I added grated asiago cheese to the dough and used some on top of the cracker. However, seeing how today is a 100% humidity day (raining), these crackers came out really tough to chew and not crunchy at all. The crackers with cheese on top taste significantly better than the plain ones. I had hoped to use these in place of the multi-seed flatbread crackers I get from Trader Joe's, but alas, this recipe still needs tweaking.
Ingredients
2 c. all-purpose unbleached flour
3 tbsp unsalted butter
3/4 c. warm water
1/4 c. grated asiago cheese
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
Seed topping (on a plate, combine):
grated asiago cheese
black sesame seeds
white sesame seeds
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
1. In a cup, add butter to warm water until butter has melted.
2. Sift the flour, salt, sugar together.
3. Gradually add the butter/water to the flour mixture and knead until smooth.
4. Place in a clean lidded container and let dough rest for at least an hour in the refrigerator.
5. Take dough out and roll it into a 12" log. Slice in half, and slice the halves in half until there are 30+ pieces.
6. With each piece, flatten dough using the bottom of a 4 oz ramekin or other sturdy flat-bottomed container. It should come to be about a circle, though, it doesn't have to be uniform.
7. Moisten one side of the circle with water and dip into seed topping. Set onto parchment-lined baking tray.
8. Bake for 15 minutes or until bottoms and edges are lightly browned.
9. Let cool on a rack. If the crackers are still soft, place all the crackers on the baking tray and let cool in the oven after the heat has been shut off.
Ingredients
2 c. all-purpose unbleached flour
3 tbsp unsalted butter
3/4 c. warm water
1/4 c. grated asiago cheese
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
Seed topping (on a plate, combine):
grated asiago cheese
black sesame seeds
white sesame seeds
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
1. In a cup, add butter to warm water until butter has melted.
2. Sift the flour, salt, sugar together.
3. Gradually add the butter/water to the flour mixture and knead until smooth.
4. Place in a clean lidded container and let dough rest for at least an hour in the refrigerator.
5. Take dough out and roll it into a 12" log. Slice in half, and slice the halves in half until there are 30+ pieces.
6. With each piece, flatten dough using the bottom of a 4 oz ramekin or other sturdy flat-bottomed container. It should come to be about a circle, though, it doesn't have to be uniform.
7. Moisten one side of the circle with water and dip into seed topping. Set onto parchment-lined baking tray.
8. Bake for 15 minutes or until bottoms and edges are lightly browned.
9. Let cool on a rack. If the crackers are still soft, place all the crackers on the baking tray and let cool in the oven after the heat has been shut off.
Potstickers, Gyoza, Wontons, oh my!
Depending on which culture your eating perspective is from, these meat and vegetable filled dumplings can be fried, boiled, or steamed. Wikipedia would have you believe that the names have different meanings, and they do, but the differences are so insignificant that it really doesn't matter what you call them. On the contrary, gyoza skins are much thicker than wonton wrappers and can hold up to frying a lot better.
The base mix of my family's recipe is ground pork, chopped spinach, and minced chives. Ground pork can be substituted with ground chicken or ground turkey but the latter is leaner than pork. Water or broth has to be added to the mix so that the meat doesn't taste as dry; and ground beef is never used, at least not in any of the restaurants I've been to. My garden's chives aren't all that robust so I didn't cut them for this recipe.
Ingredients:
1 lb ground pork
1 lb chopped spinach, drained
1/4 c. minced water chestnuts
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 small shitake mushrooms, rehydrated and minced
a small bowl of water
Directions
1. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
I used round gyoza wrappers for this batch. I like the taste/texture of the thicker wrapper (compared to wonton wrappers). If you work quickly, the wrappers won't dry out.
2. In the palm of your hand place one wrapper. Place 1 tsp of the mix into the center of the wrapper.
3. Wet half the edge of the wrapper so that when the wrapper is folded in half, the water helps to seal the edges. Starting from the far right (or left) of the folded over wrapper, crimp the edges by pushing in the wrapper to form valley folds (like origami, only with gyoza wrappers).
Every crimping/sealing style is different and varies from shop to shop. All that matters is that the edges are sealed so that when the dumpling cooks, its juices do not spill out.
4. Set aside on a plate or tray and complete the rest of the wrappers.
To cook by boiling:
Bring a pot (with a lid) to boil. Add the raw dumplings and boil until all the dumplings float. It is possible to overcook the dumplings (the dough starts to disintegrate). Take them out after the pot returns to a full boil.
To cook by frying:
In a skillet or frying pan (with a lid), heat 1-2 tbsp vegetable oil until hot. Turn heat down to medium and add the dumplings in a single layer. After 2-3 minutes, check the dumplings and see if the bottoms are lightly browned. If so, turn every dumpling to an un-browned side.
Add about 1/4 c. of water to the pan and quickly cover with a lid. The hot steam will cook the dumpling. When the frying sounds less fierce (e.g., the water has mostly steamed off), remove dumplings when the water has mostly boiled off.
Remove dumplings from pan and serve. About 8-10 dumplings is a typical serving size.
View more pics.
The base mix of my family's recipe is ground pork, chopped spinach, and minced chives. Ground pork can be substituted with ground chicken or ground turkey but the latter is leaner than pork. Water or broth has to be added to the mix so that the meat doesn't taste as dry; and ground beef is never used, at least not in any of the restaurants I've been to. My garden's chives aren't all that robust so I didn't cut them for this recipe.
Ingredients:
1 lb ground pork
1 lb chopped spinach, drained
1/4 c. minced water chestnuts
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 small shitake mushrooms, rehydrated and minced
a small bowl of water
Directions
1. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
I used round gyoza wrappers for this batch. I like the taste/texture of the thicker wrapper (compared to wonton wrappers). If you work quickly, the wrappers won't dry out.
2. In the palm of your hand place one wrapper. Place 1 tsp of the mix into the center of the wrapper.
3. Wet half the edge of the wrapper so that when the wrapper is folded in half, the water helps to seal the edges. Starting from the far right (or left) of the folded over wrapper, crimp the edges by pushing in the wrapper to form valley folds (like origami, only with gyoza wrappers).
Every crimping/sealing style is different and varies from shop to shop. All that matters is that the edges are sealed so that when the dumpling cooks, its juices do not spill out.
4. Set aside on a plate or tray and complete the rest of the wrappers.
 |
| All lined up and ready for cooking |
To cook by boiling:
Bring a pot (with a lid) to boil. Add the raw dumplings and boil until all the dumplings float. It is possible to overcook the dumplings (the dough starts to disintegrate). Take them out after the pot returns to a full boil.
To cook by frying:
In a skillet or frying pan (with a lid), heat 1-2 tbsp vegetable oil until hot. Turn heat down to medium and add the dumplings in a single layer. After 2-3 minutes, check the dumplings and see if the bottoms are lightly browned. If so, turn every dumpling to an un-browned side.
Add about 1/4 c. of water to the pan and quickly cover with a lid. The hot steam will cook the dumpling. When the frying sounds less fierce (e.g., the water has mostly steamed off), remove dumplings when the water has mostly boiled off.
Remove dumplings from pan and serve. About 8-10 dumplings is a typical serving size.
View more pics.
Tofu Dango
It's hard to not try a new recipe when you see the food item raved about on an anime series. Part of this recipe is about curiosity and seeing how there are so few ingredients for it, the dumplings practically begged to be made. Depending on the sauce used on the dango, it can be sweet or savory. It's pretty easy to make.
Prep/cooking time: 20 minutes
Cuisine: Japanese
Food type: appetizer or dessert
Tofu Dango
Ingredients
6 oz tofu (roughly half a box of Silken tofu, firm)
2/3 c. glutinous rice flour
Directions
1. Mix ingredients together in a bowl. If it is too dry, add a little bit of water. If it's too wet/sticky, add a little bit more rice flour.
2. Form into a log and separate it into equal portions. Half, then quarters, then smaller pieces from the quarters.
3. With the smaller pieces roll each into a ball. You may coat each with a some rice flour to keep it from sticking to your hands.
4. Bring a pot of water to boil and add the dumplings. Boil for 2-3 minutes or until the dumplings are floating on the water.
5. Use a slotted spoon or strainer to take the dumplings out. Immerse in a cold water bath to stop the dumplings from cooking.
6. Spear three dumplings onto a bamboo skewer. Set on a plate.
At this stage, I don't advise eating them. They're really, really bland.
Dango Sauce Variations
(savory)
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
Bring to a boil and let cool in a small bowl. Spoon over dango.
(simple vanilla sauce, not vegan)
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 tsp flour
1/4 c. milk
Bring ingredients to a boil. Let cool and serve over dango.
(sweet, black sesame)
1/4 c. black sesame seeds
1/4 c. brown sugar
Grind seeds until powdery in a suribachi or food prep. Coat the dango and serve.
View more pics.
 |
| Dango (dumplings) coated with black sesame, vanilla sauce, and a savory sauce |
Cuisine: Japanese
Food type: appetizer or dessert
Tofu Dango
Ingredients
6 oz tofu (roughly half a box of Silken tofu, firm)
2/3 c. glutinous rice flour
Directions
1. Mix ingredients together in a bowl. If it is too dry, add a little bit of water. If it's too wet/sticky, add a little bit more rice flour.
2. Form into a log and separate it into equal portions. Half, then quarters, then smaller pieces from the quarters.
3. With the smaller pieces roll each into a ball. You may coat each with a some rice flour to keep it from sticking to your hands.
4. Bring a pot of water to boil and add the dumplings. Boil for 2-3 minutes or until the dumplings are floating on the water.
5. Use a slotted spoon or strainer to take the dumplings out. Immerse in a cold water bath to stop the dumplings from cooking.
6. Spear three dumplings onto a bamboo skewer. Set on a plate.
At this stage, I don't advise eating them. They're really, really bland.
Dango Sauce Variations
(savory)
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
Bring to a boil and let cool in a small bowl. Spoon over dango.
(simple vanilla sauce, not vegan)
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 tsp flour
1/4 c. milk
Bring ingredients to a boil. Let cool and serve over dango.
(sweet, black sesame)
1/4 c. black sesame seeds
1/4 c. brown sugar
Grind seeds until powdery in a suribachi or food prep. Coat the dango and serve.
View more pics.
Hon-kaeshi (soba sauce)
Hon-kaeshi is a dark Japanese noodle sauce often served with chilled soba noodles or other savory dishes. Its ingredients are a ratio of dark soy sauce, mirin, and sugar. I have adapted the ratio for 1 serving, though, it can probably be multiplied for more. And, since I'm using this with a bowl of fresh soba noodles, this preparation is for serving it fresh. A traditional method would be to cook the ingredients together for storage in the refrigerator. You could probably use unbleached granulated sugar instead of brown sugar, but you should use a good quality soy sauce and mirin. I used Takara mirin, a cooking sake.
Ingredients
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp mirin
1 tsp brown sugar
Directions
Combine ingredients and mix until sugar has dissolved. Serve as is in a separate bowl from soba noodles or mix with soba noodles, then serve.
Can also prepare with rehydrated wakame seaweed and serve over cooked soba noodles. I like wakame since it is cheaper and easier to find in the Pacific NW than bonito, and much easier to prepare than kombu seaweed.
Because this recipe calls for both sugar and soy sauce, it can also be used as a flavoring with grilled chicken (yakitori), thin slices of beef served over vegetables (sukiyaki), etc.
The traditional Kaeshi prep method is as follows:
4 1/4 c. (1 litre) good quality soy sauce
3/4 to 1 c. mirin
3/4 to 1 c. brown sugar
Directions:
1. In a pot, heat mirin until boiling, then simmer until much of the alcohol has evaporated.
2. Turn off heat and add sugar to pot, stirring until sugar is dissolved.
3. Add soy sauce and bring to a boil until liquid temp is 185 degrees F (85 degrees C).
4. Turn off heat and let cool until transferring liquid to a container.
Ingredients
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp mirin
1 tsp brown sugar
Directions
Combine ingredients and mix until sugar has dissolved. Serve as is in a separate bowl from soba noodles or mix with soba noodles, then serve.
Can also prepare with rehydrated wakame seaweed and serve over cooked soba noodles. I like wakame since it is cheaper and easier to find in the Pacific NW than bonito, and much easier to prepare than kombu seaweed.
Because this recipe calls for both sugar and soy sauce, it can also be used as a flavoring with grilled chicken (yakitori), thin slices of beef served over vegetables (sukiyaki), etc.
The traditional Kaeshi prep method is as follows:
4 1/4 c. (1 litre) good quality soy sauce
3/4 to 1 c. mirin
3/4 to 1 c. brown sugar
Directions:
1. In a pot, heat mirin until boiling, then simmer until much of the alcohol has evaporated.
2. Turn off heat and add sugar to pot, stirring until sugar is dissolved.
3. Add soy sauce and bring to a boil until liquid temp is 185 degrees F (85 degrees C).
4. Turn off heat and let cool until transferring liquid to a container.
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