Chestnut Rice - My Version Of The Kurigohan

In perennial sunny Singapore,we don't get to witness the wonders of changing seasons. We miss out the thrills of watching leaves budding from bare branches, the harvesting of raspberries followed by strawberries and blueberries(not sure if I get the sequence right)in spring, the abundance of stone fruits and grapes in summer and the dawning of figs,chestnuts and clementines in winter... As I do get to travel quite extensively for work all over Asia, I have become quite accustomed to ask my colleagues 'what is in season now?'. As such, I have programmed at the back of my mind... to look out for Alfonso Mangoes in India in April- May, Strawberries in Japan/Korea in January, Peaches and grapes in Japan/Korea in August.

Then of course, we are lucky to be in the 'middle' of the globe - hence when the northern hemisphere starts to bundle up for winter, Australia and New Zealand wake up to pour in their vibrant spring/summer crop for us to enjoy... So now, it is Strawberries bumper time, thanks to imports from Australia!

It was more than a week ago before I left for Sydney that I spotted these plump and beautiful chestnuts from Japan. They have been left in the fridge all this while and I knew that I cannot afford to dither any longer, lest they all start to perish away. I chose to use them for a basic dish that I felt would least alter the taste of the chestnuts. Kurigohan or Chestnut rice is a simple Japanese rice dish that is simply seasoned and cooked with chestnut. I had wanted this to be a simple one pot dish for dinner and decided to add a little more flavour to it by mixing in some deep fried silver fish.


My Japanese friends would probably reprimand me for contaminating the simple sweet taste of the Kurigohan with shots of strong flavour from the silver fish but for my Singaporean taste buds, the combination worked out well and I thoroughly enjoyed my dinner...



(Roasting chestnuts though, was not fun. I did not know when to take the chestnut out of the oven and once it was out, I burnt my fingers trying to peel off the shell.... I would just use ready cooked chestnuts when I cook this next time...)



Recipe :

Silver Fish 100g (Deep fried in oil until golden brown.Drain)
Chestnut 300g
Japanese short grain rice 320g(I used short-grained brown rice)
Short grain glutinous rice 150g (soaked in water overnight)
Dark Soy Sauce 2 Tbsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Mirin 2 Tbsp

Dashi Stock 500ml

Preparation :

1. Use a knife, etch a cross on the flat portion of the chestnut.Roast chestnut in oven at 220C for 20 mins with etched face up. When roasted, the etched lines will split and 'flower'.

Peel off the shell while the chestnuts are still hot.

2. Wash short grained rice and glutinous rice over running water. Place rice in a rice cooker. Add dashi,soya sauce,salt and mirin. Add roasted chestnut and cook in rice cooker until done.

3. Before serving, sprinkle with sesame seeds (typically, black sesame seeds are used, I used white sesame seeds).

4. Serve with a spoonful of crispy silver fish.

White Chocolate Steamed Bread ホウイトチョコ蒸しパン

When I posted the Strawberry & Milk Steamed Cake/bread last week, I was able sense that there is significant interests out there in steamed bread/cakes. Undoubtedly Asian by origin, these steamed bread/ cakes probably had their roots in all the steamed dumplings and steamed buns that our forefathers were eating.

Huat Kuey/Fatt Ko has never been a glamorous item on our to-eat list. Most either associate these with those hard and dense cakes sitting on the worship altars or coarse, rustic poor man's food- at least, those are my impression.

It is always delightful to find interesting interpretations on set ideas and cliches. All it takes is some curious and creative soul to wonder out of the box a little and the possibilities become endless - the dated can be transformed to become current, the boring and tacky can suddenly become interesting and chic....
This was the excitement I felt as I first flipped through the Steamed Bread Cook Book.



The last post on Strawberry & Milk Steamed Bread was based on the a very basic vegan recipe, without eggs and oil. There are a total of 3 basic recipes for the steamed bread, the second one is demonstrated here with the White Chocolate Steam Bread recipe. Containing egg and a little oil, this recipe ought to be softer than the first but because I ran out of Top flour and Rice flour, I susbtituted with the only flour I have in my pantry - which is the cake flour.  Texture is, I feel, denser than the last one made with rice flour. Nevertheless, it was good enough to have my neighbour stop by after eating it to ask me how I made it - did I put condensed milk in it, she asked.... The creamy white chocolate saved the day. Hmm... I wonder if my deceased ancestors will like these if I were to use them for prayer next time... now- that's turning the current dated!

I am going to stock up on more flour and experiment with the third basic recipe later this week. Look out for it.


Recipe :

1                   Egg
45g               Black Sugar (I used the Japanese black sugar. 黑砂糖)
60ml             Milk

100g             Top flour / Plain flour
1tsp              Baking powder for steamed cakes

10ml             Salad oil
35g               White chocolate

Method :

1. Heat water in a pot to boiling and stand by for steaming.
2. In a mixing bowl, add egg, sugar and mix with a hand whip until well combined. Add milk and mix until sugar dissolves.
3. Add flour and baking powder until a smooth paste is obtained. Incoporate oil into the batter.
4. Pour batter into lined pudding cups.
5. Add white chocolate into each cup.
6. Steam over medium heat for 12- 15mins.

Strawberry & Milk Steamed Bread 蒸しパン

The good old steamed cake (Huat Kueh/ Fatt Ko) is gaining some serious popularity in Japan and Taiwan. The Taiwanese are crazy over the savoury version, where the cakes are steamed with pork floss, minced meat sauce and fried shallots, to name a few. The Japanese like their cakes/bread steamed with sweet potato, pumpkin, mochi, red bean etc. I picked up the popularity vibe while prowling the various cookbook sections of bookshops in Tokyo and Taipei. It is generally a good barometer to measure what is gaining following in the market. This is especially true in Japan where meticulous attention is given to specific genres of pastry/ cakes. Nowhere else in the world will you find over 10 different publications featuring only chiffon cake recipes or swiss roll recipes or donuts ... So, when you see books featuring only Fatt Ko recipes, you know the fad has landed.

I bought my first Fatt Ko recipe book early this year and tasted my first Japanese Fatt Ko in Singapore 3 weeks ago. For those who are interested, check out Mushiya at the swanky but confusing  new shopping center, Ion Orchard. I was intrigued by the combination of mochi (steamed rice cake) with red bean topping on the Fatt Ko. The delightfully soft bread when eaten with pieces of chewy mochi was quite a novel and pleasant experience.... and thence my motivation to make steamed bread took off.



I knew that I had to get the basic steamed bread right - the fancy flavour and topping variations can be built in later. Having made traditional Huat Kuey before, I knew I have to pay attention to the different ingredients that are called out for in the recipe. The tradtional Huat Kuey, I feel is more symbolic than tasty. The steamed bread recipes had specified the use of a baking powder that is specially meant for steamed pastries. Apparently this kind of baking powder will result in a plump and soft steamed bread. I managed to find this recently at my favourite supermarket in Hong Kong, City Super.

Though the original recipe had called out for plain flour, I chose to use Japanese rice flour instead. The Japanese rice flour has been known to impart a more bouncy texture to cakes. Over the last few years in Japan, it has become a popular flour  for chiffon and sponge rolls.

Extremely simple to whip up and the results are extremely good ! The soft, bouncy texture of the bread was exactly what I had been trying to achieve. When eaten warm, the tenderness of the bread evokes a sense of bliss and happiness.... : )  Encouraged, I believe I will start to build in the fancy toppings next.


Recipe

100 ml                 Milk
3 tbsp                  Condensed milk
Sugar                   25g

Rice flour             75g (or plain flour)
Corn Starch         45g
Baking powder    1tsp ( baking powder for steaming)
Strawberry Jam    5 tbsp

Method :

1. Boil water in a pot.  Line pudding molds with cup cake liners.
2. In a bowl, mix Milk, condensed milk and sugar with a hand whisk until sugar is dissolved.
3. Add dry ingredients into (1) - continue to mix until a smooth paste is obtained.
4. Spoon (3) into each cup cake liner. Fill each liner to 3/4 full.
5. Add a tbsp of strawberry jam into (4). Using a skewer, gently fold batter in each cup to cover the jam.
6. Steam over boiling water for 15 mins.
7. Cool down to warm to touch. Spoon a tsp of strawberry jam over the cake and serve with tea.

Musk Melon Jelly - Will You Pay $200 For a Musk Melon?

The Japanese are a strange group of people. Their obsession with perfection can be so infuriatingly intense that very often it creates a whole new set of market values for seemingly simple things - the worst case of which spoils the market and makes it difficult for simple mortals like most of us to partake in some of the most wonderful experiences available.

When I was in Tokyo for a business trip in April, my Japanese colleague had introduced me to the most expensive fruit shop in Japan when we were switching trains at Nihonbashi. Having been established for 120 years, Senbikiya is not your ordinary fruit shop. It prides itself in offering the most popular, the highest quality, the most exotic and last but not least, the most expensive fruits in Japan (and possibly in the world !). Fueled by the unique Japanese fruit gifting culture, Senbikiya continues to thrive and has become the emblematic brand in luxury fruit gifting for the wealthy and powerful. The musk melon pointed out to me by my colleague was perched on a pedestal. A perfect round Melon with the price tag resting boldly at the foot of the pedestal that read 21,000Yen - which was roughly equivalent to US$200. My eyes widened in disbelief and I remembered I had immediately snapped a photo with my Black Berry and messaged it to L.
I have never really liked honey dews,  or similar melons. I would normally give them a miss at breakfast buffet tables for I feel that these fruits are tasteless and has a sickly funny smell. L, however seems to appreciate it more. He had told me he used to make it a point to lug a couple of musk melons home from Tokyo whenever he was there for business meetings - whatever for? I could never understand. He had urged me to try the fruit at least once, suggesting that I look for the US$50 varieties which are already very good. Then, at least I would have earned the right to brag about it - he continued to cajole. Of course I didn't listen to him!  So silly to lug a big melon home - I prefer to use that luggage weight allowance to get a couple more baking trays!

Anyway, that was in April. Then, recently, as I was shopping at the local Japanese supermarket, Isetan here, I spotted some imported musk melons, normally priced at S$79 (about USD50) on 30% discount. I supposed these had already ripened hence the supermarket was in a hurry to sell them off... I hesitated just a little, before I decided that this would be a good opportunity to try it and find out what all the fuss was about.

The symmetrically round melon with a lovely mesh-like pattern and a singular horizontal stalk was a picture of perfection. L had told me that the denser and the more defined the mesh-like pattern is, the more costly the fruit would be. I cut the fruit in half to expose a tender green colour in the flesh. As I had suspected, this was getting ripe hence some part of the flesh was already showing some transparency. However, what caught my attention first was the sweet elegant fragrance of the fruit. The flesh was so juicy that I had to hover over the sink when I bite into it. (the Japanese would faint if they knew  that I had dug into the prized fruit in such an uncivilised manner!) The sweet flavour was totally unlike the honeydew and rock melon that we usually get here! The copious amount of juice makes this an extremely cooling fruit to eat - as cooling as a watermelon. In addition, the sweet floral perfume of the fruit indicates that it has been preferentially nourished by mother nature. I had read somewhere that one of the reasons why this was so expensive is because each tree would only produce one fruit. During cultivation, the farmers, apparently would trim the vines of the tree to only allow 3 fruits to blossom. When these baby melons grow to about fist size, the farmers would select the most promising melon and cut off the other 2 in order to channel and lavish all the nutrients on the one singular melon that would be nurtured to eventually become the $200 Prized Musk Melon. Such is the Japanese's fixation on perfection!

It wouldn't be right if I don't blog about this rare possession. However, it is after all, to the Japanese, the King of the Fruits - hence as much as I would like to work with it, I couldn't bear to detract the carefully cultivated taste with excesses such as cream or milk. I found a simple Japanese dessert recipe that requires the fruit puree to be mixed with gelatine and a little sugar and a dash of lemon juice and whipped to a foamy jelly. I used about 1/8 of the melon for 2 little cups of this dessert and saved the rest for pure enjoyment.... and yes, I can now brag that I have eaten the prized Japanese Musk Melon and I would even dare to go to the extent to say that the Japanese Musk Melon would be the only type of honeydew melon I would eat from now onwards! (no, I am not being snooty - remember I don't touch honeydew or rock melons to start with.) If you have the opportunity, indulge at least once and, as L had said, you would then have earned the rights to brag about it!


Recipe
Gelatine Powder              8g
Water                              50cc

Sugar                               30g
Water                              100cc
Lemon Juice                     1 tbsp
Melon                              300g

Method
1. Blend the melon in a blender to form a puree.
2. Heat puree to warm to break down enzyme and cool down.
3. Mix gelatine with 50cc of water. Set aside.
4. In a heavy pot, add water and sugar and heat to dissolve. Remove from heat and add (3) and ensure gelatine is completely dissolved. Add lemon juice.
5. Add (4) to (2) , mix well and refrigerate for 1 hour. Whip the refrigerated mixture with an electric mixer over a bowl of ice water until fine foam is formed.
6. Spoon into cups and refrigerate till set.

Pan Fried Ginger Pork - 豚のしょが焼き

There was an article in the papers last week reporting that stocks of Japanese Kurobuta (black hog) and Japanese Wagyu Beef in Singapore are running low.  Following the break out of foot and mouth disease in Japan in April, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore has put a ban on the import of these premium meat.

I am a big fan of Kurobuta which refers to the rare Berkshire Black Hog bred in Japan. It is the Wagyu equivalent for Pork. I still remember when I saw it many years back at the local Japanese supermarket, I was fascinated by the even marbling of the pork and subsequently, when I had the chance to taste it, I was quite impressed by how tender and flavourful it was. The best way to enjoy a prized meat as such would be to season it simply with salt and pepper and grill it. However, due to its rather expensive price tag, (S$4-S$5/100g) these are normally sold at the local supermarkets here minced or sliced thinnly in Sukiyaki or Shabu shabu cuts - not exactly the best cuts for grilling.

I was lucky to chance upon some US Kurobuta on sale last week. Choosing the Sukiyaki cut for more bite, I couldn't wait to cook this.
One of my favourite Japanese Pork recipe is the very accessible Pan Fried Ginger Pork.  Extremely simple and quick to make, this dish goes beautifully with steaming hot white rice. It is so flavourful that one runs the risk of having too much white rice with it. In addition, the grated ginger really lends a warm and comforting feel to the dish.

Of course, one does not need to use Kurobuta Pork for this but I do like my pork to be sliced very thinnly for this dish and the Sukiyaki cut would be my choice. So here's for all who needs to cook a quick,easy and tasty meal.


Recipe :

Pork (Sukiyaki Cut)                 250g
Sake                                        1tbsp

Grated Ginger                          1tbsp
Grated Garlic                           1tsp
Mirin                                        1tbsp
Japanese dark Soya Sauce       1tbsp
Sesame Oil                               1tsp
Sake                                        1tbsp
Sugar                                        1/2 tsp

Method :

1. Marinate pork with 1tbsp of Sake and leave for 10 mins.
2. Mix all the other ingredients together and mix well with a fork.
3. Heat a frying pan and add 1/2 tbsp of oil. Fry marinated pork until pork changes colour.
4. Add the sauce mixture and let simmer for about 5 mins.

Dorayaki 銅鑼焼き - Doraemon's Favourite Japanese Snack

I grew up with Doraemon Manga (Japanese comics). I would scour the library for those flimsy copies of Chinese publications. They cost about 50 cents per copy when I was in primary school. Doraemon (ドラえもん) is one of my favourite Japanese cartoon character - possibly a close second to Chibi Maruko (樱桃小丸子).  For those who are not familiar, Doraemon is a Japanese manga series written by Hiroshi Fujimoto. The key character of the same name is a futuristic robotic cat entrusted to chaperone the lazy 'protagonist' of the series,Nobita.

I remember waiting eagerly for every new instalment of the series, curious to see what new futuristic gadgets the ear-less blue cat will pull out of his little front pocket. The series is still running today and I hope it will never end!

Doraemon fans out there will know that Doraemon's favourite snack is a Japanese Bean Paste Pancake sandwich known as, what else but Dorayaki!

The pancake takes the form of a Dora, (铜锣) which is a gong-like(cymbal like) instrument. Seemingly simple to make, it is, but a nightmare for a perfectionist. You would want your pancakes to turn out evenly and beautifully browned to just the right shade of brown - not too black and not too light. Then, you want them to be all of the same size. The former entails super precise heat control. Too hot and you get a blackish brown, too low, it ends up with a pale brown blush. What you really want to achieve, is a almost rich chocolately brown. With the professional steel hot plate and professional recipe, you get an almost deep mahogany shade. See how they do it here :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO6oEhIWgAI&feature=player_embedded

 

To be quite honest, I don't even really like to eat Dorayaki but it seems like a fun thing to experiment in the kitchen.I followed Keiko Ishida's recipe published in her Japanese Kitchen. Results are decent enough but I had to do quite a few pancakes to get a few relatively 'photogenic' ones. Given that I am not that crazy over the treat, I don't suppose I will make this again. This one's for Doraemon!

Recipe

Plain flour                100g

Baking powder        1/2 tsp

Eggs                        2

Castor sugar            90g

Honey                     1tbsp

Mirin                       1tbsp

Water                      2tbsp

Method

1. Sift flour and baking together twice.

2. In a mixing bowl, beat eggs with sugar with a whisk until egg mixture turns pale and thickens.

3. Add Honey, Mirin and water to the foamed egg.

4. Fold  (1) carefully into the egg.

5. Set batter aside for 30mins.

6. In an oiled griddle/ non-stick frying pan, add 3 tbsp of batter and swirl pan to get a round 8cm circle.

7. Control heat carefully to just brown the underside of the pan cake.

8. Turn pancake over and pan-fry other side for a few seconds until brown.

9. Remove pancake and repeat until all batter is used up. Makes about 16 pancakes.

10. Top half the pancakes , with a portion of red bean paste. (I made this myself but this can be bought easily from Japanese supermarkets.) Sandwich with remaining pancakes.

Japanese Cheesecake - Coffee Flavour

The failure from 2nd bake.... the only photo taken in daylight with the DSLR.

Japanese Cheesecake has a souffle like texture which is discernibly different from the heavier American cheesecakes. The recipe is  readily available. At least 3 recipe books on my book shelf carry a recipe for the Japanese Cheesecake. There are some slight variations among them but in a nutshell, this cake requires one to melt the cream cheese and butter over a Bain Marie. Egg whites are beaten separately to get an airy meringue and added to the rest of the ingredients. The batter is then baked gently in a water bath.

I think every avid Asian baker in the blogosphere would have made this at one time or another. I, however, have never made this cake and when I saw the recipe, I thought it would be a piece of cake for I am quite comfortable at baking chiffon cakes. Well, as it always happens when I get over confident, I have to be humbled by repeated failures.

I first approached it like I would with the chiffon cake - the cake, though tasted good, split at the surface like an overzealous Huat Kuay - only this time, I didn't want to 'Huat' !

2nd attempt, I beat the egg white gingerly, unsure of when to stop. In the end, I think I stopped beating the egg white too soon, ending up with a rather 'wet' mixture - the cake was soggy and 'uncooked'.

Finally, 3rd attempt I decided to take a couple more precautions. I premixed the flour with the egg yolk and part of the liquid in order to avoid too much folding which could trap air bubbles - causing it to split again.
And I tried my best to identify the right end point in the egg white beating.

This time, the cake did not split and appear to be decently cooked. Though I think I can still afford to beat the egg white a little more to get a more airy texture.

In addition to getting the cake right, I was also looking forward to play with the Nikon DSLR which my friend, Michelle had generously lend to me to experiment. I am trying to compare the difference in picture quality with my own compact camera. The first thing I noticed is that the exposure appears to be more true with the DSLR.  With my compact camera, it has always been a hit or miss with the exposure - even when the metering appears right, the exposure tends to appear harsher. The DSLR has a softer more natural finish.  I took all the slices at night with artificial light, without exposure compensation on the camera.Suprisingly, they look... pretty decent - I didn't even have to tweak the exposure or colour intensity with photoshop. I don't know if this is for real or just fluke but I am not going to run out and buy a DSLR just yet, that's for sure. I will continue to play some more with the DSLR and see if I can get more consistent results.




Recipe :

125g       Cream cheese
25g         Unsalted butter
25g         Milk

3             Egg yolks
25g         Milk
30g         Pastry flour
10g         Corn flour
1/8tsp     Salt
1 tbsp     Coffee Extract

3             Egg white
1/8 tsp    Cream of tartar
70g         Sugar


Method :

1. Preheat oven to 160C.
2. Over a Bain Marie, melt cream cheese, butter and milk to get a smooth, creamy consistency. Leave to cool. Tip 1: mix with a spatula. Do not use a whisk.
3. In a mixing bowl, beat the egg yolk with a hand whisk lightly, add milk and flour/corn flour/ salt. Add in coffee extract. Add in 2 and mix well with a spatula.
4. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk egg white until foamy. Add the sugar/cream of tartar to the egg white in 2 additions. Beat egg white until soft peaks are acheived. I beat until the peaks were droopy when the whisk is inverted.  Do not over beat unless you are looking for a split cake.
5. Mix 1/3 of meringue with the egg yolk/cheese batter. Fold the rest of the meringue into the batter.
6. Pour into a greased baking tin lined with parchment paper at the bottom of the tin.
7, Bake the cake in a water bath at 160C for 50mins. (water level should be around 2inch deep)

Do You Have Pink Champagne? - Taking Inspiration From An Affair To Remember

We are counting down to Valentine's Day and Chinese New Year, both of which fall on the same day this year and for the February month of Romance, Singapore Airlines has, aptly, compiled a list of Romantic Classics for their in-flight movie screening. One which I have watched twice within this month, is the old time classic, An Affair To Remember - starring the impossibly suave Gary Grant and the very likeable Deborah Kerr. For those who needs a reminder, this is the movie that was referenced in Sleepless In Seattle - this is the original movie that pitched the promise of meeting on the Empire State Building rooftop.

I risk sounding old fashioned and cliche by saying this but I will say it anyway, they don't make movies like these anymore. Devoid of glitzy pyrotechnics and computer graphic effects, old movies, I feel, always manage to deliver a mega dose of glamour and class. It could be the charisma of the actors and actresses themselves, the clever lines, the evergreen plot -but whatever they are, I find them less forgettable than the newer movies we are flooded with today. I always have to struggle to remember the name of an actress or a movie today but one can never forget Audrey Hepburn, Ingrid Bergman, Lauren Bacall..... The permanent impression of Audrey Hepburn standing in front of Tiffany is indelible and the clever and charged exchanges between Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart in the other Classic Love Story, To Have and Have Not - is priceless and always leave me sighing for more. Here's an example :

[Slim kisses Steve]

Steve(Bogart): What did you do that for?
Slim(Bacall): I've been wondering if I'd like it.
Steve: What's the decision?
Slim: I don't know yet.
[They kiss again]
Slim: It's even better when you help.

These are the type of  lines that are waiting to go terribly wrong but when you hear it in Bacall's husky (non-stereo enchanced) voice and see the moody, cool expression on Bogart's face - it becomes eternally memorable!

As I walked by the Duty Free Shop at Changi Airport, the Moet Chandon's Pink Champagne Valentine promotion pack caught my eyes and immediately brought back this scene from An Affair To Remember - where Gary Grant's and Deborah Kerr's character had both unwittingly ordered pink Champagne at the bar counter.When Deborah Kerr dabbed the champagne behind her ear lobes, I was... bewitched. Don't worry, I am not going to go around dabbing champagne on my pulse points - I know I won't be able to pull it off.

(Click on the Video button on the top left corner to see the video. Please let me know if the video doesn't play...)

Create a playlist at MixPod.com

Determined to find a sweet that would pair with the pink champagne, the first ingredient that came to my mind was strawberry. Once again, I turned to Keiko's Okashi for the Strawberry Mochi recipe. The original recipe called for red bean paste but I decided to put the Prune Paste (枣泥) that I bought in Taiwan to good use and I thought the champagne should pair better with a tangy fruit paste instead of a bean paste.

My first time making a Mochi, I messed up my kitchen quite a bit experimenting with different cooking time for the glutinous rice flour. But all in all, it is quite an easy recipe to follow and I am really glad the Prune Paste is not overly sweet - in fact it was quite subtle allowing the strawberry's sweetness take center stage.

For those who are keen to try something different, I would strongly recommend this.

Recipe (Adapted from Keiko Ishida's Okashi)

Prune Paste            170g

Glutinous Rice flour 70g

Water                     110g

Potato starch for coating

Small strawberries, 4 washed and hulled.

Method

1. Combine glutinous rice flour and water in a bowl. Mix well. Microwave at 600W for 1 min. Stir the mixture again. Microwave again for 1 min.

2. Cool down dough. Coat dough with potato starch, then flatten using hands. Divide into 4 even pieces.

3. Place 40g of Prune Paste on a cling wrap film. Place 1 strawberry in the middle. Roll the paste to cover the strawberry. Chill the filling for a few minutes.

4. Place each filling ball in the middle of each piece of dough. Cover the Prune Paste dough , gently using your fingers, stretch the dough over the Prune paste balls. Coat rice ball with potato starch and serve immediately.

Bean Curd Chawan Mushi - Soy Steamed Egg

I tread perilously every time I get ready to photograph for my blog. Through trial and error, I have vaguely gotten the knack of capturing the right lighting in my kitchen. I have graduated from using craft paper as my background to fabric (table cloth, placement mat. dish towels...) which gives a softer finish and has a lesser tendency to bounce harsh lights around. However, photographing food for me now, can only, at best be considered a hit or miss exercise. I still get exasperated when the still shot ,which appears sharp and polished on the tiny camera display screen, turns drab and blah when projected on the computer screen.

Styling for me is especially challenging as I am not blessed with 'the eye'. I sometimes feel that the way I style my photos is quite similar to the way I dress - there are days where I can throw a few disparate pieces of clothing together and look good in them and others where my garbs selection just make me feel like an awkward duck. Today is one of those days when I am having a bad pictorial day - photo block, whatever you call it for I stood there staring for quite a long while at the 2 bowls of egg custard, not knowing what to do with them....

Consolation came after I put away my camera and started digging into the Chawan Mushi. It tasted simple, honest and totally unpretentious. I felt purged. I have always loved Tofu and have on a few occassions made egg tofu from scratch. This particular recipe was published in one of the old Japanese food periodicals I bought in Japan a few years back. This particular issue featured 100% on tofu. What got me excited is the idea of steaming dried bean curd skin ( Yuba, 湯葉、腐竹，Fuchock) in egg tofu. The egg tofu is made by mixing egg with soya bean milk. The stock used can be kept light with a Kombu Dashi, Mushroom stock or for those who prefer a stronger flavour, chicken stock. The tender bite from the bean curd skin provides a textural contrast to the soft, custardy tofu. A very pleasant, serene experience.... unfortunately, this did not come through in the photos.

P.S. : I made the mistake of adding the bean curd skin into the egg/soy liquid. This actually displaced air in the liquid and resulted in bubbles. I would try to place the bean curd skin in the bowl next time before gradually pouring in the egg/ soy  mixture.
Recipe :

1            egg
1/3 cup   mushroom dashi stock ( I used the porcini mushroom powder to make the stock.)
1/2 cup   unsweetened soya bean milk

10g         dried bean curd skin (use the thin version commonly used for chinese desserts)

1/4 tsp     Soya sauce
1/4 tsp     Salt

Method :

1. Soak dried bean curd skin in water for 3 mins to soften. Drain water.
2. In a bowl, beat egg very lightly to avoid creating too many bubbles.
3. Add the soya sauce and salt into dashi stock.
4. Add (3) into (2)
5. Add Soya bean milk and mix well.
6. Use a fine mesh, filter the egg mixture into 2 small bowls. Add softened bean curd skin.
7. Steam (6) over strong boiling water for 1.5mins. Reduce heat to low boiling and continue to steam for 8 mins.  Insert bamboo skewer into tofu. When cooked, you should not see any milky liquid surface.

Sakura Ebi Mentaiko Pasta

While preparing for my last post on Sakura Ebi Fried Rice, I had tried to google about Sakura Ebi and found a whole avalanche of interesting recipes using Sakura Ebi (Cherry Blossom Dried Shrimps). The Japanese sites were especially inspiring and one that stood out was a simple yet what appeared to be a universally embraced recipe : The Sakura Ebi Pasta. This is one of those recipes that is exotic east meets west - where the Japanese takes Wafu（和風）flavours and incorporates it with western cuisine and ...lo & behold... there has been no looking back since. This is especially true when the pasta sauce is based on a Mentaiko butter sauce which is easily the favourite Wafu spaghetti recipe in Japan and beyond.

For those who are not familiar with the Mentaiko (明太子), these are actually spicy pollock roe. They are also sometimes referred to as spicy cod roe. The mentaiko has a salty and spicy taste - as a result of the marinating and light fermenting process in chilli, sake and konbu. It is actually very flavourful. One can buy these at the supermarkets over the sushi / sashimi counter. Bought over the sashimi counter, they would still be in their own membrane/ sac. These will need to be slit open with a knife and the delicious roe can then be scraped out.

These are mixed with butter, lemon juice, a little Japanese mayonaise and a little Olive oil. I did not use up all the Mentaiko butter and had wrapped the remaining butter using cling wrap into a log (like a susage) and stashed it away in the freezer.

Topped with the Sakura Ebi which were lightly pan fried to a fragrant crunchiness, this pasta dish is actually very very good. What would I do differently next time? - Add some fried onions and sprinkle some seaweed dust.



Recipe :

1-2 sacs                    Sashimi grade Mentaiko
1 tbsp                       Unsalted butter
1/2bsp                      Japanese Mayonnaise
1 tsp                         Olive oil
1 tsp                         Lemon juice

1 portion                   Spaghetti
Handful                     Sakura Ebi

Salt & Pepper           To taste

Method:

1. Slit open the Mentaiko sac and remove egg roe. Mix softened butter, mayo, olive oil and lemon juice in a bowl. Add in egg roe and mix well to get a smooth creamy sauce.

2. In a shallow frying pan, add a few drops of olive oil. Add Sakura Ebi and toast fry until it is fragrant and crispy.

3. Prepare spaghetti as directed on packaging.

4. Toss drained spaghetti in a dollop of Mentaiko butter sauce.

5. Top with Crispy Sakura Ebi.