Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Katsudon



This is a Japanese dish, a rice bowl. My husband told me the other day that this was his favorite thing when living in Japan. I was thrilled to make something for him that was his "favorite". He pretty much loves everything and doesn't often request a dish. Also, I currently have a guest living with me from Japan. He is just here for a month, so I was nervous about whether or not this was going to taste American-Japanese, or authentic. Yuske told me it tasted just like his mothers! That made my day. I will warn you, this is not a healthy dish. It's Japanese comfort food, and we all loved it!

This dish is usually made with pork, but we did the chicken version. Also, it's best when each bowl is served individually. I was nervous about this too. I thought it would take forever, but it actually went pretty smooth. Some prep work ahead of time helped. I will give you the recipe for 1, so if you are serving more, you will just repeat the process. So, here we go:

For the chicken:
1 chicken breast
1 beaten egg mixed with 1 tbs flour
more flour for dredging
panko bread crumbs
oil for frying (enough to come up a few inches in your pan)

Pound the chicken a little to thin it out. Maybe 1/2 inch or so.

Heat oil.

Dredge the chicken in the flour, then dip it in the egg mixture. Let the excess fall off and then coat in the Panko bread crumbs. (these are Japanese bread crumbs and are much crispier) Drop in your oil and let it cook. Once it gets golden brown on one side, flip it over until the other side is the same. Set aside and slice.

For the sauce:

1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon granulated Dashi (Japanese Soup Stock-found at your local asian/oriental market)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon mirin
1 teaspoon sugar
1 to 2 oz sliced onion, about a handful
1 lightly beaten egg
1 bowl of prepared rice



Combine the water, dashi, soy sauce, mirin, sugar and onion in a small pan. When it begins to boil, add the chicken.






Then pour the egg on top and around the chicken. Cover and cook for about 90 seconds until the egg is just set.
Then slide the contents of the pan onto the rice (which you've already put in the bowl).






And there you have it!

Okay, so here's how I made it easier on myself:

First I prepared all the sauces. I took 5 bowls and put the sauce ingredients with the onions into each one.

Next, I did all the chicken. It took about 2 beaten eggs mixed with 1 1/2 tbs of flour. I did fry them 2 at a time so the pan did not get crowded. I put some flour for dredging on one plate and the panko on another and added more if I needed to.

Once I had all the chicken done and set aside, I started on each bowl. As the sauce was heating up, I beat 1 egg. When the sauce was boiling, I added the chicken and the egg. Then cover it and put some rice in a bowl. By this time, your dish was about done and you could top off your rice.

I just had my family begin eating so no one's got cold. And we still ate together as a family.

This is definitely a more involved dish. I would love to know if you try it!

A huge shout out to mamaloli. This is where I found an awesome recipe, and she was kind enough to answer all of my questions. She's got lots of great dishes on her site too.






Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Fresh Salsa



I love summer time, and I love summer eating! All the fresh fruits and vegetables....YUM! Here is a fresh salsa recipe I got from my friend Jayne. Jayne is just an amazing woman and she gave me some of her salsa the other day and I had to get the recipe. The way I made salsa is real similar, but I just couldn't figure out what was missing. Now I know! Which I guess just gives me peace of mind. But I just had to share her recipe. It rocks!! And if there's one thing I could eat everyday for the rest of my life it's chips and salsa... or mexican food in general. I hope you enjoy it!

4 cups tomatoes (about 8-10)
2 cups green pepper (about 2)
1-2 jalepenos, depending on the heat level you want. removing ribs and seeds makes it milder**
3/4 cup onion
1 head of garlic (not 1 clove...the whole head)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 bunch cilantro
1 tbs cumin
2 tbs brown sugar

Place all ingredients, roughly chopped, in a food processor. Process until desired consistency is reached. I do mine about 30 seconds or less and pulse a few times. If you don't have a food processor, finely chop all your vegetables and mix everything together.

**I reccommend using gloves when working with jalepenos. Even after washing your hands there is residue that is left behind and if you get that in your mouth you'll be burning for hours!

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookies


Makes about 16 cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
½ cup rolled oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

3. On medium speed, cream together the butter, peanut butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat to combine. On low speed, gradually add the flour until just combined. Stir in the oats, and then the chocolate chips.

4. drop dough onto prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 -12 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden.