Olympic Okinomi-Yaki (Japanese Pancake) (Dinner 29 July)

Okinomi Yaki is a Japanese style pancake originated in the western part of Japan. In the cabbage-based butter, meat and fish (or anything left in the fridge) are added and pan fried topped with sauce, seaweed-powder and mayonaise. 

This is a very healthy, economical and yummy dish that goes well with chilled beer.

Ingredients:1 cup of plain flour, 100cc cold water, 1 egg, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon soy-sauce, 1/2 dashi powder (Japanese fish stock powder, if not, dried bonito), 4-5 large leaves of cabbage, 1-2 spring onions, 50-70g fish (salmon and sea bass) and meat (polk)

Instead for fresh fish, dried or smoked fish is also very nice to create a depth of flavour. For instance, "Koebi", dried prawn is popular ingredient of Okinomi-yaki in Japan

Directions

1. Mix the flour, water, egg, salt, soy sauce and fish stock in a large bowl

2. Chop the cabbage, spring onions, meat and fish separately. Add veggies into the butter and mix well
3. Heat a large frying pan in medium temperature and fry the fish in half way

4. Spread the half of butter over the fish in round shape
5. Fry the meat in the edge space of the pan

6. Place the meat on the pancake and pour the rest of the butter over it

7. Tightly close the pan with a lid or a sheet of aluminium foil and leave it for 3 mins in low temperature

8. Turn the pancake to the other side and cover it again and leave it for 5 mins

9. Apply the sauce (mix HB sauce and soy sauce), top with powdered seaweed and mayonaise 

More instructions can be seen from the below site:

Total time to prepare: 30-35 mins

Total cost: Truly cheap, less than a pound

Olympic Omelette "Omu-Rice" (Sunday Brunch)

This recipe is introduced at 
Japanese Rice-Omelette "Omu-Rice".

Alternatively, refer a scene from a cool film, TAMPOPO (1985 by Juzo Itami)

Total time to prepare: 20 mins
Total cost: 0.7 Pounds

Olympic Bento to celebrate the opening (27 July) 

We gathered up at our Bulgarian couple's to cerebrate the opening of London Olympic. To enhance the excitement, I brought "Olympic Bento" as well as "Olympic Cake".

Deep-fried pork rolls with shiso leaf and cheese (left), Sushi balls (centre), Prawn with black-white sesame seeds

Tomatoes salad with pear, shallot and dill dressing  was wrapped in cling film to avoid leaking for the travel

Ice cream scoop creates a cute round shape of potato salad 

I made flags of Bulgaria (for my friends), Russia (for Mr. husband), Japan, the U.K. and the Olympic

Tiger prawns were seasoned with mirin and soy-sauce 
(1 teaspoon each)

Dust the prawn with corn flour, dress with beaten egg
and cover the half surface with white sesame seeds

Cover the rest of space with black sesame seeds

Deep fried pork rolls with shiso and cheese is my mom's regular bento menu

Shiso (Oba) leaves are popular Japanese summer herb

Place a shiso leaf with a thin stripe cheese on one side of a piece of thin sliced pork

Roll up each piece, dust with corn flour, dressed with beaten egg and Panko (grated bread)

Deep-fry prawns first then follow to pork pieces
 in the same oil

Sushi toppings were salmon, ikura and sea bass. Ikura was seasoned with mirin and soy sauce (1 teaspoonful each). I also made peas rice balls.

Slice the fish in 5mm thick

Mix the rice (immediately after cooked) with Sushi vinegar (sugar and cider vinegar 1 tablespoon each, a pinch of salt)  and allow it cool. Then make mouth sized rice balls

 Prepare a sheet of cling film and place the fish and rice ball on it and wrap them tightly to make a cute round shape

Coriander leaves were added to sea bass.
Make a ditch on the top of salmon balls with the edge of teaspoon for topping ikura

Total time to prepare: 3 hours
Total cost: 19.50 pounds (11.80 for fish, 5.01 for sliced polk, 1.08 for Shiso leaves, 1.20 for mini-tomatoes, 0.5 for other veggies)

 Olympic Cake -Green Tea Roll with Black Bean Cream

This is a very flurry and moist feeling cake. A combination of green tea flavour and the rich black-bean cream is indulging. Achieving the smooth sponge is decided with the quality of meringue.

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoonfuls of powdered green tea (Maccha)
• 5 large eggs (in room temperature)
• 60g of plain flour
• 10g of Corn Flour
• 120g of caster sugar
• 40cc of vegetable oil
• 60cc of milk (microwaved for 30 seconds), 

<Black Bean Cream stuffing>

• 300g of double cream
• 20g of caster sugar
• 1 can of sweet black bean (180-200g)
• 5 colours of icing sugar

Maccha can be found in Japan Centre
or a Japanese confectionery  Minamoto Kitchoan
Both shops locate in Piccadilly in London

A can of Sweet Black Bean (right)

Directions of Green Tea Sponge Cake

1. Place a baking sheet over a square cake pan. Heat the oven over 190c

2. Sift powdered green tea, plain flour and corn flour together
3. Separate eggs into white and yolk in a large bowl respectively

4. Add the half amount of sugar into the egg yolks and blend them till become whitish and creamy. Add oil and milk while blending the batter 

5. Add the sifted green tea flour into 4. and mix well with a spatula

6. Wash the whisks and attach to the blender. Make thick meringue with egg whites while adding the remained sugar bit by bit

Whisk the meringue until shiny peaks form

7. Add 1/3 of meringue into the green batter (5.) and whisk them with the blender. Change the tool to a spatula and add the rest of meringue. Combine them well by lifting up the spatula from bottom to top while turning the bowl with the other hand. This process should be done very quickly but thoroughly before the foam of meringue disappear

8. Pour the batter into the cake pan and drop the pan from 20cm high horizontally to the ground for three times to remove air bubbles

9. Bake it in the oven for 17 mins

10. Take the sponge out from the oven, allow it cool then wrap it with cling film to avoid getting dry

Directions of rolling the Sponge Cake with Black Bean Cream

1. Whip the double cream

2. Remove syrup and then mash the sweet black beans roughly in a bowl and add the half portion of whipped cream to combine

3. Add sugar to the rest of the cream and mix well

4. Place the Green Tea Sponge in a baking sheet large enough to roll the cake up. Make lines on the surface of sponge in 3cm distance each with a knife (width wise in the finished shape)

5. Spread the Black Bean Cream and white cream over the sponge 

6. Lift the front side of Black Bean Cream part with the sheet and start to roll it up to the end

7. Wrap the roll cake with the baking sheet and twist the edge to store in fridge.

Directions of Olympic Rings with icing sugar

Make two different size of circle papers. The larger is to cut out the outer and the smaller is for the inner circle of rings. Make 5 rings with each sheet of coloured icing sugar. 

Five rings are cut out 

Then join them together!