Toddler Bento (28 April): Tofu Chicken Nugget 

• Rice with soysauce seasoned dried bonito
• Chicken nugget
• Potato, bacon, carrot, zucchini butter saute  

Usually chicken nugget involves chicken breast. This time, I used thigh saved from previous dinner, chicken and cashew nuts stir fry with oyster sauce.

Adding tofu makes the nugget very soft.

Chicken nugget recipe:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Chick-nugget/

The recipe of Chicken and cashew nuts stir fry with oyster sauce will be introduced soon.

Ingredients

• Chicken thigh
• Tofu
• Onion
• Mushroom
• Salt 
• Paprika Powder  

Directions 

1. Blend all the ingredients until smooth.

2. Place in a cling film to spread into 1cm thin. Alternatively if not making heart shape, just make bite sized pieces then cook them immediately.

3. Keep the batter in freezer to shape. I used heart shaped mould this time.

4. Dust both sides of nugget with corn flour. Heat up the pan with oil and fry the both sides over medium temperature. Then turn the heat small and cover with a lid. Leave it for 3-4 mints to cook.  

5. Top ketchup to serve.

Timte to prepare: 20 mints

Baby Bento Recipe (7 April): Tofu with egg and Potato Gratin 

Potato gratin was made at previous dinner preparation. 

Cook the sliced potato in microwave for 1-2 mints and place them into a baking cup, add milk, panko (bread crumble) and parmesan cheese. 

Grill in the oven at 200C for 7-10 mints.

As always, potato gratin is the essential side for our steak.
http://japanesegourmet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/steak-date-sirloin-steak-tomato-salad.html

Tofu with egg recipe

This recipe is based on miso bean curd and is involving more veggies and set with an egg.

http://japanesegourmet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/miso-bean-curd-with-beef-peas-rice.html

1. Cook the carrot in a microwave safe container for 30 seconds. Chop shiitake, carrot and spring into small pieces.

2. Fry the veggies and 1/2 tablespoon of minced beef. I used soboro, soy and sugar seasoned minced beef this time. 

3. Add 1/4 teaspoon of soy sauce and miso as well as 1 teaspoon of mirin and 1 tablespoon of water. Once the contents boiled, add tofu and 1/4 teaspoon of sesame oil  and cook over small heat for 2 mints.

4. Add 1/2 portion of beaten egg and cover with a lid immediately. Then turn the heat off.

Timte to prepare for each dish: 10-15 mints

Sesame Tofu (Saturday, longtime ago)

I've been sick and didn't have energy to upload my blog. 

Sorry for being away and thank you so much for reading my blog. 

Some weeks ago, we got a young beautiful couple. 

I introduce an appetiser "Sesame Tofu" that I often make when I receive guests. We had nice sashimi from Atariya to go nicely with the sesame tofu.

Sesame Tofu

Ingredients

<sesame tofu>

• 1 cup (200-240cc) of soy milk
• 2 tablespoons of sesame paste (Tahini)
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 7-8g of gelatine 

<sauce>

• broad beans (removed out from pods and peeled the skin)
• 100cc water
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of corn flour (dissolved in 2 tablespoons of water)

Directions

1. Soak the leaf gelatine in 1 cup of cold water and leave it for 1-2 mins to ready. In using powered gelatine, add 1 tablespoon of water to absorve,

2. Heat up soy milk in a pan at small temperature, if it gets warm, add sesame paste and mix well to combine for 3-4 mins. Make sure the milk doesn't get boiled

3. Leave the pan from the heat, add gelatin and salt to dissolve. To avoid sesame paste and soy milk set separately,  I suggest to place the pan in cold water to let it cool while stirring the tofu-milk frequently 

4. Prepare a container and place a cling film to cover the bottom and sides. This process makes the tofu to take out from the container easier

5. Pour the milk into the container through a net

6. Leave the tofu in the fridge at least for 3 hours to set

7. Once the tofu sets, lift the cling film out from the container to take the tofu out

8. Cut the tofu  

9. Heat up the all ingredients of sauce at medium temperature, add broad beans to cook while the sauce gets thick

10 . Pour the sauce over each piece of tofu to serve.

Two days ago, we got a message that they were engaged!!! 
Congratulations!! 

Time to prepare: 20 mins for making tofu and 3 hours to set and dress the sauce

Total cost: less than 1 pound

Steamed Sea bass with oyster sauce,  Broad beans and prawn dressed with tofu-sesame paste (Dinner 23 July)

Steamed Sea bass with oyster sauce

Ingredients: 2 sea bass portions (removed shells and bone), 2 spring onions, 1 tablespoonful ginger (striped thinly), 2 tablespoonfuls coriander leaves

Seasoning: 1.5 tablespoonfuls Taiwanese rice wine (or Sake), 1.5 tablespoonfuls soy sauce, 1 teaspoonful oyster sauce, 1 teaspoonful sesame oil

 Directions

1. Prepare a steamer (set a steamer over the boiling pan) and a dish that fits in the steamer 

2. Place top green parts of spring onions (the bottom parts will be used later) in the dish

 2. Make lines on the skin of sea bass in 1cm distance each and place them over the spring onion

 3. Cut the ginger thin stripe, pour the Seasoning over the sea bass topped with pieces of ginger and place the dish on the steamer

4. Steam it in high temperature for 12-15 mins

Spring onion string

Vegetable tastes different according to the way of cut. Spring onion string is best way to enjoy the fiber-like texture as well the the bitter flavour.This is a great garnish. While steaming the sea bass, the spring onion string can be prepared.

Directions

1. Cut the bottom white part of spring onion into the half lengthwise or 5-6cm length and then cut each piece into half widthwise

2. Turn the surface exposed after the cut above, then slice it lengthwise thinly as following the fiber of the onion

Hold the piece with other hand

 3. Wash strings of spring onion through the net and drain the water

 4. Wrap in a kitchen paper and remove the extra moisture

Broad beans and prawn dressed with tofu-sesame paste

Ingredients:Tofu (100g or 1/3), boiled prawn (handfull portion about 120g), broad beans (100g boiled and removed out the skins), 1 tablespoonful sugar, 1 tablespoonful soy sauce, 1/2 tablespoonful Tahini or sesame paste, 1 pinch of salt

Directions

1. Wrap the tofu in the doubled layers of kitchen paper, heat it up in microwave for 1.5 mins. Allow it cool and squeeze it with a hand to remove water 

2. Put tofu, sesame paste, soy sauce, sugar and salt into a blender and make it creamy (run the blender for 30-40 seconds)

3. Dress the paste with boiled prawn and beans

Instead for prawn and broad beans combination, many other boiled veggies can be applicable with this paste. This menu dressing boiled veggies with tofu-sesame paste is called "Shira-ae". A traditional dish and popular way to recycle the leftover tofu in Japan.

We had a cool guest, a game designer.

Total time of preparation: 40 mins

Total cost for three people: 11.22 pounds (5.98 for 2 sea bass, 3.64 for raw prawn, 1 Tofu (1/3 of 3 pounds), 60p for other veggies)

Spicy tofu stir-fry with Korean-miso 

(Dinner on 19th June)

 Deep fried tofu stir fry, Sashimi, Miso soup with winter cabbage and rice

I had an active day around Mayfair area. Attended a ballet class at Dance Works, had a nice coffee with my friend in a cute caffe Taylor St Baristas in Brook Mews, then did shoes hunting in Fenwick. I got a bit tired and decided to have sashimi for the main for today's dinner. I usually get fresh sashimi in Atariya. There are some branches of Atariya including the one near Bond Street Station. We can dine there as well as get some take aways of sashimi or sushi. After Atariya, as usual, I dropped to Waitrose in John Lewis to top up more food stuffs. Mayfair area is quite convenient for food shopping.

Sashimi is a quite mild dish. To satisfy a male stomach (of Mr. Husband), I needed to add a slightly strong flavoured dish. Stir-fry with korean miso (you can get it any oriental food shops) was the solution.

Spicy deep fried tofu stir fry with Korean-miso  (1/3 paprika, 1 Spring Onion, 1/2 Deep fried tofu, sliced pork, ginger and garlic, starch flower, soy sauce, mirin and Korean miso)

1.  Slice veggies thin, chop pork 1cmx5cm and cut tofu in the same length of other staffs
2. Put pork into a bowl and add soya sauce and mirin (1 tablespoonful each), then grate half cube of garlic and same amount of ginger and mix well
3. Prepare Korean miso (the red box in the photo) by putting into a small container and add 2 tablespoonful hot water and dissolve it
4. Take the pork out from the bowl and place it on the paper towel, then power a tablespoonful starch flower (keep the seasoning)
5. Heat a large frying pan with high temperature and put all the ingredient. Keep mixing until the pork is done (roughly for 4 mints)
6. Add the pork seasoning and Korean miso water and allow the ingredient to boil for 1 mint till the sauce gets gooey
7. Serve them with some coriander (if you have) on the top

I usually prepare other dish (rice and miso-soup) first and start to cook stir fry dish in the very end to serve it in hot.

Total time for cooking: 20 mints

Total cost: 2.2 pounds 

1.4 pounds for Tofu (1/2 of 2.80), 30p for pork (1/6 of 1.80), 60p for spring onion, 10p for paprika and other (excluding 21 pounds of sashimi).