Saturday 22 September 2018

VeganMoFo 2018 #22: Menu: Fall or Year-Round Menu from Japanese Cooking

I love Japanese food, and Japanese Cooking: Contemporary & Traditional, by Miyoko Schinner, has been a great resource to make some simple but delicious food at home. This is another book I have rediscovered by working through some older cookbooks, and I can't believe that I let it languish for so long! The book has a number of menus, organised by suggested season or year-round. The menu today is for 'Fall or Year-Round'. You can see what else I have cooked from this book here.

Miso Soup with Daikon Radish and Tofu Pouches: Think of a Japanese meal, and you probably thing of miso soup being included. This version uses homemade kombu dashi (very easy), lots of miso (I used a blend of red and white), daikon, and abura-age (fried tofu pouches, look for them in the freezer section of your Japanese or Asian food market). I made a half recipe, which was a perfect three small bowls for three people.
Rating: :)

Miso Soup with Daikon Radish and Tofu Pouches


Carrot and Tofu Scramble: I made this with Japanese-style firm tofu, which is softer than the firm or extra-firm Chinese-style I normally use for scrambles. I had a 300g block (rather than 450g), so I adjusted the recipe accordingly. The recipe calls for the same weight in carrots, but 300g of shredded carrots is actually a huge amount. I ended up using about 250g. It is simply flavoured with soy sauce and sesame oil.
Rating: :)

Carrot and Tofu Scramble


Spinach with Sesame Sauce: I couldn't find any bunches of spinach on this particular day, so I used about 350g of baby spinach. Instead of steaming it, I just wilted it in the microwave. The sesame sauce is very easy to make sesame seeds, sugar, and soy. It is quite salty, so definitely use the full amount of sugar suggested. I blitzed my sesame seeds in a mini food processor, rather than using a traditional suribachi or mortar.
Rating: :)

Spinach with Sesame Sauce


Stewed Vegetables: This seems simple, a mix of vegetables and mushrooms simmered in a four ingredient liquid. But oh my god it is delicious! I used a blend of kabocha, carrots, daikon, and dried sliced shiitake (which I just added in dry as they were sliced thin to reconstitute during simmering). The simmering liquid is made from kombu broth, sweetener (I used sugar), mirin, and soy and by the time all the vegetables have simmered, softened, and released their juices it is absolutely drinkable!
Rating: :D

Stewed Vegetables


And here it is all together (minus the soup), served with some steamed white Japanese rice (of course!). Also some pickles that I made from a different book. It was a lovely combination. The sweet, simple scramble was great against the strong flavours of the sesame sauce on the spinach, and you know how I feel about that vegetable dish!

Year Round Menu #1


Cute Kitty Photo of the Post

Sahara and Dim Sim


I promise there are two kitties in this photo. Sahara is obvious, but can you see Dim Sim?

8 comments:

  1. I saw tofu pouches at the Asian market and wondered what I would do with them!! It all looks so simple and delicious!
    Yes, I see Dim Sim peeking for Sahara!

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    1. It was such a nice, easy menu to put together.
      Good work seeing Dim Sim, she blends in so well!

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  2. Oh, this book sounds great. I was wondering about vegan Japanese cookbooks earlier and I didn't even know Miyoko had written one. I love the theme you've chosen for this week, too -- I like seeing those menus in cookbooks but I don't think I've ever deliberately made one! This looks like such a delicious and colourful meal.

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    1. I have another one called Kansha, which is beautiful but is super intense and traditional, involving a lot of specialty ingredients and time. Miyoko's book is much more accessible, and I've made heaps of great things.

      My compulsion to make the menus is sometimes to my detriment (the time they can sometimes take!), but it also is a fun weekend project.

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    2. I've looked at Kansha a few times and it sounds amazing too, but I think Miyoko's book may be what I'm looking for right now. Thanks for the recommendation!

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  3. The miso soup sounds perfect, and everything else looks great combined together! Sneaky little Dim Sim!

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    1. I think she is hoping that Sahara doesn't come in after her!

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  4. Japanese cuisine always seems so boring when looking through books but always are perfectly balanced and yummy. Then I regret doubting it lol. I think you sold me on this book with just the first recipe. I remember THINKING about getting it awhile ago and naturally did not.

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