Yellow Squash Garlic Bites イエロースクワシュ、ガーリックバイツ

The other day, my wife picked up two yellow squash from Whole Foods. This led us to question, “What is the difference between “zucchini” and “yellow squash?*” Our conclusion is that both belong to the squash family and “yellow zucchini” exists but “yellow squash” is not “yellow zucchini”. We ate one of the squash sautéed for dinner which meant there was one left. My wife decided to use it before it went bad by making this dish inspired by the recipe she saw on-line called “Zucchini Garlic Bites”. As usual, she made some changes mostly due to what we had on hand. (For one thing we had “yellow squash” on hand not zucchini.) I helped by prepping the veggies. This came out rather nicely; with crunchy outer crust and soft, moist interior with subtle garlic and onion flavors. The cayenne pepper added a nice zing. Perfect nice bites. They actually got better with time as the various flavors melded together. Instead of making a dipping sauce, we just used the marinara sauce I made which we keep in the fridge mostly for pizza. This went very well.

*It appears that ”Yellow squash” is not a common vegetable in Japan. I see descriptions and recipes for dishes made of “zucchini” but not yellow squash.

Ingredients:
2 cups shredded yellow squash drained well** (The original recipe calls for zucchini)
1 clove garlic grated fine
2/3 cup breadcrumbs (used Panko)
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh green onion (the original recipe calls for chives)
(the original recipe calls for 1 tbs chopped parsley)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano (or 1/2 teaspoon dried), we used dried
pinch of salt and cayenne pepper (1/8 tsp or more)
tomato sauce for dipping

** I use a potato ricer to squeeze out the moisture. This works better than other methods we tried.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Cover a baking sheet with a sheet of parchment paper. Set aside.
Use a box grater to grate the yellow squash. Using a potato ricer, squeeze out moisture (in batches).
Mash the garlic using a garlic press.
Add the shredded squash, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, parmesan, green onion, basil, oregano, salt and cayenne pepper to a medium bowl. Mix well to combine. 
Shape a tablespoon of the mixture into your hands, pat into small balls. (You may need to add more breadcrumbs if the mixture is too wet to hold its shape). Place on the baking sheet.
Bake for 15-18 minutes in the preheated oven until golden. Serve warm with marinara sauce. Recipe makes about 16 bites.

Scallop fry ホタテのフライ

When we make “chicken tender cutlets”, we usually make extra and add a few additional items to fry since hot oil for frying is available. So, one evening, as a first course, I made scallop fry from sashimi grade scallops 刺身用ホタテ (from Riviera Seafood Club). Since these were sashimi grade scallops I left the center undercooked/raw.

Here is a close up. Only the surface is cooked and crunchy but the center is uncooked. This is one of the best way to enjoy scallops.  The center is a bit firmer than when eaten as sashimi but very sweet and the texture is nice. We enjoyed it with lemon.

There is no recipe. Just bread the scallops as usual by dredging in flour, egg water, and panko. Deep fry in 180F oil (I used peanut oil) for about 1 minute for the surface to get brown and crispy.

We enjoyed this as a first course. A bit later, I cooked up the chicken tenders. We had chicken tenders with arancini that I made a few days ago (warmed up).

Cabbage and pork belly stir-fry キャベツと豚バラの炒め物

In Japan, one of the popular cuts of pork is thinly sliced pork belly 豚バラの薄切り. As in other Asian dishes, the meat/pork is used basically as a “seasoning” in vegetable dishes rather than as an “entrée” on its own. Weee sells thinly sliced pork belly (6mm in thickness) which is a bit thicker than Japanese style sliced pork belly (picture #3). After debating for some time I finally decided to get it. It comes in a one pound package (about 450 grams) which was a bit larger than we would use for one meal so I separated it into three portions (about 115-120 grams each). I vacuum packed and then froze them. These packages were the right amount to make one dish. I used one of the packages to make this stir-fry dish for lunch one day from whatever I had in the fridge which turned out to be mostly cabbage. But cabbage and pork go well together. The seasoning was totally ad-hoc. Besides salt and black pepper, I used oyster sauce and soy sauce. I topped this with a fried egg (picture #1) (since I was out of pasteurized eggs, I had to cook the yolk. A runny yolk would have been much better in this dish). In any case, this was a fairly low-carb lunch.

Picture #2 shows the dish just finished in the wok. You can see the ingredients better including small pieces of pork.

This is not a recipe per se but just a note to myself.

Ingredients (two servings):
1/3 lb (or more) pork belly, (skin off) and thinly sliced (in this case it was 6mm thick but thinner is better), cut into 1 inch long pieces 
1/4 head of cabbage, thick center removed and leaves cut into 1/2 inch squares
1 large onion, halved and cut into small wedges
2 small carrots, peeled and cut into large match sticks
10 green beans, blanched and cut into 1 inch segments
1tsp each of garlic and ginger,  minced
2 eggs (optional)
2 tbs vegetable oil

Seasoning:
1 tbs “shoko” Chinese cooking wine 紹興料理酒
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs mirin
1 tbs oyster sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
In a wok or frying pan on medium high flame, add the 2tbs oil, when heated add the ginger and garlic until fragrant. Add the onion and stir for a few minutes. Add the pork and cook until the color changes.
Add the vegetables and stir for a few minutes until wilted and soft.
Add the seasoning and stir. Add salt and pepper to taste.
(optional) Cook the eggs and top the servings. The best is fried eggs with runny yolks but I cooked the yolk through since we did not have pasteurized eggs.

The flavors in this dish worked well together.  The pork was good but it was a bit chewy compared to Japanese thinly cut pork belly.

Prosciutto, dates, and goat cheese bites

This is another one of my wife’s baking projects. She wanted to make savory small bites which will go well with red wine. Since we had extra prosciutto, she wanted to use it up. After searching recipes on-line, she found a recipe using pancetta, dates and goat cheese at Washington Post. Although the recipe specifically called for pancetta, we have learned that among the trinity of Italian cured pork, i.e. prosciutto, pancetta, and guanciale, the major difference between them is the part of the pork they come from; i.e. thigh, belly, and jowl, respectively. So my wife figured she could substitute the prosciutto she had for the pancetta she didn’t have in this dish. The recipe also called for dates. Upon inspection of the back of the pantry, we discovered that the only dates we had were an unopened package of dried dates which had passed their BUB (best-used-by) date by a large margin. We tasted the dates. They tasted OK but the skin was getting a bit hard. So we soaked the dates in hot water to see if that would help and it did. The dates were perfectly usable. In addition the recipe called for making the batter into a loaf of bread but my wife wanted something small to nibble with wine so she cooked the recipe in mini muffin tins. Thus these small bites or muffins were made. The dates added sweetness and prosciutto added a nice saltiness. They both went well with the goat cheese which made the muffin moist.

Ingredients:
3 ounces prosciutto (or pancetta), chopped into pea-size pieces (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 medium onion, minced (1/2 cup)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
12 pitted dates, chopped into pea-size pieces (about 1 cup)
2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley (optional)
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves (optional)
2 teaspoons minced fresh chives (optional)
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 
1/2 cup whole milk
3 large eggs
About 3 ounces (1/3 cup) fresh goat cheese, crumbled into pea-size pieces

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a mini muffin tin by either greasing it or lining it with paper cups.

Cook the prosciutto in a dry skillet over medium heat until crisped, about 8 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the prosciutto to a plate to drain. As needed, pour off all but about a teaspoon of the rendered fat in the pan, then return to medium heat and add the onion. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is wilted and lightly browned in spots. Remove from the heat.

Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and herbs (if using them) in a mixing bowl. Add the pieces of goat cheese. Using a pastry blender cut the cheese into the flour until it is evenly distributed as you would if making biscuits. Add the onion mixture and stir until evenly distributed. Add the chopped dates and use your fingers to break up the sticky pieces and coat them with the flour mixture. This will help keep those solids from sinking to the bottom during baking.

Whisk together the oil, milk and eggs until well incorporated. Using a flexible spatula gently stir and combine the liquid and dry ingredients, scraping the dry ingredients up from the bottom of the bowl regularly.

Scoop the dough into the prepared mini muffin tins. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

These are very flavorful little bites. The combination of savory prosciutto and goat cheese with the sweetness of the dates is a very pleasing contrast. Perfect with a glass of red wine.

Small Dishes or “Sake-no-sakana” 酒の肴

This is another presentation of small dishes (#1) I served one evening as starters. They are perfect little nibbles to go with sake. On the left of the white rectangular plates are skewers of Nibuta 煮豚, marinated boiled quail egg ウズラの味玉 and Ginko nuts 銀杏. All toasted in the toaster oven and then skewered using small bamboo skewers with knots called “noshi-gushi のし串*” (The skewers were for decorative purposes and I used them just because I had them.)

Note: I did not toast/grill the food on the skewers since the bamboo skewers would burn. Instead I toaster-ovened the food and after cooked put it on the skewers for presentation.

*Noshi-gushi are a take-off of a better known item called “Noshi-bukuro のし袋”  which is the special envelope containing money given as a gift at happy/festive occasions (wedding etc) or at funerals. The envelope has two decorations; one is called “noshi” and another is called “mizuhiki 水引”. Mizuhiki is a traditional Japanese decorative knot. The knot on the “noshi-gushi” is thought to be reminiscent of the  “mizuhiki” of  the “noshi-bukuro”. Make sense? 

Here is the close up (#2) of the skewered nibuta, quail egg and ginko nuts all toasted/grilled (the ginko nuts were coated with salt before toasting). Since the noshi-gushi are very thin, the ginko nuts can be skewered without splitting them. This combination worked well. The marinated boiled quail egg had a nice creamy yolk and savory flavors from the marinade they were soaked in.  I also served “Mock tofu 擬制豆腐” (#2 right). Since I thawed “ikura イクラ” salmon roe the day before, I served some on cucumber cups (#3). I seasoned the cucumber with sweet vinegar and also added a bit of Japanese noodle sauce on the ikura. Although not shown in the picture, just before serving I garnished this with threads of dried nori seaweed or “kizami-nori 刻み海苔”.

In a small covered container resembling a miniature Japanese lidded soup bowl, I served squid shiokara イカの塩辛” (frozen in a pouch) (#4).

The variety of flavors and textures were a treat thoroughly enjoyed with our favorite house sake.

Cheese Straws チーズツイスト

We like small snack-y foods that go well with wine or sake. My wife, for some reason, decided to make these “Cheese straws” which are based on a recipe she found on the web. When she took out the frozen puff pastry sheets, however, she saw they were significantly past the BUD (best-used-by-date). After pondering a while and looking at what condition the puff pastry was in, she decided to take a chance and make this dish. She needed to modify the recipe mainly because of the cheeses on hand. She used smoked gouda and sharp cheddar. Despite the “passed BUD” puff pastry, this was quite good. Light, crispy and airy with cheesy flavors.

Ingredients:
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. light brown sugar
1 frozen puff pastry sheet
All-purpose flour, for rolling
4 oz. smoked cheddar cheese, finely shredded (about 11/2 cups), divided
1 large egg, beaten

Directions  
Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Stir together the smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, and sugar in a small bowl until combined. Unfold the thawed puff pastry sheet on a floured work surface. Roll the pastry into a 16-by-12-inch rectangle, with long side parallel to edge of counter. Sprinkle about half of smoked paprika mixture over the surface of pastry. Sprinkle half the cheese over half of the rectangle lengthwise. Carefully fold the rectangle in half lengthwise over the cheese. Press the edges together to seal. Gently roll the folded pastry into a 16-by-10-inch rectangle (about 1/8 inch thick). Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut the pastry into 16 (1-inch-wide) strips. Transfer the strips to the prepared baking sheets. Twist the ends in opposite directions to form spiraled sticks. Press the ends of the strips into the parchment paper, if needed, to help them hold their shape.

Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. (Cover with plastic wrap if refrigerating for more than 1 hour.). After removing from refrigerator sprinkle with the rest of the cheese and remaining smoked paprika mixture. Bake in 375 degree oven until cheese straws are golden brown and puffed, 15 to 18 minutes, rotating trays and moving between top and bottom racks halfway through.

Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Despite the fact the puff pastry was past the BUB date these were perfectly OK; spicy crunchy and flavorful. Perfect to have with a glass of wine. 

Oyster Mushroom and Chiku-wa Stir-fly with Yuzu-kosho 平茸と竹輪の柚子胡椒炒め

I realized I got a package of fresh “Hira-take 平茸” or oyster mushrooms from Weee a week ago and decided to use it up. I came across this recipe using chikuwa 竹輪 fish case and “Maitake 舞茸” hen-of-the-wood. Since I had a package of frozen chikuwa which was getting old, this seemed a perfect recipe except I had oyster mushrooms instead of hen-of-the-woods. Although we also got hen-of-the-woods mushroom at the same time as the oyster mushrooms, I used them in a dish with sage brown butter, and we finished it somedays ago. No problem, I figured the oyster mushrooms should work just as well for this recipe. We especially liked the idea of adding yuzu-kosho 柚子胡椒  (one of our favorites) into the seasoning. Although oyster mushrooms themselves don’t have a strong flavor, the combination of chikuwa and yuzu-kosho worked well. Depending on how strongly you season this dish, this can be a good drinking snack or an accompaniment for rice.

Ingredients:

1 package (6oz) of oyster mushrooms, the root-end removed and separated
6 small chikuwa fishcakes, thawed and cut on the slant into bite sized pieces
2 scallions, finely chopped
1 tbs oil

Seasoning: (mix all ingredients below in a small bowl)
2 tbs x4 concentrated Japanese noodle sauce
2 tbs mirin
1/2 tsp (or more) Yuzu kosho

Directions:
Add the oil to the frying pan on medium flame, add the mushrooms and the fish cake and stir for 1-2 minutes
Add the seasonings and stir for 1 minute
Add the scallions 

The chikuwa itself has some sweetness and the seasonings are a bit on the sweet side as well. Either using soy sauce instead of the noodle sauce and/or reducing the amount of mirin would be better next time. I would also add a dab of yuzu-kosho on the side in case additional seasoning to what is in the sauce is desired.