Eggplant gratine two ways; Marinara and Yuzu-miso sauce with cheese

Last time we had a chance to grill outside, I grilled a small Italian eggplant trying to make "yakinasu"  やきなす or Japanese style grilled eggplant but it was not really good. So, when I saw a nice Zebra eggplant in the market, I had to get one. Since It was not feasible to fire-up a grill outside, I asked my wife how she like the eggplant cooked. I got a bit ambiguous answer. So I decided to halve the eggplant and make one in an Italian style with Marinara sauce and cheese and the other half in a Japanese style i.e., "citrus miso dengaku" with cheese, so that I can not go wrong.

I cooked the eggplant in my usual way. I cut the eggplant in half length wise. Then I cut the meat around the edges close to the skin and in cross-hatch pattern but not cutting through to the skin (This is hasten and make cooking uniform). I put about 2 tbs of light olive oil in a frying pan on a medium flame. When the oil is hot and shimmering, I put in the eggplant the cut side down. The eggplant eventually absorbs all the oil. After 1-2 minutes, I put on the tightly fitting lid and turned down the flame to low and let it cook about 10 minutes. The eggplant should be soft and thoroughly cooked with the cut surface nicely brown. I transferred the eggplant halves to a baking sheet (or ramekin) and layered one with Marinara sauce and the other with Yuzu-citrus miso. Then I topped them with grated cheese (I used a mixture of Cheddar and Raclette here but any melting cheese will do) and put them in a 400F oven (I used a toaster oven) for 5 minutes or until the cheese melts.

Marinara sauce: I placed olive oil (1/4 cup), 3-4 cloves of garlic (minced), and red pepper flakes (optional), in a small deep pot on a low flame. When the garlic became fragrant,  I added canned whole tomato, drained and crushed (16 oz can), dried oregano and basil (1/2 tsp, each), salt and freshly ground black pepper. I simmered this sauce for 30 minutes. I tasted and adjusted the salt and pepper. You may want to add a pinch of sugar to cut the acidity.

Yuzu-miso sauce: Mix red miso (3 tbs), sugar (2tbs), and mirin (3 tbs) in a small sauce pan on a low flame. Keep stirring until nice thin saucy consistency is attained (about 5 minutes). I added 1 tsp of dark roasted sesame oil (optional) at the end and mix well. Off heat, I add Yuzu juice (from a bottle) (1 tsp) and zest of one lime (using a micrograter) or just lime or lemon juice and zest.

In the above picture, on the left is the eggplant with Marinara sauce and on the right is the one with Yuzu-miso sauce. I garnished the Yuzu-miso eggplant with the zest of a lime and, if I had fresh basil, I would have garnished the marinara sauce side with chopped basil. You can have this with wine, beer or sake. We had this with Poggio Il Castellare Sant Antimo Cervio Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, which taste  more like California cab rather than Super Tuscan, but it went very well with this dish nonetheless.

Chicken liver and tofu terrine 鶏レバーのテリーヌ風

Believe it or not this recipe came from "Appetizers and a la carte small dishes for Izakaya" by Tadashi Shinojima.  Judging from the title of the book, by definition, this must be an Izakaya food. Although this looks and tastes like a chicken liver pate (actually it is more pate than terrine), there are a few Japanese touches; one is the inclusion of tofu and the other is the addition of "edamame" 枝豆. Since I bought a container of chicken livers for Yakitori, I decided to make this dish; a situation similar to the previous time I made braised chicken liver and onion.

I used about 180 grams of chicken liver. After removing the fat and connective tissue, I soaked it in ice cold water for 15 minutes. I added a bit of sake to the water and boiled the liver for 4-5 minutes until thoroughly cooked. Meanwhile, I wrapped a firm or "momengoshi" tofu 木綿ごし豆腐 in paper towels and microwaved it for several minutes. I re-wrapped it in new paper towels and placed a heavy plate on the top for 10 minutes to squeeze out any excess water. I used about 150 grams (after removing the excess water) of tofu. In the mixing cup of an immersion blender, I added the cooked liver (180grmas), tofu (150grams), beaten egg (1/3), cream (1 tbs), grated onion (1 tbs), salt and pepper and blended them until smooth. I then folded in the shelled edamame (I used about 20 of the frozen kind, cooked and shelled). I also added small cubes of left over steak (the recipe called for cubes of roast beef).  I then poured the mixture into small (disposable) loaf pan and baked for 30 minutes in a preheated 400F oven in a bain-marie. The original recipe was a bit vague about how this dish is to be cooked (the author said "mushiyaki" 蒸し焼き or steam-bake in an oven) but I interpreted this to mean bake using a bain-marie. I let it cool down to room temperature and stored it in the refrigerator overnight before slicing.

The recipe suggested serving this with a "white cream sauce" but I chose to serve it like a pate with cornichon pickles on toasted small squares of cocktail bread. The texture is great and the edamame and cubes of steak made an interesting texture contrast and color. If you are not told, you would not have guessed that close to half the bulk came from "tofu". It has a nice irony liver pate taste but it needs more distinctive spices (maybe more onion, black pepper and salt). For a fusion pate with tofu, this is not bad. Does Tofu make this dish a healthier dish? - maybe.

Spicy Konnyaku stir fry コンニャクのぴりから炒め

Spicy Konnyaku stir fry コンニャクのぴりから炒め

Since I have been posting non-Izakaya items for some time, I am going back to a simple Izakaya affair here. This is another very quick dish using Konnyaku 蒟蒻 and a perfect small dish with sake. I used a dark unbleached version of konnnyaku. After I wash and blanch the cake of konnyaku, I cut the thickness into two by cutting through horizontally as I press the cake of konnyaku against the cutting board. I then make shallow crisscross cuts on both sides as you can see in the above image. This is to make any seasoning penetrate the konnyaku. I cut them into a bit less than one inch wide strips.

I put 1/2 tbs of peanut oil with a dash of dark roasted sesame oil in a frying pan on medium flame. I fry each side of konnyaku strips for 1-2 minutes so that the surface become slightly congealed and crunchy (small bubbles will come out on the surface). I then add 1/2 tbs of soy sauce and quickly sauté until soy sauce become fragrant and absorbed. I sprinkle a Japanese 7 flavor red pepper powder 七味唐辛子. This is a sort of nothing dish but nice to have with sake. This time I made it a bit too spicy and registered a mild compliant from my wife. Sorry.

Japanese grocery store

Our favorite Japanese grocery store has closed.

I went to the Japanese grocery store "Daruma" this weekend complete with shopping list, mouth ready for some good food afterwards when, imagine my shock, I discovered the store completely gone--without a trace! Part of the space was now occupied by a ramen restaurant. It was a real bummer. This was our favorite Japanese grocery store of 22 years. Over the years it moved location three times finally settling in Bethesda. Although there are a few other oriental markets and one other smaller Japanese market nearby, our ability to get Japanese food ingredients has definitely diminished dramatically.

A few months ago we noticed that their inventories were a bit sparse with empty shelf showing through, but we certainly did not think they would be closing. In the same location, we now have Ren's Ramen as a stand alone ramen restaurant. This restaurant started out as a few tables and stools "a store inside the store" of Daruma. Maybe, I will start a review of ramen noodle places (only problems is the number of places is extremely limited--albeit one more than a few weeks ago). 

Roast beef ローストビーフ

This is a totally "out-of-bounds" post for an Izakaya blog but I have a special reason.

Some time ago my niece asked me how to make roast beef. Since we rarely eat roast beef and when we do, we usually barbecue it using a Weber kettle, I could only give her general instructions gleaned from other sources such as the "Joy of Cooking" cookbook. I decided to make roast beef with gravy and post the process, so that my niece can refer to it. Here, we served the slices of roast beef with gravy and oven fried potatoes. (For her, I added Japanese text à la Hiroyuki's blog).

私の姪にローストビーフのレセピーを教えてほしいと言われたのですが、私たち自身ローストビーフをほとんど作る事がないし、ごく稀に作るときは、ウエバーケトルグリルでバーベキュウするので、料理の本からのレセピーを伝える事ぐらいしかできませんでした。そこで、私の姪の為に、オーブンローストビーフとグレイビィを作って, その経過を記録してみることにしました。下の写真は、出来上がったローストビーフとグレイビー、そしてオーブンで作ったフライドポテトです。

In terms of equipment, you need a good quick reading meat thermometer. In the absence of the thermometer, you could estimate the cooking time by the weight of the roast but you have to use the internal temperature of the roast to most accurately judge the doneness. You also need a roasting pan with a metal grate or rack so that the meat will sit above the juices that accumulate on the bottom of the pan. This serves two purposes; the hot air circulates under the meat and cooks it evenly and the meat is not sitting in its own drippings during the cooking process which would tend to braise rather than roast the meat.

必要な道具は、温度がすぐ読めるミートサモメターと金属のラックのついたロースト用のパン。肉の重さからオーブンの時間は推定できますが、最終的には、ローストの内部の温度を計る事が焼き加減を知る一番の方法です。ラックは、肉の下側までオーブンの熱がよく伝わるためと、出てくる肉汁とロスートが直接接触しないようにするためです。

The cut of the meat I bought was a 3 lb top round (upper portion of the hind leg muscle) but it was not well cut and had a somewhat odd shape. So, this may not have been the best example of a good cut for roast beef (image below left, before trussing). It is important to truss it properly so that, it will cook evenly (Image below right).

私の買ったロースト用の肉は、トップラウンドと言うカットですが（後ろ足の上部の肉）あまり上質の肉ではないようで、ちょっと変な形をしています。重さは３ポンド（1.36kg). もうちょっと良い肉を買えばよっかたと反省しています（下の写真左側、紐で縛る前）。紐で形を整えながら縛る事 (トラシング) は、肉が均一に焼ける為に大切です（下の写真右側）。

For seasonings, I use fresh rosemary from our herb garden, garlic, salt, and freshly cracked black pepper. First, I thinly slice peeled garlic cloves (I use 4 cloves). I then make multiple deep slits in the meat and insert the garlic slices. It is important that the garlic slices are completely hidden below the surface so that the garlic will not burn during roasting. I remove the rosemary from the stems and finely chop (4 small sprigs) and mix with 2-3 tbs of olive oil and generously smear the mixture on the surface of the meat. I make a mixture of freshly cracked back pepper and kosher salt (half and half, about 2 tbs) and rub the mixture on the surface of the meat. (image below, left). Ideally, the meat should be at a room temperature before putting it in the oven. Actually my wife did the roasting part. Preheat the oven to 425 F and roast for 15 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 350F and roast for about 20minutes more/pound. So, a 3 pound roast will take about 60 minutes more. I start taking the temperature at the center of the roast after 45 minutes and for medium rare, I am looking for an internal temperature of 140F (Image below right).

私の庭で採れたローズマリー、ニンニク、挽きたての黒こしょう、塩で、肉の味付けをします。まずニンニクの皮を取ってから、薄切りにします（３−４個）。幅の狭い包丁（ボーニングナイフ）で肉に深い切り込みを幾つも入れ、ニンニクの薄切りを差し入れます。ニンニクが肉の外に出ていないように確かめてください。ニンニクが外に出ているとこげて苦い味になります。ローズマリーの葉だけとって細切り（４本もしくは大さじ２）、それをオリーブオイル（大さじ３）とまぜて、肉の表面によく塗り付けます。挽きたての黒こしょうと塩を混ぜ（それぞれ大さじ２）それも肉の表面にしっかりとなすり付けます。（下の写真左側）オーブンに入れる前に、肉が室温まで戻っているのが理想的です。ローストラックの上に肉をおいて、予熱した 220Cのオーブンの15分入れた後、温度を175Cにさげて、１ポンドあたり２０分（２０分／４５０グラム）。３ポンド（１.３６Kg) の肉だと、もう一時間焼きます。４５分位から肉の温度を計ります。メデァムには内部温度が、肉の真ん中の一番厚いところで、60Cになるまで焼きます。（下の写真右側）

This roast took a bit longer to cook than we expected (the center may still have been cold after it was taken out of the refrigerator). Transfer the roast to a plate and loosely cover it with aluminum foil to keep it warm and let it rest for 15-20 minutes before carving. Our roast was a bit more done that we wanted (Image below) but still rosy in the middle.

重さから推測したよりも少し時間がかかりました。肉を他のお皿に移してアルミのフォイルをゆるくかけで肉を切る前、１５−２０分休ませます。私たちの好みより少し焼け過ぎになりましたが（下の写真）まだ真ん中はピンクです。

Now making gravy; I remove the metal grate of the roasting pan which collected some dripping in the bottom and the edges are nicely browned (below left). I place the roasting pan across two burners on the stove on medium low flame and add port wine and chicken broth (1/4 cup each) (since we did not have beef broth) and deglaze all the nice brown bits using a silicon spatula (below right).

肉が休んでいる間にグレィビーを作ります。金属製のラックを取り除いた後に、肉汁が沢山落ちています。端の方はちょっとこげかけています。（下の写真左側）ローストパンを二つのコンロのバーナーにまたいでかけ（弱中火）ポートワインまたは赤ワイン（６０ml）をいれ、へらなどで焦げた肉汁をこそげながら溶かします。（ポートワインは甘みが有ります。) ビーフブロスまたはチキンブロス（６０ml、ブイヨンキューブを水に溶かして代用の場合は塩気に注意)をさらに入れます。（下の写真右側）

I could finish the gravy in the roasting pan but it is a bit unwieldy, so I transfer the contents to a frying pan on medium heat. Add any juice from the plate on which the roast was resting, and reduce it a little (few minutes). The traditional American way is to finish this with flour (There is a special finely milled flour called "Wondra" for making gravy). I used a corn starch slurry to thicken the gravy, which results in a slightly different mouth feel (more viscous texture). Taste and adjust the seasoning.

このまま最後までやっても良いのですが、わたしは、これをフライパンに移し、ローストビーフが休んでいるお皿にたまった肉汁も加えて中火で少し煮詰めます（１−２分）(下の写真左側)。伝統的なアメリカのやり方ででは、特にソースやグレイビー用に作られた、”ワンドラ”　という小麦粉を使いますが、ここでは水溶きしたコーンスターチを入れてグレイビーを仕上げました（下の写真右側）出来上がったグレイビーは小麦粉を使った場合と比べて、すこしヌルヌルした（なめらかな）口当たりになります。ここで味見をして、塩、胡椒を必要なら足してください。

You could add vegetables to the bottom of the roasting pan during roasting but we prefer to roast the vegetables (onion, garlic-skin on, potato,sweet potato, carrot etc) in a  separate pan by just coating them with olive oil and seasoning with salt and pepper. This way, you have better control of the doneness of the meat and vegetables.

根菜類をローストパンに肉と一緒に入れる事も出来ますが、私たちは、根菜類は、オリーブオイルを絡めて、塩、胡椒で味付けをして、別な容器に入れて、オーブンに入れます。この方が、肉と根菜が丁度良く出来上がる時間をそれぞれ調節できます。

This roast beef was OK with lots of garlic and rosemary flavors and the meat was reasonably tender if slightly more done than we would have liked (we prefer our beef on the rare side). The cut of the meat was not really the best. Hope this post helps my niece with her roasted beef and gravy dinner.

出来あっがたローストビーフはニンニクとローズマリーの味がして、肉も比較的柔らかく結構いいのですが、私たちの好みとしてはチョット焼き過ぎたのと、もともと肉の質が良く無かったのが、悔やまれます。このポストを参考にして、私の姪が彼女独自の完璧なローストビーフを料理する事を祈っています。

Ricotta cheese tart リコッタチーズのタルト

I know I keep deviating from my theme. Some Izakayas serve non-transitional small dishes such as German potatoes (now this has become a classic Izakaya "teiban" dish), Poutine-like French fries and cheese dish, taco, and even variations of pizza. We saw pizza in the menu at one of the rather inexpensive chain Izakayas last time when we were in Japan. We refuse to order pizza at an Izakaya, though.  Although there are many "excellent" pizza places in our neck-of-the-woods, we are partial to my home-made pizza. (Certainly, my pizza is much better than any chain Pizzaria pizzas and we usually make pizzas without much sauce and without meat unlike American Pizzas which usually have too much cheese, too much meat and too much tomato sauce). I promise I will post some of my pizzas which are not bad at all for a home-made pizza (this is called "Jiman" 自慢 which literally means "boast" or "self-praise" but it is with some sense of "pride" such as in the name of sake "Isojiman" 磯自慢 which means both "Pride of shore" and "Beach boast".)

I was somehow coerced (which is not a right word but can't think of an alternative) into making this dish "Ricotta Cheese tart" using my pizza crust. We found this to be very good and can be reheated very nicely in a toaster oven. We recently served this as a starter with champagne when we had friends over and it went very well.

Pizza dough: There is nothing unusual about my pizza dough. For 4 pizzas (about 8 inch), I add bread flour* (3 1/2 cups) and salt (1 tsp) in a food processor with a dough blade. While the food processor in running at a low speed, I stream in olive oil (2 tbs) and stop after few seconds. I proof one package of active yeast in a small amount of tepid water (1/5 cup) with just a pinch of sugar dissolved. Once proofed, I add cold water to make it one cup. Stream the yeast mixture into the tube of the food processor with the blade running at a low speed until a ball is formed above the blade. You probably will need a few more tbs of water. Open the food processor and touch the dough. It should be rather soft and slightly tacky. I let the dough sit in the processor for 5 minutes so that the moisture will distribute more evenly and then, run the blade for 30 more seconds. The dough should be soft, elastic and somewhat tacky. Take it out on a floured kneading board and hand knead for 2-3 minutes until dough is smooth, elastic and no longer sticky. For raising the dough, instead of using a bowl, I use one gallon Ziploc bag which is sprayed with PAM or a similar non-stick spray and wrap it with towels in a warm non-drafty place (on the center island counter top in my case) for 2 hours or more until the volume doubles.

(*Sometimes, I use King Arthur brand double zero ("00") Italian flour. This flour has much less gluten and makes a delicate dough which can not be tossed into the air. The resulting crust is thin, crisp and cracker-like probably similar to this one.)

After the volume doubles, I deflate and fold the dough several times I then cut the dough into 4 equal portions and make them into 4 nice smooth disks by pinching the cut surface together and stretching the surface to make a round ball. I, then, press lightly to make a disk. The portions I'm do not going to use immediately, I put it into a Ziploc sandwich bag and place in the refrigerator (will last at least overnight or more, which even adds more favor but, after that, you need to freeze the dough. The dough freezes well but the characteristic of the resulting crusts change a bit--the previously frozen dough will yield less bready and crunchier pizza crusts). Let the dough ball rest for 10-15 minutes by covering with a floured tea towel (otherwise the dough will be too elastic and resist stretching).  I never use a rolling pin to form pizza dough but use the traditional way of stretching the dough using the back of the knuckle of the hands (I will even toss the dough into the air if our guests request it.) For a regular pizza, I do not crimp the edge but, for this tart, I did crimp the edge as seen below since the filling is rather runny. You need to have corn meal on the pizza peel before placing the formed dough on the peel. Then give the peel several sharp tugs to make sure the dough slides nicely before filling the dough.

Filling: I mixed Ricotta cheese (1 cup), large eggs (2), chive (fine chopped, 1/2 cup), shallot (one finely chopped), dill (1/2 tsp dried since I did not have fresh one), salt (1/2 tsp) and black pepper (1/4 tsp). This filling made two 8 inch tarts (see below).

Baking: I had my convection oven set at 450F with a Pizza stone* in and preheated for, at least,  30 minutes before sliding the filled tart directly onto the hot pizza stone. Bake for 10-15 minutes until the surface of the filling becomes slightly brown.

(* I have a square pizza stone almost the size of the inside of my oven. I keep it (almost) permanently in the lowest rack. It is essential to have a pizza stone to make a nice crust.)

I took it out on to the cooling rack and graded Riggiano-Parmigiano cheese. I cut the tart into 4 wedges and served. The filling is nicely eggybready crust, this is a very good dish. This can be breakfast as well.

Macaroni salad マカロニサラダ

This is the last post of three salad which are disguised as an "Otoshi". Who knows, next time we visit an Izakaya in Japan, these salad may become very popular items.  This is another popular salad with many variations. This is our version and we use my honey Dijon mustard dressing instead of (more commonly used) mayonnaise. This time instead of scallion or onion, we used chives. Served as seen below, this is a perfect Izakaya food as Otoshi お通し, although may not be as popular as potato salad in an Izakaya.

We use regular small elbow macaroni (this one has a groove on the surface). While it is hot, I dressed the cooked macaroni with a rice vinegar (the amount is arbitrary, enough to add flavor while still being absorbed completely by the pasta), and salt. When it is cooling down, I add a small amount of good olive oil and toss to prevent the macaroni from sticking. Once it is cooled, I mixed in several stalks of celery (both ends trimmed, veins removed and finely cut up), three different kinds of olives (oil cured black olives, Calamata olives, and large green olives stuffed with pimento, all sliced) and chopped chive. I dress the salad with Honey Dijon mustard dressing (I use the dressing sparingly).

Honey Dijon mustard Dressing: I minced shallot (one small), Jalapeno pepper, seeded, veined and minced (1/2, optional), crushed garlic (one small clove, optional. I did not use garlic this time), salt and pepper. I added 1 tbs of honey, 2 tbs of Dijon mustard (I used the smooth kind) and 3-4 tbs of a rice vinegar and mixed. I stream in a EVOO (extravirgin olive oil) and whisk (I do not measure but about 1/2 cup). Taste the dressing and adjust the seasoning.

This is our favorite version of macaroni salad. Since we served this together with our potato salad for Memorial day barbecue, we intentionally did not use mayonnaise. The occasional burst of salty olive flavor is well matched with slightly sweet and tangy dressing. The celery gives a nice crunch. The rice vinegar is much gentler than wine or cider vinegars.