Tempura smelts 生シシャモの天婦羅

I spotted fresh and cleaned smelt in our regular grocery store one day. Smelt is a small fish and, in Japan, a type of smelt is called "Karafuto shishamo" which is a common substitute for real "Shishamo" from Hokkaido. Capelin is also in the same family. The smelt spends most of its life in the sea but, like salmon, it swims up river to spawn.  The ones I got  were most likely fresh water smelt from the Great Lakes. In Japan, egg-bearing females are the most valued. None of the smelt in my “catch” appeared to have eggs. As usual, Japanese and English fish names are difficult to sort out.

The smelt I got were already cleaned (gutted and head off) but not dried like the ones in Japan. The most popular way to cook smelt here in the U.S. (if you are the type of person who would even consider eating smelt) is deep fried. Like shishamo, you can eat every thing including bones, tails and fins. I pondered how to cook them and decided to make a sort of tempura using a thin batter.

Smelt: This is fresh smelt, head off and cleaned. I got 1 lb which is good for 4 generous appetizer size servings.

Tempura batter: I used cake flour (4-5 tbs) and cold seltzer water (add and mix until it forms a thin batter) with a pinch of salt mixed in.

I heated peanut oil in a frying pan (1 inch deep) to 350F (180C) on medium flame. I dipped the smelt in the batter and deep fried it for 3-4 minutes turning over once.

I served this with a wedge of lemon, deep fried parsley, and green tea salt. You could make this in kara-age 唐揚げ (coated with potato starch) or more Western style with seasoned flour or cornmeal and some kind of dipping sauce as well. This was a perfect drinking snack and also a good source of calcium. This goes well with any drink.

New Year's Eve 大晦日

Usually we get good sashimi items for Catalina offshore products for new year's eve. This year, they did not have any good tuna or sea urchin. We had to do without them on the new year's eve. Since I bought the half filet of salmon (over 4 lb), even after making salmon kelp rolls as well as "Russian" marinated salmon, we had a good amount of  salmon left including the skin. So no sashimi this time and    we had salmon and filet mignon.

When I made salmon kelp rolls, I needed to trim the salmon to make it even square  logs. Using these trimmings  I made salmon cakes. Since some of the pieces were still large chunks, I finely minced the half of the salmon trimmings finely (which binds the other ingredients) and the remaining cut into small cubes. Other ingredients are finely chopped onion and celery (sautéed in butter, seasoned with sat ad pepper and cooled), finely grated zest of lemon, finely chopped parsley,  Japanese Panko bread crumbs,   Dijon mustard, mayonnaise and seasoned with salt and pepper. I then made a small flat cakes and  fried them with a bit of olive oil.


Using the more intact portions of the salmon left, I made cubes of teriyaki style salmon with separately cook crispy salmon skin. I just seared all surfaces of the salmon cubes and then braised in a mixture of sake, mirin and soy sauce (1:1:2 ratio) until liquid evaporate and sauce became somewhat thick.

Finally, we had a filet mignon, stuffing (re-heated in small ramekin with scripy bacon), and apple-blackend Brussels sprouts salad. Baked (blacken) brussels sprouts were sliced, red seedless grapes halved, apple (we used Fuji), skinned and cubed dressed in honey mustard dressing garnished with toasted walnuts. I made a quick sauce by degrazing the pan with port wine, reduce it in half. I then added balsamic vinegar and reduce it a bit and finished with several pats of butter.

For libation, we had NV Philippe Prie Brut with cheeses and salmons (the picture taken morning after). For us, differences in the quality of champagnes are very subtle after a certain price point but this was a quite nice one. Then with steak, we switched to 2008 Buccella Merlot . This is a quite amazing red! We really enjoyed this with filet mignon.


We managed to stay up until mid-night to see the ball to drop in on TV.

Japanese "Karasumi" Botargo 唐墨

As we explored the Sushi Taro osechi boxes, we noticed something new this year. To our delight we found something we really like; cured and dried mullet roe called "Karasumi" からすみ (in the circle below). We also discovered "komochi konbu" 子持ち昆布 (a piece of kelp coated with herring roe) tucked in a small bamboo container (shown on the left). It was dressed in spicy cod roe or "mentaiko" 明太子.

These items are indeed the “ultimate delicacy” or "chinmi" 珍味. I briefly grilled the karasumi over a direct gas flame for 10-15 seconds before serving. You can see in the picture that one of the edges is slightly blackened (right piece).

The texture and taste of karasumi is difficult to describe but, to me, the closest is a good quality "neri uni" 練り雲丹 or sea urchin salted and processed into paste. Karasumi, however, is much better. The combination of slightly sticky texture, oceanic taste and saltiness goes exquisitely with sake. It provides the ultimate enjoyment of "nibble-a-little-sip-a-little" which is the Japanese way sake is supposed to be enjoyed. A small nibble followed by a sip of sake brings out the perfection of the taste pairing. It can also lead to the consumption of a large amount of sake. As we amply demonstrated with just these two thin slices of " karasumi" and one very small block of "komichi konbu". This karasumi was home-made by Chef Katsuya Kitayama. We had this item sometime ago at a sushi "omakase" dinner at Sushitaro. I initially thought this was not something my wife would like but I was totally wrong. Her karasumi lasted longer than mine since she practiced the slow repetition of nibbles and sips more appropriately and more often than I did.

Digression alert:
"Karasuki" 唐墨 means "Chinese ink cake". I am not sure about the origin of the name but the shape of a whole cured and dried mullet egg sac was said to resemble an ink cake imported from China. I was surprise to learn that this item was originally imported from Europe through Nakasaki port (which was the only port open during Edo times). Botargo (or bottarga) is the European counterpart of karasumi, although I have not tasted it. Botargo is famous in Italy, especially Sardinia and Sicily, as well as other Mediterranean countries. (It was actually mentioned in Anthony Bourdain in his episode on Sardinia.) In Japan, the ones produced in Nagasaki 長崎 from mullet roe or "bora" ボラ are the most famous. Apparently similar preparations are made from other fish roe but, again, I have not seen or tasted them.

In terms of libations to go with these delicacies, I cannot think of anything better than sake either cold of warm. Sparkling wines such as Procecco may be the next best choice and, maybe, some crisp austere white wine but, for me I’m sticking close to a good sake with karasumi.

"Komochi konbu"  子持ち昆布 is another delicacy; a rectangular piece of kelp sandwiched between layers of herring roe. Originally this occurred naturally when wild herring laid their eggs on kelp. Now, however, it is almost never available in its natural form, so most on the market are produced in an aquaculture setting.  (I was told Canada is a major producer). I suspect many are "manufactured" by coating the kelp with processed herring roe although I could not confirm this as a fact.This is one of the New Year’s good luck foods since numerous golden colored roe symbolize prosperity (both financially and offspring-wise) and kelp "konbu or kobu" 昆布 is part of the phrase "yoro-kobu" 喜ぶ meaning to rejoice.  Katsuya 勝也 dressed this with spicy cod roe "Karashi mentaiko" 辛子明太子 (roe dressed with roe) which raised konochi-konbu to the next higher level.

"Karashi mentaiko"  辛子明太子 reportedly originated from Korea and appears popular in the south of Japan; in such cities as Fukuoka 福岡. Certainly it was not popular in Hokkaido when I lived there. It is a spicy red pepper marinated salted cod roe. I usually do not bother buying this but make it from regular cod roe mixed in hot sauce (Tabasco or Sriracha).

We enjoyed the Karasuki and komochi konbu immensely. These types of surprises make it so much fun to receive and explore the Sushi Taro osechi boxes. We will remember the joy just these two items brought us for the rest of the year. Thank you Sushi Taro.

Happy New Year 2013 明けましておめでとう

Happy New year 2013! Last year was not an easy year. The most vexing were "departures" in the family and among good friends. One of the bright spots was that we finally got back our house from construction and, for the first time in the past 3 years, we could sit in our "tea room" to have our new year's celebration and eat all those Japanese auspicious good luck foods. This year, like the last year, we got Sushi taro's osechi boxes.

This picture shows our small alcove (or "Tokonoma" 床の間) with kagami-mochi 鏡餅. Of course we bought a fake plastic one with packaged round mochi inside. Digression alert: When I was a child, kagami-mochi  or traditional real round "mirror" mochi rice cakes were not packaged or preserved. They were just mounds of pounded rice that remained on display until they were supposed to be eaten (usually January 11, called "kagami-biraki" 鏡開き). Usually, by that time, green mold developed beween the two layers of mochi rounds.  I vividly remember my mother scraping the mold off before she could serve them as "zenzai" 善哉, mochi in sweet red bean sauce (which I did not care for-so my mother need not have gone to all that effort to remove the mold). At least, with the packaged mochi, we do not have to contend with scraping off the mold. Oh the wonders of modern technology!


This picture shows new year's good luck food served on individual lacquered tables as well as the Osechi Box we got from Sushi Taro. I supplemented the Osechi box by preparing several of the items shown here.  From the upper left, daikon namasu 大根なます with boiled octopus and salmon roe, "Russian" marinated salmon, herring roe - this year, there was no terrorist package scare and my mothers "care package" arrived on time and included very nice large herring roe. Among the "kuchitori"  口取り appetizers, I made salmon and burdock kelp rolls 牛蒡と鮭の昆布巻き, date-maki roll 伊達巻 and chicken "matsugaze" cake 鶏肉の松風焼き. From the Sushi Taro's Osechi box, simmered black beans  黒豆, simmered roe bearing sweet fish 子持ち鮎の甘露煮, vinegar-dressed lotus root 花輪蓮根, kumquat simmered in syrup  金柑蜜煮, sake braised shrimp 海老酒煎. As you may notice, many items from the sumptuous Sushi taro osechi boxes have not been touched yet and remain for subsequent feasting.

My dikon namasu came out a bit on the sweet side this year. This may be due to the fact I was out of regular rice vinegar and had to use "sushi" vinegar which already contained sugar and salt (despite the fact that I reduced the seasoning especially the sugar).

The herring roe were very luxurious large ones from Hokkaido. I prepared them as per usual and they were excellent. The salmon on the right is my mother's recipe; "Russian" pickled salmon.

Finally we had a new years soup or "zouni"  雑煮. As usual, I added mochi 餅 or rice cake in a deep fried tofu pouch or "mochi kinchaku"  餅巾着. Instead of "yuzu", I also added a small wedge of lime. Since I forgot to get fresh chicken for the soup we used smoked barbecued chicken left over from Christmas. It added a nice smokey flavor dimension

Salmon Miso 鮭味噌

This is a quick small dish I made to go with a drink one weekday evening. We had a small amount of grilled salmon left  over from the weekend and I wanted to make sure it was eaten before we forget. This is a perfect small dish which goes well with sake or rice depending on the amount of miso used.

Miso sauce: I mixed miso (1 tbs), mirin (1 tbs), and grated ginger (1/4 tsp) in a small bowl. I also made finely chopped scallion (from 3 stalks) and set it aside.

Salmon:This is leftover grilled salmon (without skin since we ate it all while it was crispy on the night we cooked the salmon). The amount is arbitrary but we had a rather small amount. My wife does not like very small pieces of salmon, so I just crumbled into large chunks.

In a small non-stick frying pan, I added dark roasted sesame oil (1/2 tsp) and sautéed the scallion for 30 seconds and then added the miso mixture. When it was bubbling and started thickening a bit, I added chunks of salmon and mixed to coat all the surfaces and also to warm up the salmon (for 1-2 minutes).
If you increased the amount of the miso sauce, this will be perfect for eating with white rice. My rendition here is good with a drink of sake. This is a very standard flavors of miso, some sweetness and ginger which cannot go wrong.

Monkfish hot pot アンコウ鍋

This is a rather standard Japanese hotpot dish with monkfish. It is perfect for a cold winter’s night. In Japan, you can buy a package of Monkfish for “nabe” . The package usually contains monkfish meat, some with skin attached, bone -for broth-, other innards and the most important item, the liver. In an authentic ankou nabe, at least, the liver must be included. The only Monkfish I can get here, however, is a fillet or the tail meat. In terms of seasoning, for the nabe you can season it with soy sauce or miso. Sometimes people use both soy sauce and miso. This time I decided to make a soy sauce flavored “ankou” nabe.

More about Monkfish: Japanese eat almost all parts of the monkfish with the liver being the most valued and cherished ("ankimo" あん肝). So-called "Seven tools of Monkfish"  or "Nanatsu dogu" 七つ道具 include: 1. liver, 2. tail and ventral fins, 3. gills (!!), 4. ovaries, 5. stomach, 6. skin, and 7. tail meat. By the way, we only eat female monkfish. The male is tiny-winy and not worth considering for food.


Broth: I used a combination of kelp and dashi pack with “iriko” いりこ or “niboshi” 煮,干small dried fish, to make a broth. A combination of kelp and bonito flakes is also good. I started with cold water (about 4 cups) and placed a 2x3 inch rectangle of kelp and one dashi pack and simmered it for 10 minutes before removing them.

I added mirin and soy sauce (1:2 ratio) as I tasted but I could have added either salt or more soy sauce. If you do not like a dark colored sauce you could use a combination of salt and light colored soy sauce or 薄口醤油.

In addition to the fish, you could use whatever vegetables or tofu you like. I used nappa cabbage or “hakusai” 白菜, threads of devil’s tongue* or “shirataki” 白滝 (see below for additional preparation), tofu, fresh shiitake mushrooms and snap peas.

(*"Shirataki" preparation: After removing from the package, I washed it in cold running water and then parboiled it. I drained it before putting into the nabe. This is important since it has a peculiar smell which is not particularly pleasant).

Monkfish: I used a bit less than 1 lb of monkfish fillet. I removed the slimy membrane and cut into large bite size pieces. If you use bone, skin or other parts of the monkfish (especially innards), you may have to pour hot water over the pieces to remove any fishiness but for the tail meat, it was not needed.



Instead of cooking the nabe at  the table, I cooked this nabe on the stove. I added vegetables and devil's tongue threads and put on the lid. After a few minutes, when the vegetables are almost done I added tofu and then the Monkfish. It only takes few minutes for the fish to cook.

I served the nabe in individual bowls with some broth. As condiments, I served small wedges of lemon (since I did not have “yuzu” ゆず), finely chopped scallion, Japanese red pepper flakes or ichimi tougarashi 一味唐辛子. Hot sake may be the usual choice for libation but we had cold sake.

Breakfast Bread pudding パンのプディング

This is another post from my wife’s discovery of some “ancient” recipes written on used computer punch cards and stored forgotten in a Betty Crocker file card recipe box in the basement for at least 25 years. Like the previous one this must be another “Minnesota Hotdish”. Like many such recipes it is designed to feed multitudes at such events as church suppers or firehouse dinners or large family brunches. The amount my wife made represents 1/3 of the total recipe and it made two extremely generous servings. Should you be serving a lot of people just scale it up by a factor of 3.



Ingredients: 5 slices of white bread, 1/3 lb. cheddar cheese (I used smoked cheddar), 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, 1/3 tsp. salt, 1/3 tsp. dry mustard, 1/8 Tsp paprika, 1/8 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1/8 lb. butter melted.

Butter 2 deep ramekins. Toast the bread and then cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Layer the ramekins with 1/3 bread, then 1/3 cheese until all the bread and cheese have been distributed. Beat together the eggs and milk and add the seasonings. Slowly pour the mixture over the bread. Pour the melted butter over top. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Remove the ramekins from the fridge and bring them to room temperature before baking. Place them in a pan of water (picture on left) and bake uncovered at 350 degrees for about an hour or until they puff up, turn brown and a knife inserted comes out clean (picture on right).



After tasting this dish I remember why I asked for the recipe. I liked it then and I like it now. My husband kept asking, “This is good but how much bacon did you use?” None. “But I am getting the taste and texture of bacon.” Turns out the texture came from the lovely crisp bread and the smoky “bacon” taste from the smoked cheddar I used. This is a brunch classic which I will be making again.