Shabu Shabu
Stock:
2  4″ square sheets of kombu seaweed, wiped clean of excess salt and soaked in water for 30 minutes
7 cups of water
The Food:
1 lb flank steak, thinly sliced against the grain
1 lb tiger shrimps, peeled & deveined
1 box silken extra-firm tofu, cut into 3/4″ cubes
5 baby bok choy, cut lengthwise in quarters
8 gai lan [...]

Grilled Eggplant with Miso Barbeque Sauce
Adapted from The Barbeque Bible! by Steven Raichlen
4-6 Asian eggplants (the long thin ones)
1/3 cup organic white miso
1 tbsp sake
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp mayonnaise
2-3 tbsp dark sesame oil for brushing

Pre-heat your BBQ for direct grilling’; clean and oil the grates.
Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise. Make criss-cross cuts [...]

Slow-cooked Salmon
I usually place the salmon on a bed of sautéed shredded snow peas but this time we used the white beans, leeks and shiitake.
2 salmon fillets, skinned and boned
1.5 tbsp sake
1.5 tbsp light soy sauce
1.5 tbsp dashi*
1  tbsp freshly grated ginger
2.5 tbsp butter
2  cloves garlic sliced
Garnish
pea sprouts
1. Combine all the ingredients in a [...]

MENTSUYU DRESSING/DIPPING SAUCE
Ingredients:
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup mirin
3 tbsp superfine or fruit sugar
1 cup water
2-1/2 tbsp dried bonito flakes or other fish flakes
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together in a microwave-safe bowl. Do not cover. Microwave at medium power for 3 minutes. Cool and strain. You can refrigerate it until you need it.

Ward and I are planning on entertaining more regularly, so we’ve been having fun trying out more appetizers and other party-type recipes. We came across a recipe for Poached Shrimp with Spicy Mayo and Garlic Breadcrumbs in the Aug/Sept 2009 issue of Fine Cooking; it was part of a party menu, and we thought we’d [...]

Monday night was my birthday, and everyone asked that eternal question: what would you like to do on your birthday? I decided to pick something for everyone, so we went out for an early dinner at East Side Mario’s (it made the kids happy, and I got to have funnel cake with ice cream for [...]

We had shabu shabu tonight, after postponing it yesterday – we got involved in finishing up our living room, which we had just repainted, and Ward was too tired to cook, so we ended up getting take-out.
The shabu shabu was a huge hit, especially with the kids. There’s something about being able to cook your [...]

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Peppers and Crab Mixed Rice
Adapted from Harumi’s Japanese Home Cooking, by Harumi Kurihara
Ingredients:
3 cups uncooked rice
4 tsp granulated chicken stock powder or 1 chicken bullion cube
2-1/2 cups water
1 small or medium red pepper
1 small or medium green pepper
12 white button mushrooms
1 cup cooked white crabmeat
2-1/2 tbsp butter
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Dissolve chicken [...]