Japanese
#COOKING: UNI PASTA X BULGOGI RECIPE
Uni Pasta x Bulgogi. One of my favourite things in the world to eat is Uni. While only available seasonally, Sea Urchin, as it better known, is decadent, thick, buttery and creamy. Infusing it into a creamy pasta sauce is the perfect way to get more out of it is sold in small portions. My favourite Pasta is Pappardelle, an Egg Noodle which works well with the creaminess of this dish. Pairing this together with Air-fried Bulgogi, Barbequed Korean Beef, is the perfect way to make Uni Pasta even more satisfying. A sumptuous balance of East meets West.
Fun fact: Maurizio Gucci‘s (the central subject in House of Gucci) favourite dish was Uni Pasta.
Ingredients:
1 large tray of Uni
16 oz Ribeye Steak, thinned in half
1/4 cup Korean BBQ Marinade
250g package of Pappardelle Pasta
1/3 cup Heavy Cream
1/4 cup Evaporated Milk
1/4 cup Korean BBQ Marinade
3 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 tbsp Truffle Oil
5 bulbs garlic, minced
1 tbsp minced scallion
Furikake
Parmesan Cheese, grated
Sea salt, to taste
Instructions:
1. Marinate steak for minimum one hour in refrigerator. Leave at room temperature about 30 minutes before cooking.2. Boil pasta till al dente and strain. Do not rinse. Set aside no longer than 20 minutes to avoid drying too much.
3. In large pan, sautée garlic in butter for a couple minutes. Do not over-brown.
4. Add-in cream, milk and truffle oil. Reduce heat to low and simmer a couple minutes. Season with salt, to taste. It’s fine if the sauce is slightly salty as it will balance out when it coats the Pappardelle.
5. Mix-in about 3/4 of the Uni, stirring occasionally till pieces are broken. Do not overcook.
6. Toss-in pasta gently and coat in cream sauce. Remove from heat.
7. Pre-heat Air Fryer at 400°F for three minutes.
8. Dividing steak into two batches, fry each batch for about 3-4 minutes. Do not overcook as these should be sliced thin so they will cook quickly. Set aside on platter and cut into small bite-size pieces.
9. Plate pasta twirling gently in ladle with a large serving fork. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Add portion of Bulgogi on the side.
10. Add pieces of Uni on-top and garnish with Furikake and scallions. Serves 4-6.
Gallery:
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
#COOKING: SOBA NOODLE BOWL RECIPE
Soba Bowl. Soba are the perfect noodle. Made of Buckwheat, these nourishing noods cook just as fast as Instant Ramen. This Bowl is great when you are short on time or inspiration. Tangy, sweet, vegetarian and light, this is one dish is super-easy to make.
Ingredients:
2-3 handfuls of Soba Noodles
1/4 cup corn kernels
12 Edamame Pea Pods, shells removed
1/4 cup shredded Mozzarella
Kewpie Japanese Mayonnaise
Furakake
Soba Sauce:
5 tbsps Ketchup
1 tbsp Soy Sauce
1 tbsp Oyster Sauce (available in vegetarian)
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
Ingredients:
- 1. Boil Soba Noodles in salted water. Note these noodles cook quickly. Rinse and strain in colander.
- 2. In shallow bowl, layer with a base of noodles. Add Edamame, corn, a dollop of em>Soba Sauce and cheese.
- 3. Microwave for about 45 seconds on high till cheese melts.
- 4. Drizzle Kewpie Mayonnaise on top.
- 5. Add dash of Furukake.
- 6. Serves 3-4. Mix well when eating.
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
#COOKING: HONEY BUTTER MOCHI RECIPE
Honey Butter Mochi. I honestly have been non-stop busy for a while now so thought I’d de-stress with a little baking. Butter Mochi are all the rage. Visually, they’re not much to look at, but they are addictive. Think a Blondie, but super-chewy to the bite, the exterior is a thin, crispy crust. I love sweet but not too sweet, so this amount of sweetness is just right for me! Add more if you wish. Have fun with these – they’re super-easy to make! If shopping for rice flour, ensure you are using Glutinous Rice Flour, versus standard Rice Flour which would give you an entirely different texture.
Ingredients:
1 400g bag of Glutinous Rice Flour
1/2 cup organic raw sugar
2 tsps baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
1/3 cup melted unsalted butter
1/4 cup honey
1 can of Coconut Milk
1 1/2 cups water
Vegetable Oil
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven at 375°F.
2. In large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
3. In another large bowl, mix eggs, honey, water, coconut milk and butter.
4. Using hand mixer, combine wet and dry ingredients till smooth.
5..Grease a loaf pan lightly. Pour batter.into pan.
6. Bake one hour or till toothpick comes out smooth.
7. Allow to stand room temperature till cool and cut into squares.
8..Place in air-tight container lined with wax paper for about three days or freeze right away. If freezing, leave out at room temperature 30 minutes before heating in toaster oven. Allow to cool a bit before eating as these get hot.
These also translate beautifully into muffins. Depending on how deep your muffin pans are, you can bake these for about 35-40 minutes. Remember to grease your pans well!
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
#COOKING: SPICY PEACH CALIFORNIA ROLL RECIPE
Spicy Peach California Rolls. We had forgotten how fun it is to make Sushi at home! These are simple and while it might take a couple tries to perfect a nice tight roll, this is totally worth it and fun to do with others.
Maki:
1 1/2 cups Botan Calrose Rice
4 sheets Nori
2 eggs, beaten
4 strips of Surimi (artificial crab), halved length-wise
1/4 cucumber, sliced into thin strips
1/2 avocado, sliced into thin strips
4 tbsps seasoned rice vinegar
2 tbsps organic raw sugar
3 tbsps black sesame, toasted
Sea salt
Sriracha-Peach Mayo:
1 peach, skinned and sliced thin
1 tbsp organic raw sugar
3 tbsps Mayonnaise
1 tsp Sriracha
Instructions:
1. Cook rice in rice cooker with 2 1/4 cups of water. Unplug once cooked and cool for 10 minutes. Stir-in vinegar, sugar and salt to taste and set aside. Sprinkle sesame seeds and mix gently into rice.2. In sauce pan, cook peach slices with 1 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp water on medium heat till softened (about 5 minutes), stirring often. Once cooked, transfer to a bowl and mix-in Mayo and Sriracha and whisk with fork till smooth.
3. Set toaster oven to 200°F. Toast Nori for about 1 minute, careful not to toast too long as these burn quickly. Set aside.
4. Grease skillet and fry beaten egg, folding over with spatula 3-4 times as it cooks till it forms a narrow rectangular bar. Set aside once cooked and slice into thin strips.
5. Line plastic wrap on bamboo sushi mat. Once rice cools down, divide into four equal portions. Use clean hands and pat rice down onto wrap. Flatten rice with hands until you have enough to cover about 3/4 of a Nori sheet. Occasionally rinse hands with water if too sticky. Place Nori sheet on-top of rice, shiny side facing you.
6. Line avocado, cucumber, artificial crab and egg strips length-wise in rows.
7. Carefully lift edge of Nori and roll it over filling. Continue to roll over about 2-3 more times over and cover it with plastic wrap. Take bamboo mat and wrap it over the sushi roll. Roll 2-3 times tightly, careful not to press too hard.
8. Using a sharp knife, cut each roll in half. Then take each half and cut three pieces. Rinse knife with water if it gets too sticky.
9. Arrange pieces on plate. Top with small dollop of Sriracha-Peach Mayo and a small bit of avocado. Serve with wasabi and soy sauce if you like. Yields about 24 maki.
Gallery:
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
#RECIPE: BACON OKONOMIYAKI RECIPE
Bacon Okonomiyaki. This popular Japanese street food is a like a savoury pancake-omlette which we have added a Canadian twist to. This one definitely will require a trip to the Asian or Japanese grocery store, but we promise you will love this!
Ingredients:
4-5 cups finely chopped Napa Cabbage
1 cup flour
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup sweet potato starch
1/2 cup Tenkasu (Fried Tempura Bits)/Panko
5 strips bacon, cut in halves
2 eggs
2 stalks green onion, minced
1 3/4 tbsps baking powder
Sea salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsps Aonori (finely shredded seaweed)
Canola oil
Maple-Oknonomi Sauce:
1 1/2 tsps maple syrup
4 tbsps Ketchup
2 tbsps Oyster Sauce
3 tbsps Worcestershire Sauce
Mayonnaise/Kewpie Mayonnaise/Miracle Whip
Optional:
Pickled ginger
Bonito Flakes
Instructions:
1. Heat oil large skillet on medium-high heat.
2. In large mixing bowl, beat flour, starch, baking powder, water, salt and pepper.
3. Beat-in eggs and Tempura Bits/Panko.
4. Add cabbage and green onion. Mix enough to coat, but do not over-mix.
5. Shape mixture onto skillet in disc shape. Pancake should be about 2″ high. Flatten top with spatula. Fry about 3 minutes with bacon strips lined on top.
6. Flip pancake over carefully, using hand to guide if needed.
7. Fry for 5 minutes.
8. In small bowl, prep Okonomi Sauce. Mix sauces together with syrup and allow to stand a few minutes.
9. Flip pancake over again and cook 2 more minutes.
10. Transfer pancake carefully to plate. Dollop or drizzle mayonnaise and Okonomiyaki Sauce on-top. Sprinkle Aonori on-top. Optional: add Bonito Flakes and pickled ginger also. Serve.
Gallery:
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
#COOKING: HELLO KITTY MAC & CHEESE RECIPE
Hello Kitty Mac & Cheese. She’s an icon and what better way to celebrate her in a dish worthy of her greatness, Mac & Cheese? Our mind was blown that Hello Kitty Pasta exists and we found this in a Japanese Houseware Store (Oomomo). You also can find this online. Something a little fun and comforting to make your day for kids big and small!
Ingredients:
3 cups whole milk
3 cups Old Cheddar, grated
1 cup Gruyere, grated
6 Kraft Singles
1 cup whipping cream
¼ cup flour
6 tbsps unsalted butter
5-6 drops red food colouring (or beet juice if you’re conscious like that!)
Sea salt and pepper
Olive oil
Crust:
1 cup Panko
½ cup Parmesan, grated
4 tbsps unsalted butter, melted
½ tsp Paprika
4 drops red food colouring (or beet juice!)
Instructions:
1. Cook Pasta till al dente and set aside. Toss in a bit of olive oil.2. Preheat oven at 350°F.
3. In large sauce pan on medium heat, melt butter, add cheeses (reserve about a cup or more), milk, cream, salt and pepper. Stir frequently till just melted.
4. In small bowl mix flour and a bit of water to make a slurry.
5. Whisk slurry into cheese sauce and drop-in colouring. If lumps form, use sieve to strain lumps out.
6. Place pasta in baking dish and pour sauce, mixing evenly.
7. Sprinkle remaining cheese on-top.
8. Mix colour into butter. Add Panko, Paprika and Parmesan.
9. Top pasta with crust mixture and bake 30 minutes till crust is golden.
10. Allow to cool 30 minutes before serving. Serve with Sriracha or Ketchup.
Gallery:
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
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