About the Recipe
Here's a dish said to be associated with Japan's greatest military hero, Admiral Togo Heihachiro. Togo was the commander of the Imperial Japanese Navy at the time of Japan's greatest naval victory - the defeat of the Russian fleet at the battle of Tsushima in 1905. Back then, Japan had a very close naval relationship with the UK - in fact, most of its vessels were British designed & built. Admiral Togo studied in the UK and while there, apparently grew fond of a stew of beef and potatoes commonly served in the British Royal Navy.
Ingredients
60g / 2oz green beans, rinsed
1 onion
2 medium potatoes
1 carrot
200g / 7oz beef feather blade (or a similar very thinly sliced beef)
250ml / 9floz water
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp cooking sake
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp mirin
Preparation
how to:
remove the both ends of the green beans then cut them into thirds.
remove the skin and ends of the onion. cut in half and then into slices about 1cm / 1/2 inch thick.
peel the potatoes and cut into bite sized chunks.
peel the carrot, then cut into small pieces diagonally.
lay the the beef in a pile on a cutting board and slice in half.
next, add the water, sugar, cooking sake, soy sauce and mirin to a medium frying pan.
turn on the heat. add the potatoes, carrot and onion. bring to the boil and simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes.
when the time is up, test the vegetables with a skewer to see if they are cooked through.
if the vegetables are still firm, simmer for another 2 - 3 minutes.
add the green beans and beef to the frying pan. spread the beef around the pan so that it cooks evenly. simmer about 3 -4 minutes more with the lid on.
remove the lid and check that the beef is cooked.
serve with bowls of fresh steamed rice.