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Heddon Yokocho Ramen bar Three cheers for the life after lockdown! One of the things I have missed most over most of the past 16 months is being able to get out and go to eat my favourite foods. A little while ago, on a Thursday lunchtime, I visited Heddon Yokocho Ramen bar which opened last autumn in Heddon St. in London's West End on the site of the former Sakagura, the rather pricey Japanese steak restaurant and sake bar. Heddon St. is tucked away off of Regent St, so it is a good location for a lunch break from shopping or maybe a pre-or post-show meal. Heddon Yokocho joins a fairly select bunch of eateries in Heddon St. including Gordon Ramsey's Heddon St. Kitchen and Piccolino, a higher end Italian restaurant. Higher end, Heddon Yokocho is not. The clue is in the name - in Japanese, 'yokocho" means an alley or small side street - the kind of place where in many Japanese cities, you find little ramen shops and bars tucked away, each having their own specialities and regular, faithful clientele. Heddon Yokocho is decked out to resemble a Japanese 70's or 80's yokocho ramen bar - there are lots of Japanese language signs fixed to the walls to offer that little bit of authenticity. It's cheap, colourful and fun - I liked the feel of the place - bright, tacky unpretentious. There is seating outside - 10 small tables - then for about 30 on the ground floor inside and more in the basement. The basement offers the novelty of a row of little booths set up along a counter where individual diners can enjoy a little solitude, alone with their chosen bowl of noodles. This part of the restaurant appeared to be closed when we visited - there were only two diners downstairs and they both appeared to be staff eating their pre-shift lunch. Heddon Yokocho Ramen bar We ate outside where I became a little bit mesmerised by the robotic ramen bowl at the entrance - this is a clever ploy - it almost acts as a beacon attracting diners - even if you can't see any obvious signage advertising Heddon Yokocho to passers-by (which you can't because there isn't any) the noodles rising and falling from their bowl is a dead giveway that you've found the right place. (Click on the video on the right and you'll see what I mean.) The tables outside were a little close together but clean and, best of all, no piped music just the gentle chatter of the other diners. (I think we ate early enough to escape the J-Pop). We had to wait a little while to be given menus but not so long that it became a distraction. The waitress was pleasant, apologised for the wait and asked if we suffered from any allergies. Kumamoto ramen noodles What did we eat? We ordered the following: Kumamoto Tonkotsu ramen (photo left) Tantanmen ramen Takoyaki deep fried octopus balls The takoyaki octopus balls arrived first which was fine as we wanted to share them as a starter. The two bowls of ramen arrived around 10 minutes later, so timing-wise we couldn't complain. How did the food score? Takoyaki deep fried octopus balls 5/10 Takoyaki served with beni shoga and bonito flakes There were 6 octopus balls presented in a small cardboard tray. They were presented with a little beni shoga (Japanese red pickled ginger) on the side, some drizzled Japanese mayo and brown sauce and a good sprinkling of katsuobushi bonito flakes. Everything was looking good. We each popped one expectantly into our mouths. Flavour-wise the takoyaki balls were OK, if a little too firm on the inside - takoyaki should be crisp on the outside but have a contrasting loose, runny inside apart from the pieces of takoyaki. Which brings me on to the tako (the little diced pieces of octopus) - where were those pieces of tako? My co-diner identified two small pieces in the three takoyaki he ate. I got one piece in three. That was a disappointment - £8 for six takoyaki and only three small pieces of octopus to show for it. Conclusion: For £8, I really do expect to find more tako in my takoyaki! Tantanmen noodles Tantanmen noodles 5/10 Tantanmen is a Japanese adaption of the Chinese dish, Dandanmen. The latter dish is from the Chinese province of Sichuan and as you would expect of a Sichuan dish, it is quite spicy, the noodles being flavoured with chilli oil. The Japanese version of the dish isn't so hot and the noodles sit in a spicy (but not sooo spicy) chicken stock broth mixed with soya milk and a sesame paste which give a slightly oily texture and a nutty flavour and enriches the broth. So, how did Heddon Yokocho's version stand up? The bowl came full to the brim with broth and noodles, topped with minced pork, two large pak choi leaves, a boiled egg, some menma fermented bamboo and some bean sprouts - a generous serving, no doubt about that. There was also a large red chilli pepper sitting menacingly on the top of the minced pork. How did it taste? I have to say I struggled to get anywhere near finishing this bowl. I left over half of the soup and quite a lot of the noodles. Why? It was way too oily! The spiciness was on the verge of being too hot for a Japanese dish but I could live with that (the chilli pepper was judiciously removed before I started eating). But the broth was so over done with sesame - I suspect the soup is made using raw sesame/tahini paste - that it was too thick and oily to eat very much of it. I've eaten Tantanmen many times in Japan and I've eaten the "original" dish in Sichuan - the Heddon Yokocho version is spicy enough that it is more like the Chinese version than the Japanese (nothing bad about that per se ) but I fear even a hardened Sichuanese diner might baulk at the oiliness of the soup/broth. Conclusion: The serving was generous and had all the right ingredients but the broth was so oily that it spoilt the experience. Kumamoto Tonkotsu ramen 5/10 Kumamoto Tonkotsu is a dish from the south western city of Kumamoto which sits just inland from the coast on the island of Kyusuhu. My well travelled co-diner can claim to have eaten "the real thing" several times during a stay on Kyusuhu and in Kumamoto itself. Kumamoto Tonkotsu is a dish made from a rich pork broth (although many Kyushu ramen bars use a pork/chicken broth) enhanced with black garlic oil. Like the Tantanmen dish, the Kumamoto Tonkotsu came filled to the brim with all the right ingredients - 3 slices of charshu pork, a whole boiled egg, nori, spring onions, beansprouts, fried garlic, shredded kombu - it looked like a feast in a bowl. How did it taste? My co-diner initially commented on the pork slices being rich and tasty. Things took a turn for the worse when he tried to eat the shredded kelp, which seemed to be very tough and leathery. The boiled egg - so so - it was very hard boiled. Ramen eggs should not be hard boiled - the yoke should be soft and oozy - what the Japanese call "hanjuku". The egg white should be brown from being steeped for hours in a soy marinade. It rarely happens that way outside of Japan so I've given up on expecting it but if you're going to claim yokocho authenticity, a proper hanjuku egg would be a good way to show it. So to the noodles and the soup. Unfortunately, my co-diner came to the same conclusion that I had come to. The ramen soup/broth was far too thick and oily. That isn't too say it was rich - in fact, we both struggled to find any taste in what was essentially just a thick, oily emulsion. This bowl remained unfinished too. Conclusion: My co-diner almost never leaves a dish uneaten but couldn't stomach finishing his bowl. The bill: Menu, Heddon Yokocho Takoyaki £ 8.00 Tantan Men Ramen £14.50 Kumamoto Tonkotsu £13.90 Total £36.40 Summary: I've read some rave reviews about Heddon Yokocho, even some from "professional" food critics - so I was disappointed with the food put in front of me. There seems to be a kind of macho culture around ramen these days where the soup/broth has to be as thick and oily as it can possibly be to satisfy expectant diners (how many days were those bones simmered to make that stock?) There's one, big problem with this approach - authentic Japanese ramen dishes just don't taste like this. If you want to eat something thick and oily to the point where you might leave the table feeling a little queasy, then Heddon Yokocho's ramen might be the place for you. If you want to enjoy a food experience that gets close to the authenticity of the "real thing" then I'd advise you to try Kanada-Ya, Shoryu (which ironically is also owned by the owner of Heddon Yokocho!) or maybe Koya instead. (All three alternatives are only a 10 - 15 minute walk away.) This really is a shame because the concept and ambience behind Heddon Yokocho is both clever and entertaining. So what is going wrong with the ramen here? As I said above, Heddon Yokocho is operated by the same people who run the very successful (and consistently good) Shoryu chain, so I find it hard to believe they are getting their kitchen recipes wrong. Was it the kitchen staff? Maybe they were having a bad day? I have to say, the two cooks on duty did look very young and and not too involved in the task at hand. I am sure it wouldn't require too much re-training of the staff to produce ramen dishes that are far better and closer to the "real thing" (and dare I say more healthy) than the fare they are currently serving up to their customers. Last word: for almost £15 per bowl, I expect a treat in a bowl and I didn't get it at Heddon Yokocho. Food: ★★☆☆☆ Ambience: ★★★★☆ Value for Money: ★★☆☆☆ You can find Heddon Yokocho ramen bar at 8 Heddon St., London W1B 4BU . Reservations via thefork.co.uk and delivery via Ubereats and deliveroo (PS: the restaurants I review are unaware that I am reviewing their fare and service. I pay for what I eat. My opinions are honest and unbiased....) But why not make it yourself? We all love to dine out. But don't forget you can make Japanese food at home which will not only taste as good or better than what you eat out (or order in) and for a fraction of the cost too! I've listed two recipes below for items I ordered during my review. Why not give them a try? Just follow the links to the written recipes and Youtube tutorials. Hanjyuku eggs Recipe #1 : If you want to find a recipe for a pukka Japanese "hanjuku" pickled egg, you need look no further than my recipe for hanjuku eggs . If you want to see my Youtube tutorial, it's here: hanjuku eggs . Remember, you don't have to have your egg "hanjuku" (semi-soft), just boil it for the full 6 minutes if you prefer a harder boiled version! Either way, once you've steeped your boiled eggs in their soy marinade, they'll have the proper brown colouration and added flavour for whatever dish you choose to add them to. (You might even earn some culinary cred points from friends and family as well!) Takoyaki Recipe #2 : If you are interested in Japanese food and don't mind making a little investment, you could be making your own takoyaki in no time! My recipe for making your own is here: takoyaki . If you want to check out the Youtube tutorial here: takoyaki . I guarantee that once you have made your own little octopus balls, there'll be no going back! If you can't source fresh octopus where you live, crab sticks / seafood sticks make a great (and much cheaper) alternative. (Of course, you don't have to stop at octopus or crab sticks, there are lots of other ingredients you can pop in to your takoyaki maker, once you've got the hang of using it!) If you decide you want to buy your own takoyaki maker, you can find an excellent quality Iwatani brand takoyaki maker by popping over to my Goods section. (PS: I. make a small commission from sales like this which contribute to the upkeep of my this website.) About the reviewer. Hi, I'm Kurumi, a cooking writer and blogger. I'm Japanese but I have lived in London for the last Kurumi 30 thirty years. Back in the days before the internet, I was a food writer. My first book published in English was called Japanese Cooking for Two which I wrote in 1994. It has become the 9th best selling Japanese cookbook ever… yaaay! My other books were ‘The Noodle Cookbook”, “The Soy for Health Cookbook” and “Healthy Noodles.” I also published a book in Japanese “English Home Cooking”. Then I had children and my life changed! By the time my children had grown up, the world had changed quite a lot too! Internet, Youtube, Insta etc. So, these days, instead of books, I publish recipe and articles on my website and on my Youtube channel. I hope you'll check out my recipes - they are all tried and tested (some more times than I care to mention!) until I think you will get them right first time when you make them and enjoy eating them. If you’d like to read more about me or my books, then copy and paste the link here: https://www.kurumicooks.co.uk/about Happy eating! Kurumi XXXX.

Miso marinated Pork loins If you like pork, chances are that the pork loin will be one of your favourite cuts. The meat is one of the leanest pork cuts you'll find and it's mild flavour makes it ideal for steeping in a marinade. My friend Yumiko Nikaido sent me this recipe from Tokyo - apart from the pork, the key feature is, of course, the marinade which combines lots of good things - miso, Japanese sake (cooking sake is also fine), mirin, ginger, garlic and some honey - I know what your'e thinking - "this is going to be a tasty combination of salty and sweet flavours - and you'd be right! You can buy pork loin either boneless or on the bone. Personally, I prefer pork loin off the bone but this recipe works very well with either cut. I remove a little more fat from the loins before I marinade them but again, that is my preference, so you can either remove all the fat or leave it on. Once the marinade is prepared, you need to do a little prep on the pork - just score the meat with the blade of a kitchen knife by hitting the meat with the blade in a criss cross pattern on both sides - the idea is just to open the meat fibres just a little so that the loins won't curl up when you fry them. Once that's done, the loins can be left to rest in the marinade for at least an hour, preferably longer. I've made this recipe several times and I find that a 3 - 4 hour marinade seems to be optimal in terms of flavouring the pork - so you could prepare these in the morning for lunch or leave them even longer in the marinade and serve at dinner. Once the pork has finished marinating, it's a simple matter of frying - first fry the pork by itself and then with the marinade - and that's it --you're done. I usually serve this on a bed of rice with some salad. I like to serve the loin whole - my husband on the other hand, likes the loins sliced before its gets to the plate - you can go either way - it'll taste just as good sliced or whole. The marinade has sweetness, saltiness and of course, some miso umami - once you've tried this, you'll no doubt start thinking, as I am, of other ways to use this marinade - but that's for another day! If you like the look of this recipe, you can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking Miso marinated Pork Loins or scroll to the bottom of the page. The written recipe is just below. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. Miso marinated Pork loins ingredients: (makes 2 servings) 2 pork loins 1/2 tsp grated ginger 1/2 tsp grated garlic 2 tbsp miso 1 tbsp mirin 1 tbsp japanese (cooking) sake 1 tbsp honey 1 tbsp vegetable oil how to: grate the ginger and garlic in a bowl add the miso, mirin, Japanese cooking sake & honey to the bowl and mix well trim the fat off the pork if you wish, then lightly score the flesh with the blade of a kitchen knife, so that the loins will not curl up when you fry them marinade the pork in the miso mixture for at least 1 hour but preferably longer heat the veg oil in a pan and fry the pork with the lid on until golden brown with a lid on turn the loins over, add the remaining marinade to the pan and fry again with the lid on until lightly browned (the cooking time will depend on the thickness of the loins - a 1.5cm / 3/4 inch thick loin needs about 3 mins each side) when the loins are cooked, give them a last good coating in the marinade. your miso marinated pork loins are ready. remove from the pan and serve either whole or sliced serve with some rice & salad leaves Miso marinated Pork loins

Hiyashi Chuka - Japanese Cold Ramen Noodles I live in the UK, so there aren't many days when the gets so hot that you can't stomach the idea of hot food. In Japan however, summer means + 30 C / 85 F temperatures are a regular feature, so that leaves a lot of people in search of food that isn't going to make them come out in even more of a sweat. Of course, there are many salads you can choose from but sometimes, you need something a little more substantial and sustaining than just salad. (I know I do) . So here is a dish that ticks both boxes - it's served cold and it's got a lot of nourishing things in it - in Japanese, it is called Hiyashi Chuka, which translates as the somewhat prosaic , "chilled Chinese style." I don't think anyone quite knows where the Chinese connection comes from - Hiyashi Chuka will be on the menu of Chinese restaurants in Japan but nowhere else as far as I know. Then again, Hiyashi Chuka is on the menu of a lot of restaurants in Japan that aren't Chinese as well. Putting the origins of Hiyashi Chuka to one side, you might look at the picture above and think, "So where exactly are the noodles?" In fact, there's a bundle of cold ramen noodles on the inside, covered with portions of ham, omelette, cucumber and seafood / crab sticks. (As I said, this is quite a sustaining meal - your tummy won't be ready to rumble for a while after eating this dish!) I always garnish my Hiyashi Chuka with toasted sesame seeds for a little more flavour and nutrition but they aren't obligatory. What is an absolute must have though is the broth which you drizzle over your Hiyashi Chuka just before serving. This broth is a mix of rice vinegar, sesame oil, soy sauce and a little sugar. It takes no time at all to make but it's best prepared first to give it time to cool. (On a really hot day, you could prepare it and put it in the fridge for a really refreshing plate of chilled noodles.) Once your broth is cooling down, the rest of the preparation is equally straightforward - a one egg omelette (for 2 servings) - this is fried until set on both sides and then removed from the pan before the yellow colour has time to brown. Once your egg is ready, then you get slicing and shredding the ham, cucumber, seafood sticks and egg into large matchsticks. Now, the fun part and you get to start building what looks like a mini bonfire - a bundle of cold soba noodles in the middle and then the matchsticks placed up against the noodles. Last, you douse any imaginary flames with the broth, pouring it all over your mound of goodies. Voila, your Hiyashi Chuka is ready. Sound good enough to eat? You bet it is! So, if the temperature begins to rise and you want a chilled out feast, look no further than the recipe "how to" below and/or the Youtube tutorial by clicking Hiyashi Chuka - Japanese Cold Ramen Noodles. Or scroll to the bottom of the page. Be happy and chill out! Kurumi XXXX Hiyashi Chuka ingredients: makes (2 servings) 4 seafood sticks 80g / 2.8 oz cucumber 3 slices ham (70g / 2.5 oz) 1 large egg 1/2 tsp cornflour 1 tsp water 1 tsp vegetable oil For the broth: 100ml / 3.5 fl oz water 1 tsp vegetable stock powder 2 tbsp sugar 2.5 tbsp Japanese rice vinegar 3 tbsp soy sauce 1 tsp sesame oil 2 servings of dried or fresh egg noodles chopped spring onion, chopped shiso leaves or sesame seeds as a garnish (optional) how to: to make the broth: put the water, vegetable stock powder, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce and sesame oil in a small pan. bring to the boil and simmer for 1 - 2 mins, stirring occasionally - then set aside to cool for at least 15 minutes whisk the egg, cornflour & water well in a small bowl heat the oil in a small frying pan. add the egg mixture and make a thin omelette, turning once the bottom has set and before it browns. once the omelette has just set, turn it out onto a plate to cool slice the cucumber & ham into long matchsticks (long enough to set them up against the bundle of noodles shred the seafood sticks with your fingers next, cook the egg noodles according to the instruction on the packet now the omelette has cooled a littlem cut it into matchsticks as well place 1/2 of cooked noodles in the centre of each plate next, lay half of the ham, cucumber, seafood sticks & egg matchsticks around each bundle of noodles garnish with your choice spring onions, shiso leaves or toasted sesame finally , pour half of the broth over each bowl your Hiyashi Chuka is now ready to serve Hiyashi Chuka - Japanese Cold Ramen Noodles

Takoyaki Look at the picture above. You could be forgiven for thinking you were looking at savoury choux creams, couldn't you? In fact, you're looking at a serving of Japanese takoyaki. These translate into English as octopus balls but I think you'll agree that takoyaki sounds so much better. So, what are takoyaki? Simply put, they are bite sized balls of fried batter filled with chopped octopus, spring onion, little bit of leftover tempura batter and a Japanese pickled ginger called beni shoga. Takoyaki are usually served with some Japanese mayo, brown sauce, powdered nori seaweed and/or some katsuobushi bonito fish flakes. They are one of Japan's most popular street foods and can be found at every festival held up and down the country as well as specialist takoyaki restaurants. Unusually for a Japanese dish, we know exactly who invented takoyaki - Mr. Endo Tomikichi, an Osakan, who opened his first takoyaki outlet in 1935. Of course, the most important question is - What makes a good takoyaki? First, to the eye, the takoyaki should be a nice, golden brown colour. Too brown and it'll be burnt and possiby over cooked inside. Second, what should a good takoyaki taste like? The texture should be a contrast between a slightly crispy, thin skin of batter and a soft, slightly oozy inside. Taste-wise, you should be getting muted seafood flavours mixed with the tang of pickled ginger and spring onion. There is a certain skill to making takoyaki but nothing you won't be able to master after a little practice. But first things first, to make your own takoyaki, there's one thing you absolutely must have - a takoyaki maker - like the one on the right. A takoyaki maker is simplicity itself - a pressed Takoyaki maker steel plate with a number (usually 16 for a domestic maker) of spherical impressions pressed out of the steel. A good takoyaki maker should have a long life non-stick coating. The lines you can see in the photo that divide each half sphere help separate the batter mixture when you are making your takoyaki - but more of that later. (That reminds me, you will also need a couple of wooden skewers later as well. You must use wood, not steel skewers which will damage the non-stick surface of the takoyaki maker.) The takoyaki maker is used on a gas hob or on a table top portable gas one-ring cooker. There's one more thing you should check - look underneath and make sure the takoyaki maker has small notches or feet cut out to provide stability when it is placed on the gas ring - the maker gets very hot and when you are making your takoyako, it's full of hot batter, so the last thing you want is a nasty, hot spillage. (You can find takoyaki makers advertised on the internet that claim to work on electric or induction hobs. I havent tried these out though. My one concern about them is that they all appear to have a flat base which means that they could be quite unstable - not a good thing.) So, let's assume you've taken the plunge and bought, begged or borrowed (but hopefully not stolen!) your takoyaki maker. The next thing you will need to do is assemble your ingredients. Takoyaki are made from a simple batter of egg, flour and dashi stock. For this recipe, I made the stock using stock granules but you could make your own dashi stock or use a stock bag - whatever works for you. Just whisk together a little and the batter is ready. Moving on to the fillings - a takoyaki wouldn't be a takoyaki without octopus, in this case diced into small pieces. On the other hand, I have made "fake" takoyaki using crab sticks (craboyaki, anyone?) and it works very well. As you know, crab sticks cost next to nothing (certainly a lot less tha octopus) so they are a great filling to use when you first try out a takoyaki maker. So, Filling 1 - Either get hold of some octopus or use crabsticks / seafood sticks. Next Filling 2 - The next "traditional" filling is tempura crumb (tenkasu in Japanese) - these are the little bits of fried tempura batter that you find bubbling away in your pan when you make tempura. (Don't throw them away - even if you don't want to make takoyaki, you can use tempura crumbs in bowls of hot soba or udon or okonomiyaki - they'll keep for a couple of weeks in your fridge). If you don't have any tempura crumb handy, then use some deep fried shallots as an alternative. Then there's Filling 3 - Just as obligatory for "old school" tempura is sliced beni shoga. As I said above, beni shoga is a form of pickled ginger made from immersing sliced ginger into plum vinegar. Beni shoga usually comes in a rather lurid red/pink colour This was traditionally done by colouring the ginger using red perilla leaves (a close relative of shiso) but nowadays, almost all the beni shoga you find will have been coloured using an edible dye. You could use sushi ginger as a substitue for beni shoga if that's what you have available. Finally, Filling 4 - finely sliced spring onion. Keep your fillings separate to ensure that each takoyaki gets an equal share of each filling. Set them aside for the time being and set up your takoyaki maker atop your gas hob or table top gas ring. Turn the gas on and keep it to a low/medium setting - the end game for perfect takoyaki is a golden brown colour which should take about 10 minutes. If the heat is too high, the takayaki will be too dark or will burn and you'll overcook the inside. Once you have turned on the gas, pour a little oil into a small bowl. Roll up a square of kitchen paper, dip it in the oil and then use it to oil the takoyaki maker. You want to oil the whole surface - both the takoyaki holes and the flat surface of the plate. By now your takoyaki maker should be hot enough for you to start cooking. Hold your hand over the takoyaki maker and if you can feel the heat rising off the plate, it's time to start. Using a ladle, pour half of your batter into the takoyaki molds. You don't need to be too accurate so don't worry if some of the batter doesn't go into the holes. Next, use your fingers or chopsticks to put a little of each filling into each hole. Try to get the octopus/ crab stick pieces into the holes but again, don't worry if the other fillings go a little haywire. Once you've used all the fillings, wait a little while - just a minute or two - to allow the batter to start to set. Now, you're ready for the next part of the process. Return to your ladle and your batter. Ladle the rest of the batter over the takoyaki plate. The plate will now be covered with batter and it should be sizzling away nicely. Remember those grid lines on the takoyaki maker, that I spoke about earlier? They should now be completely covered in batter now but you know where to find them, don't you! Take a wooden skewer and pierce the batter. Find the grid lines with the point of the skewer and drag the point of the skewer along the line. This will cut through the batter and as you draw your skewers up and down all the lines, it will separate your takoyaki into 16 little sizzling, squares. Now for the technical bit. Still using wood skewers (one in each hand), lift up the batter and expose the (now cooked) batter sitting in the mold. Use the skewers to partly lift and partly turn the cooked part of the takoyaki so that the raw batter sitting on top gets turned down into the mold. As you do this, use the skewers to tuck the batter sitting on the little square into the mold. Don't try to fully invert the takoyaki ball on your first attempt. A 90 degree turn is good enough. Move on to the next ball and repet the process. When you've turned and tucked every ball, return to the first ball and turn again. Repeat 2 or 3 times and, voila! You will find 16 perfectly shaped little takoyaki balls sizzling away in front of you. Now simply turn each ball a little more to ensure they are all nicely browned all over and you're done. It only remains now to remove the takoyaki from the maker (you can use the skewers or chopsticks to do this). the final part of the process is to drizzle with a little mayo and/or brown sauce - personally I keep the sauces to a minimum - just enough to add an extra layer of taste but not so much to drown out the subtle flavours inside the takoyaki. A sprinkling of powdered nori seaweed will further enhance the seafood flavours. Your takoyaki are now ready for you to serve and eat. If you like the idea of some takoyaki in your life, you can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking Takoyaki or just scroll to the bottom of the page. (I advise you to watch this to get an impression of how to turn the little takoyaki balls in their maker - it's not a difficult skill to master but it is easier when you've seen it with your own eyes. The written "how to" recipe is just below. If you decide you want to invest in your own takoyaki maker, take a look at the one in the Goods section of my site. I used that maker to cook this recipe. It's made in Japan by Takumi and I don't think you'll find a better quality maker anywhere. I receive a commission if you choose to buy via the link in the Goods section so you'll be helping me support my site. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. Takoyaki ingredients: (makes 16 takoyaki) 2 spring onions 2 tbsp Japanese beni shoga red pickled ginger 2 tbsp tempura crumbs (alternative: 2 tbsp deep fried shallots) 35g / 1.25 oz cooked octopus (alterntive: 3 crab sticks / seafood sticks) for the takoyaki batter: 90g / 3.2 oz plain flour 300ml / 10.5fl oz water 1 tsp Japanese dashi stock granules 1 egg 2 tbsp vegetable oil for seasoning: Japanese brown sauce mayonnaise aoko (powdered seaweed) 2 bamboo skewers (do not use metal skewers as they may damage the non-stick surface of the takoyaki maker) how to: finely chop the spring onion cut the octopus or your crab sticks into 16 pieces mix the water & dashi stock granules to make your Japanese stock. put the plain flour into a bowl and pour in the dashi stock. whisk to a rough batter. add the egg and whisk again until the egg is incorporated put your takoyaki maker on the gas ring and make sure it is stable. turn on the gas to a low/medium heat. dip either a rolled up square of kitchen paper or a small brush into the veg oil. oil both the takoyaki holes and the top plate next, hold your hand over the plate. if you can feel the heat rising off the plate, your are ready to start cooking. pour half of the batter into each hole, then add the octopus / crab stick pieces. next, add the chopped spring onion, tempura crumbs and ginger now pour over the rest of the batter. the takoyaki plate should now have a thick film of batter all over it. adjust the heat if necessary and wait 1- 2 minutes until the batter start forming next, use a wooden skewers to divide the batter into a grid (along the lines etched into the takoyaki plate.) give each takoyaki ball a quarter turn, tuckig in the batter from the top of the plate to form a ball. the takoyaki will look a bit untidy at this point, but keep turning the balls around and tucking in excess batter and soon, you'll have a neat tray of takoyaki. keep an eye on the heat. once the takoyaki ball are fully formed, keep turning until they are a uniform, golden brown use the wooden skewers or chopsticks to remove the takoyaki to plates serve with Japanese brown sauce, mayonnaise & the powdered seaweed Takoyaki

Natto Linguine You may have seen the article I posted about natto and how to make it. Here's a delicious & easy fusion recipe (what I like to call Japitalian) that pairs natto with linguine (spaghetti, works equally well.) - Natto Linguine. Do you know the health benefits of natto? - if not, a brief summary goes like this - high in protein, manganese, copper, iron, vitamin K2, magnesium, potassium, vitamin C, zinc & selenium (I think that's quite a list of healthy goodness, isn't it?). Being a fermented food full of healthy bacteria - bacillus subtilis in this case - it's also very good for your intestinal health. Moreover, it's vegetarian and vegan friendly. (This recipe does contain butter, but you can use olive oil as a substitute). If you're not inclined to make your own natto or if you're a first timer and simply want to try it out, can buy natto at Asian and Japanese food stores or on-line. Once you have your natto, the rest is really easy-peasy. I love this flavour combination and I hope you will too! You can find the written recipe just below and click Natto Linguine for the youtube tutorial or scroll to the bottom of the page. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. Natto Linguine. ingredients: (makes 2 portions) 1/2 sheet of nori, 2 spring onions 100g 3.5 oz natto (sticky fermented soy beans) 2 tbsp soy sauce 160g / 5.5 oz linguine a pinch of salt 20g / 0.7 oz salted butter 1 tsp Japanese dashi stock granules some cress for garnishing how to: finely shred the nori finely chop the spring onions roughly chop up the natto put the natto in a bowl and stir well, then add the spring onion and soy sauce and mix again cook the linguine in a pan according to the instructions on the packet melt the butter in a frying pan and add the linguine & dashi granules and mix add the natto and mix well until everything is mixed together your natto linguine is now ready. garnish with the nori & cress and serve Natto Linguine

Berry fruit Kanten cups with Strawberry coulis It doesn't need to be a baking hot summer's day to enjoy a kanten dessert like my berry fruit kanten cups. If you haven't come across kanten before, it is a gelling agent made from seaweed. It isn't identical to agar agar (which is also made from seaweed, jut a different variety which the Japanese call "tengusa") but it is a close cousin. Whereas agar agar tends to dissolve in the mouth, kanten has a little more body and texture on the tongue. It is an ideal gelatine replacement as it doesn't contain animal products and has almost no calorific value - best of all, it is claimed to be the best source of natural dietary fibre out there. It can be almost as wobbly as jelly and I think it has a lighter consistency making it ideal for little summer treats like these. As I went strawberry and raspberry picking with some friends over the weekend, I came back with a couple of large baskets of fruits. As you know, freshly picked strawberries and raspberries are at their best for a few days only, so I had to get started making things. Some just went into a large fruit salad and some went into jam for the winter. I also made these berry fruit kanten cups. The only pieces of equipment you need to make these is a cupcake baking tray and some silicone cup cake molds (these are basically like paper molds but reusable). Although the silicone cups will hold the kanten unsupported, putting them in a cupcake baking tray ensures that they don't distort. You could probably make these with paper cupcake molds as well although I haven't tried doing that myself. The recipe is enough for making 10 cups. Because the amounts of kanten are really small, it doesn't make sense to make less than that. But you don't need to let any leftovers go to waste, you can freeze the kanten liquid and it'll be perfectly usable again once thawed. If you do choose to make less than 10 kanten cups, you can reduce the number of strawberries and raspberries accordingly. Kanten jelly can be made in the same way as jelly made from gelatine. Pop some water in a saucepan, add the kanten, bring to a simmer and them remove from the heat and pour into molds. I had pre-filled my silicone molds with some cut strawberries and a whole raspberry. I placed two long cooking chopsticks across the molds to stop the fruit all floating to the top then poured in the kanten. Then it was just a matter of waiting for a few minute for the kanten solution to cool before popping in the fridge for 30 minutes. In the meantime, I used some more of the strawberries to make a strawberry sauce / jus. This makes for a nice decorative presentation and also gives the kanten cup a little more sweetness. The final touch was a little sprig of mint from the garden. So there you have it, pretty little guilt free cups of berry fruit that are very kind to your tummy - I ask you - what could be better? If you like the sound of this, you can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking - Berry Fruit Kanten cups or scroll to the bottom of the page. The written recipe is just below. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. Berry fruit Kanten cups with strawberry coulis ingredients: (makes 10 cups) 350g strawberries 10 raspberries 4g / 0.15 oz kanten powder 500ml / 16 fl oz water 4.5 - 5 tbsp white sugar (depending on how sweet you want your kanten cups) how to: rinse your berry fruits remove the stalks from the strawberries, then cut each strawberry longways into quarters place your silicone cup cake molds in your cupcake tray place the strawberry quarters around the edge of your silicone cups and place a raspberry upside down in the middle of each cup, then set aside using a small saucepan, combine the water, kanten powder and 2.5 - 3.0 tbps of the sugar. stir over a medium heat until the solution is about to boil, then turn off and leave for 1 - 2 minutes return to your cupcake molds. place a long cooking chopstick or skewer over the top of the fruit - this may sound strange but it will stop the fruit popping up and floating next, take the saucepan of kanten liquid and carefully fill the cupcake mould with the liquid now to make your strawberry sauce / jus: place the remaining strawberry quarters in a small saucepan. add the remaining 2 tbsps of white sugar. stir over a medium heat for 5 - 7 minutes until the sugar is dissolved and the strawberries have partly broken down remove the saucepan from the heat and use a blender to blend the mix into a smooth sauce. set aside to cool take your fruit cups out of the fridge. gently peel back the silicone and remove the kanten cups to a plate once your strawberry sauce has cooled and you are ready to serve, use the sauce to decorate your serving plates. place a kanten cupcake on each plate. decorate with sprigs of mint Berry fruit Kanten cups with Strawberry coulis

Korean savoury pancake - Pajeon My latest recipe is korea's favourite pancake - the pajeon (pa = spring onion, jeon = pancake.) At its most basic, the pajeon is a mixture of egg and plain flour mixed into a batter and then fried with spring onions. You could be forgiven for thinking, 'this is a Korean okonomiyaki" but there are some differences. First, a korean pancake is much thinner and therefore, when fried, it has a crispier texture. Second, the Korean version comes with its own dipping sauce unlike the okonomiyaki which is seasoned with brown sauce, mayo or ketchup. The pajeon is sliced up out of the pan in a lattice shape all ready to be dipped into its sauce - so the two - pajeon and okonomiyaki are quite different. (They do share the distinction of both being very tasty though!) These pancakes make a quick, satisfying lunch or supper meal. I put a little more vegetable into my pajeon - in this pancake carrot and some bell pepper - it never hurts to eat more veg, after all. The dipping sauce is a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar some white sesame seeds and chilli which comes together in a spicy sweet ' n ' sour way and really does complement the pancakes well. If you'd like to get to Korean pancakes a little better, you can find the written recipe just below. For the youtube tutorial click Korean Savoury Pancake or scroll to the bottom of the page. why not make every day a pancake day? kurumi XXXX. Korean savoury pancake - Pajeon ingredients: (makes 2 pancakes) 50g chinese chives or spring onions 1/2 onion (90g) 1/3 any coloured bell pepper (50g) 40g carrot 100g plain flour 40g potato or corn flour 1 egg 2 tsp vegetable stock powder 140ml water 2 tbsp vegetable oil a little sesame oil for the dipping sauce: 2 tbsp soy sauce 1 tsp vinegar 2 tsp sugar 2 tsp white sesame seeds a little chilli how to: cut the chives / spring onion into 3cm lengths, slice the onion, slice the bell pepper and julienne the carrot put all the vegetables in a bowl and set aside in another bowl, combine the plain flour, potato flour, vegetable stock powder, egg & water and mix into a runny batter add the batter to the vegetables and mix well put 1 tbsp of veg oil in a very hot pan, add 1/2 of the pancake mixture, spread evenly over the pan using a spatula or the bacl of a large spoon and fry for 4-5 mins until lightly browned sprinkle a little sesame oil over the pancake then turn it over use a spatula again to press the pancake down into the pan and cook another 3-4 mins until lightly browned to make the dipping sauce: mix the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, sesame seeds & chilli in a small bowl and mix well your pancake and sauce are now ready to serve. slide the pancake out onto a plate and using a knife of a pizza cutter, slice your pancake in a lattice shape. dip the pieces into the dipping sauce and enjoy! Korean savoury pancake - Pajeon

Tofu Katsu Curry I can't think of a more popular Japanese food at the moment than curry. The thing with a Japanese curry is that you have to "get it" - Indian curry this is not - Japanese curries rarely get very hot and they are always fruity and sweet. Maybe that is the secret of their success? Kids love them, people who don't like excessively hot Indian curries (like me) love them and cooks who love the convenience of Japanese curry cubes love them too! Not far behind curry in the Japanese food popularity stakes must be katsu - those deep fried panko breadcrumb packets of goodness. I'm always keen to point out that katsu doesn't have to mean meat. This recipe uses tofu as a healthy and ethical alternative to meat. (Oh, I forgot to mention it's a lot cheaper too!) In fact, I'd go as far as to say that tofu is the ideal kind of katsu. Why? Well, think about it a while..first, tofu is low fat and low calorie so you don't get the same angst about deep frying and piling on more calories. Second, tofu has very little flavour so deep frying in panko imparts flavour and third, tofu is soft and crumbly so the deep fried panko add a lovely crunchy texture - crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside. So, this Tofu Katsu Curry recipe combines all of the above - it's healthy, it's cheap and it's pretty quick too! - the curry takes about 15 mins to put together and while it is gently cooking, you can get your tofu katsu coated and fried in another 10 mins. So, in under half an hour, you'll have a dinner on the table that everyone will love. (Just don't forget the rice!) Really, this is so good, there's a danger that it could become the only curry you ever want to eat! Interested? If you want to put a Tofu Katsu Curry into your kitchen repertoire, you can find the youtube tutorial by clicking Tofu Katsu Curry or scroll to the bottom of the page. The written recipe is below. (btw: I used Golden brand "hot" curry cubes for this recipe but other curry cube brands work equally well. As for the tofu, I used Morinaga brand firm tofu but again any firm tofu will work) Tofu Katsu Curry ingredients: (makes 2 servings) tofu katsu: 1 packet of firm tofu, (approx. 350g) 40g plain flour 80ml water 70g panko breadcrumbs veg oil for deep frying curry: 1 tbsp vegetable oil 1/2 onion 1 clove garlic 6 baby corn 80g green beans 300ml water 2 pieces Golden brand hot curry cubes 1 tsp soy sauce 1/2 tbsp tomato ketchup 2 servings cooked rice how to: to make your curry sauce: drain the excess water from the tofu on kitchen paper for 10 mins, meanwhile, make your curry sauce: slice the onion and mince the garlic and halve the baby corn diagonally. trim the green beans & cut in half heat 1 tbsp of vegetable oil in a pan, add the chopped garlic & onion and fry for 1 min next add the baby corn & green beans and fry for 1 min more add the water, curry cubes, soy sauce & ketchup, bring to the boil & simmer for 10 mins while stirring to make your tofu katsu: remove your tofu from the kitchen paper and cut into 12 equal pieces mix the plain flour with the water in a bowl dip the tofu pieces into the flour mixture, then coat in the panko breadcrumbs and make 12 tofu katsu fill a pan with 1-2 cm of vegetable oil, heat to 170’C, fry the tofu katsu until light golden brown, turning partway through frying drain on kitchen paper serve with the rice, ladling the curry over the tofu katsu Tofu Katsu Curry

Tempura You might recall I sent you news of my first cooking class the other day. Well, here is the main meal that Penny, Frances and I made - tempura. That said, you might be wondering about the title of this post - do you know the connection between tempura and Portugal? If you don't, I'll explain. Tempura is known the world over as a Japanese dish but it's roots are actually Portugese. The history goes like this - 3 Portugese sailor were shipwrecked off Tanegashima, one of the islands south of Kyushu. The local ruler, seeing the opportunity for a trade in goods the Portugese possessed, allowed the Portuese to establish a trading post on the island, selling guns, soap and tobacco amongst other things. The trading post lasted for around 100 years until the Portugese were expelled but one thing they left behind was a Portugese dish called "peixinhos da horta" meaning "little fish from the garden". The little fish were, in fact, green beans, fried in a batter and they formed the start of what we know today as the Japanese dish, tempura. (You can still buy "peixinhos da horta" in Portugal). What makes tempura so popular? Probably, it's the lightness of the batter that's used and the speed of the deep frying which keeps it light and crisp. What goes into tempura? There are 15 - 20 typical vegetables and seafood that are used - no meat - you fry the vegetables first followed by the seafood. I get the impression that people think tempura looks too complex to cook at home but it isn't. It just takes a little time but the end result is well worth it. Check out my recipe below and the youtube tutorial by clicking Tempura (or scroll to the bottom of the page where you will find it) for more insight into mastering this dish. There is a Tempura dipping sauce called "Ten tsuyu" in Japanese to accompany this - you can find the recipe under the sauces section of the site and the youtube tutorial Ten tsuyu (Tempura dipping sauce) to make it. Happy frying! Kurumi XXXX. Tempura ingredients: (for 4 ample servings) 8 slices sweet potato 8 slices butternut pumpkin 8 baby corn 8 uncooked king prawn (frozen or fresh) 4 shiitake mushrooms 4 slices lotus root (optional) 1 red and 1 yellow bell pepper (deseeded) 32 green beans 150g self-raising flour 100g corn flour 1 egg, beaten 240 ml water you'll also need: some veg oil for deep frying some squares of kitchen paper cling film extra self raising or plain flour for coating the prawns how to: rinse all your peel and thinly slice (5mm) the sweet potato, pumpkin and lotus root remove off the stalks from shiitake mushrooms trim off the heads and tails of the green beans cut each peppers into slices (you may have some leftover) peel the skin of the prawns and devein, but leave the tails on. cut 3-4 incisions down the inside of the prawns to to stop them curling when you deep fry them to make the tempura batter, put the self-raising flour and corn flour in a bowl and mix lightly add the beaten egg and water, and mix well microwave the sweet potatoes and the pumpkins in a bowl covered with clingfilm for 2 mins fill your pan 1/3 full with veg oil and heat to 160-170C (to check if the oil is hot enough, drop a speck of batter into the oil- if the batter bubbles to the surface, it is ready) dip the vegetables into the batter and deep fry for a couple of mins, turning from time to time when the batter is a golden brown colour, take them out and place on the kitchen paper for the prawns, dust them with the flour, then dip them into the batter. deep fry for a few minutes until light golden brown. Tempura

Curry udon What do you eat with your curry? Rice? Naan bread? Well, here is a very popular Japanese dish that pairs Japanese curry with udon noodles. I have no idea who had the inspiration to combine two elements which, let's face it, don't leap off the page as being ideal partners. My guess is that somebody, sometime, had some leftover curry sauce and some udon and thought, well this will do. That someone put the two elements together, the food alchemy got going and the rest, as they say, is history. Curry udon was one of my favourite childhood meals. When my mother used to make it with, you guessed it, leftover curry sauce. She'd dilute it a little to make it a better partner to the noodles. I think this dish migrated from the home to the restaurant as you can find it in most Japanese noodle shops these days. I make my curry udon in this recipe using chicken but you don't need to use chicken (or any meat for that matter, if you prefer). You can find my youtube tutorial by clicking Curry Udon or simply scroll down to the bottom of the page. The written recipe for my Curry Udon is just below. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX Curry Udon ingredients: (makes 4 servings) 4 portions fresh udon noodles 200g chicken breast 1.2L japanese stock 3 tbsps soy sauce 1.5 tbsps mirin 4 cubes Golden Curry roux 130g onion 130g carrot 130g aubergine 80g green beans 2 tbsps potato flour some veg oil & chopped spring onions for garnishing how to: halve and slice the onion trim and halve the green beans peel and cut the carrots in half lengthways and slice them diagonally halve and slice the aubergine slice the chicken breast into small chunks. heat 1 tbsp of veg oil in a large pan and fry the chicken for 2 mins. add the vegetables and fry for 1 min more add the stock, mirin, and soy sauce to the pan bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes with the lid on add 4 cubes of Golden Curry cubes and simmer for another 5 mins, stirring occasionally until the curry cubes have dissolved dissolve the potato flour in a little water and add it to the curry to thicken it. then add the udon and simmer for 5 mins now your curry is ready just garnish with the chopped spring onions Curry udon

If you've been following my blog, (and I hope you have!) you'll remember that I have been growing Shiso and Mizuna salad. some Japanese salad veg this summer. In fact, it's been a bumper harvest and my shiso and mizuna just keep on giving! So here's a healthy salad using these two lovely leaves and some other veg topped off with some edamame - it's quick, nutricious and just the thing for a warm summer evening when you want something easy and light on your tummy. The recipe is just below . If you'd like to watch the youtube tutorial, you can find it by clicking Shiso and Mizuna salad or just scroll to the bottom of the page. Shiso and Mizuna salad ingredients: (serves 2) 20g shiso leaves 20g mizuna leaves 140g baby tomatoes 100g mushrooms 50g frozen edamame how to: wash the leaves well and cut or tear them roughly, cut the mushrooms into halves or quarters depending on the size, cook the eda mame in salted water for 3 mins and drain. assemble the ingredients in a salad bowl and mix. drizzle with a vinaigrette or other salad dressing. (if you can't find mizuna, you can try rocket as a substitute although it is more strongly flavoured.) stuck for a dressing? why not try my original sesame dressing below - this is a simple way to a great umami flavour - i guarantee you will love it! Sesame salad dressing ingredients for sesame dressing 2 tbsps tahini 2 tbsps mayonnaise 1 tsp soy sauce 1/2 tbsp sugar 1.5 tbsps rice vinegar 1 tsp fish sauce 1 tbsp water how to: put all the ingredients in a jar or bowl and mix/whisk well. refridgerate any leftovers for up to 1 week (but it won't last that long!). Happy cooking and thanks for reading, Kurumi XXXX Shiso and Mizuna salad

Some time ago I posted an item on pork katsu kare which used a Japanese curry sauce mix. One of my Instagram subscribers wrote in to say that they''d been shopping on line and had come across a Japanese curry sauce called "Vermont" and what was the reason behind the name. I have to admit that's a good question and one I couldn't readily answer. How do the Japanese connect a curry product with Vermont? (which I think we can all agree, isn't known as a mecca for curry lovers). I grew up with the Vermont curry brand in the '60s and always assumed that in an age when any food from from the USA sounded exotic (Macdonalds, Kentucky etc were a big treat back then), it was simply a gimmicky name - put the name of an American state on the label and gullible Japanese people will think it's extra special. Well, it turns out there was a little more to it than that. Japanese Vermont curry with Prawns I found an old newspaper article online that provided the answer, so here goes: Vermont curry was introduced to the Japanese public in 1963 by a Japanese food manufacturer, "House Foods". The curry came in the form of a large block in eight cubes that could be broken off the block and mixed with water to form a curry roux. Vermont curry was marketed as a curry mild enough to suit all tastes, even children. The packaging highlighted the fact that the ingredients included honey and apple, giving the curry a sweet, fruity taste. So far, so good but it still doesn't explain the connection with Vermont. Well, it seems that at the time Vermont curry was introduced, there was an American health fad that had just reached Japan called, you guessed it, the "Vermont health system" - this had arisen from a book published by a local Vermont physician who was making big claims for the health benefits of a drink called "honegar" a mixture of cider vinegar and honey. Vermont Curry cubes - hot, medium and mild varieties. House Foods simply used the "Vermont" label to infer a health benefit from the apple and honey ingredients in their curry mix and the name stuck. so there you are! Vermont curry is still a great choice if you want to make a curry but need something mild. Like other Japanese curry brands, Vermont comes in three varieties, mild, medium and hot but even the hot version is quite sweet and fruity rather than hot like an Indian curry. I've made recipes using each variety. The claim that children like this curry is correct, I regularly used to feed my younger son and his friends with Vermont curry and there were never any complaints about the food being too hot or spicy. You can find the Youtube tutorials for these recipes as follows: Vermont Mild Curry with Prawns, Vermont Medium Curry with Pork, Vermont Hot Curry with Lamb. Or just scroll to the bottom of the page. The written recipe for Vermont curry with prawns is just below. If you fancy trying the other recipes, just return to the Recipes, Japanese Curry Recipes of my site. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX Vermont Mild Curry with Prawns ingredients: (makes 2 servings) 1 tbsp veg oil 100g onion 2 cloves, garlic 0.5cm, ginger 1 tsp ground cumin 1/2 each (60g total) , green & yellow bell pepper 300ml water 120g tomato 4 cubes, ‘Vermont’ mild curry roux 10 - 12 uncooked prawns a pinch of black pepper how to: mince the onion, garlic and ginger cut the peppers & tomatoes into bite size chunks heat the oil in a pan the onion, garlic, ginger and cumin and fry for 1 min add the peppers and fry for 30 secs add the water, tomato and curry roux in the pan & cook over a medium heat for 5 min, stirring occasionally add the prawns & black pepper and cook for a further 3-4 mins serve with a bowl of rice or naan bread Japanese Vermont curry with Prawns Vermont Medium Curry with Pork Vermont Hot Curry with Lamb