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Daigaku Imo Here's my recipe for a dish called Daigaku Imo in Japanese which literally translates as "university potato". There are various stories about why caramelised sweet potatoes became associated with a university - some say the dish was invented by a student struggling to pay his fees, others that the dish was first popularised by an outlet selling its wares to students at the nation's #1 learning centre, Tokyo University. My guess is that these potatoes appealed to students because they are a sweet, quickly made street food that suited the student lifestyle of food on the go. Yakiimo or roasted sweet potato was one of Japan's original street foods which were made in carts with charcoal burners set up by the roadside. They are, sadly, a rarity these days but I hope this recipe will give you a taste of those days gone by. The key to this dish is to cook the sweet potatoes until they almost soft before you deep fry them. Some people insist that the coating has to be made with honey but I use brown sugar instead and finish with a sprinkle of black sesame. You can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking Daigaku imo and the written recipe for this dish is as below. Get your thinking cap on! Kurumi XXXX. Why not pair this dish with another Japanese recipe to make a substantial meal? How about browsing my Miso Minced Pork in Lettuce Wraps as a main with Daigaku Imo as a side? Ingredients: 2 servings 1 large sweet potato for the caramel: 3 tbsp brown sugar* 1 tsp soy sauce 2 tbsp water 1 tsp black toasted sesame seeds a garnish some veg oil for deep frying *you can use white sugar but you may not get the same deep brown colour how to: peel the skin of the sweet potato, then cut into random bite sized pieces, then immerse in a plastic or glass bowl of water and stand for 10 mins next, cover the tope of the bowl with a sheet of cling film & microwave for 3 mins (600w) when finished, empty the potato pieces onto kitchen paper to absorb excess moisture fill a pan with 2cm with veg oil and heat to 180’C / 350 F deep fry the potato for 3 - 4 mins and drain again on kitchen paper now, to prepare the caramel sauce: add the sugar, soy sauce & water to a small pan and stir over a medium heat until the sauce thickens add the sweet potato and coat well with the sauce your "daigaku imo" are now ready to serve. sprinkle over the sesame seeds Daigaku imo

The Japanese love their eggplant/aubergine (or nasu as it's called locally). It's far more a part of Japanese cookery than it is here in the UK, which is a shame for the Brits because aubergine is very good for you. Traditionally, aubergine was thought to have a cooling effect on the body (because of its high water content) but modern science shows it's also high in vitamin B6 and C as well as minerals like potasium and manganese. Eggplant /Aubergine and Pepper Nabe Shigi Not only that, the flesh is soft and easily absorbs any flavouring you cook it with. I think that in part, the Brits distaste for aubergine may be due to the difference in variety - Japanese nasu tend to be smaller, taste less bitter and have a thinner skin than the European aubergine. Having said that, I use aubergine in my cooking here in the UK and I find they are just as "oishii" (tasty), if you treat them properly. The key thing to do is neutralise that bitter tang by soaking your aubergine pieces after cutting in water for 10-20 minutes - you'll be surprised how effective this little trick is. This recipe, nabe shigi (meaning "pan cooked"), combines eggplant with bell pepper and onion in sweet miso. It's a great way to get three of your 'five a day' and, as I've presented it here, this dish makes a great vegetarian option party food or first course or, as it would be served in Japan, as one of a number of side dishes. I dressed the dish I made with a little chopped spring onion but it's great without as well. If you want to give this a try, you can find the written recipe just below and the Youtube tutorial by clicking Eggplant /Aubergine and Pepper Nabe Shigi or just scroll to the bottom of the page. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. If you want to see some other Japanese inspired aubergine dishes, why not try my Fried Aubergine in Ponzu dressing ? Eggplant and Pepper Nabe Shigi ingredients: (makes 2 servings as a starter) 85g aubergine 50g peeled onion 60g green pepper 1 tbsp sesame oil 1 tbsp miso 1 tbsp mirin 1 tsp sugar how to: dice the aubergine into 1 cm pieces and soak in water for 10 mins roughly chop the onion slice and cut the pepper into 1cm pieces heat the sesame oil in a pan, add the onion and fry for 1 min add the aubergine and fry for 1 min add the pepper and fry for 1-2 mins add the miso, mirin & sugar and stir fry for 1 min longer serve as a starter or as a side dish Eggplant /Aubergine and Pepper Nabe Shigi

Pan fried Celery and Shimeji with Bonito flakes Here's a big question for you. Are food likes and dislikes inherited or based on the environment? The reason I ask is that both my husband and I love celery and mushrooms but our sons won't touch either and remove them from their plate with a grimace whenever I serve them up. How did this happen? Answers, please! Anyway, today's dish is one I make when I'm cooking for one or two. I like celery when it is lightly fried and pairing it with shimeji mushrooms and bonito flakes transforms the flavour into something really quite complex. So, this is a healthy and very tasty way to get 2 of your 5-a-day (or two of your 13-a-day if you follow Japanese guidelines!) If you would like to give this recipe a try, you can find the written recipe just below and you can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking Pan fried Celery and Shimeji or scroll to the bottom of the page. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. If like me, you love your mushrooms, why not try a mushroom salad with a Japanese twist like my 3 mushroom salad with a ponzu dressing? You can find the recipe for that dish here . Pan fried Celery and Shimeji with Bonito flakes ingredients: (makes 2 servings) 3 celery stalks, rinsed 100g shimeji mushroom, rinsed 1 tbsp vegetable oil 2 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp mirin 1 packet of bonito flakes, 3g how to: thinly slice the celery diagonally slice off the bottom of the mushroom and separate the mushrooms using your fingers heat the oil in a frying pan, add & fry the celery & shimeji for 3 mins add the soy sauce & mirin and stir for 1 min turn off the heat, add the bonito flakes and mix your dish is ready. serve as a side dish with rice Pan fried Celery and Shimeji with Bonito flakes

Fried Tofu Salad with Tahini Soy dressing I don't know about you but I love tahini - that lovely thick paste made from ground sesame seeds. The Japanese use sesame quite a lot in cooking but for some reason, we never got around to grinding it down into a paste. So, I can't claim that tahini is Japanese but I do find it is great way to create a really rich umami flavour when combined with soy sauce. I use this dressing quite a lot for salads because the tahini gives you a lot of nutrition that a salad can't - tahini actually contains more protein than milk as well as vitamins b and e, magnesium, iron and calcium. Pair the Tahini and Soy dressing with fried tofu and you have a low calorie, meat free, high protein lunch or dinner. What's not to like about that? Fancy the sound of this dish? If you do, then you can find the written recipe just below. The Youtube tutorial can be found by clicking here, Fried Tofu salad with Tahini Soy dressing or scroll to the bottom of the page. Give it a try if you know what's good for you! Happy cooking, Kurumi XXXX. If you want to try another tahini sauce recipe, why not try out my Tofu Kebabs with Miso and Tahini sauce ? Fried tofu salad with Tahini and Soy dressing ingredients: (makes 2 servings) 400g firm tofu 40g rocket, rinsed 130g green & red gem lettuce, rinsed and cut into bite size 50g red bell pepper 50g yellow bell pepper 150g sugar snaps 100g baby tomatoes 3 tbsp vegetable oil 2 tbsp tahini paste 1 tbsp soy sauce 2 tbsp sushi vinegar 2 tsp fried shallots for topping (optional) some kitchen paper how to: remove the strings from the sugar snaps and rinse drain the excess water from the tofu using the kitchen paper removed the seeds from the peppers, rinse and thinly slice cut the tofu in half lengthways, then cut into 1 cm cubes to make the sesame dressing, mix the tahini paste and 2 tbsp of the vegetable oil, then add the soy sauce & sushi vinegar and mix well boil the sugar snaps in a pan for 2 mins, drain and set aside heat 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan, fry the tofu for 1 min over a high heat, then turn over and fry for a further 1 min mix together the rocket, lettuce, bell peppers & sugar snaps in a bowl to assemble per person, put 1/2 the salad on a plate, add the 1/2 of each tofu and tomatoes topped with some fried shallots drizzle with the dressing before serving Fried Tofu Salad with Tahini Soy dressing

Lotus Root crisps I am sure you're all aware that American potato chips become crisps when you set foot in the UK and it probably doesn't come as a surprise that Japan sits in the American camp using the term chips as well. What might be more surprising is that the Japanese use other vegetables to make their chips (sorry, UK readers, I mean "crisps"). One of the most visually appealing alternative chips, I think you will agree, is the lotus root. This root vegetable is quite common in Japanese cooking and is used a fair amount in other Asian cooking as well so it's quite easy to find it. Just pop along to an Asian food store and you should find them in stock. Lotus root is also a pretty healthy foodstuff, containing plenty of vitamin B, C, thiamin, copper, iron, potassium and zinc as well as dietary fibre (which makes it a lot more nutricious than a white potato). The Japanese cook their lotus root in a number of ways and one is as lotus root chips. You can eat these as a snack, just seasoned with salt (although I find they taste really nice with salt and parsley). Alternatively, you can mix them into a salad for a decorative garnish and a little extra crunch. My personal favourite is to make my miso tahini sauce and use this as a dip. You'll have time to make a dip because the lotus root chips can be made in a matter of minutes. So if you fancy giving them a try, you can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking Lotus Root chips or scroll to the bottom of the page. for the written recipe. Happy frying! Kurumi XXXX. (ps: these are heaven with a glass or two of chilled Japanese lager!) If you would like to think about another lotus root recipe, why not try out my Pan fried Lotus Root? Lotus Root chips ingredients: 150g fresh lotus root 1 tsp vinegar some kitchen paper veg oil for deep frying a little salt and dried parsley for garnishing how to: peel the skin of the lotus root and slice it as thinly as possible, then soak in water with 1 tsp of vinegar for 10 mins drain on the kitchen paper fill a pan with 2cm of veg oil and heat to 180’C add a few lotus slices at a time & deep fry until golden brown drain on kitchen paper these are best eaten within 24 hours of preparation Lotus Root crisps

Every now and again, I come across a Japanese ingredient that I haven't tried before. It happened the other day when I was in my local "Atari-ya" Japanese food store in London and found a bottle of Ishiri sauce. You could be forgiven for thinking that this is soy sauce as it looks identical from the outside. But the contents of Ishiri sauce are very different and the taste is too. Ishiri sauce has quite a long history in Japan and was used as a flavouring in Ishikawa prefecture in Japan long before soy sauce became available in that area. It's made from squid intestines (..yes, I know that isn't likely to make your mouth water..) that are pickled in salt and then left for a year or longer to mature. The result is a very strong, fishy flavoured condiment that you need to use in very small amounts - I think of it as similar to Thai nam pla (fish sauce) but after a course of steroids and vitamins - it is truly powerful stuff! Ishiri sauce isn't widely known or available even in Japan - it's a very niche product but like a lot of niche products, it's well worth making the discovery. In the area where it is made, the Noto peninsular in Ishikawa prefecture, it is used as a flavour enhancer for sushi, sashimi and other fish dishes. I've developed a few recipes using Ishiri sauce with fish and pasta and you can find the youtube tutorials below. I really like the way Ishiri sauce adds what the Japanese call a "kakushi aji" which means "hidden flavour"...you get that delicious umami flavour but not so much that it overpowers the dish. If you'd like to find out more about Ishiri sauce, the maker's website (in Japanese only I'm afraid) is here. There's also an interesting article on Ishiri sauce (in English) here. You can take a look at some recipes on my Youtube channel using Ishiri sauce below. If you want to see the written recipes, then you can find them using the links below: Squid spaghetti with ishiri sauce is here. Pan fried cod with ishiri and lemon sauce is here. Spirali pasta with ishiri sauce is here. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. Squid spaghetti with Ishiri sauce Pan fried cod with Ishiri and lemon sauce Spirali Pasta with Ishiri sauce

Miso Tahini sauce I am a big fan of combining Japanese ingredients with foods from other cultures. So the other day, I tried out a new sauce combining Japanese miso with tahini. Both miso and tahini are quite rich and I thought the combination might be a bit overwhelming but, somewhat to my surprise, the result is truly outstanding. What you get is a thick, rich sauce with a big umami-ful nutty miso flavour. Combining miso and tahini also means you're getting a lot of protein, vitamin B and iron plus minerals - and that's just in the sauce! So this makes a great goodness boost for vegetarians and vegans especially. I'll be posting a recipe for this sauce soon, combining it with Tofu kebabs. But I've used it on a few other dishes as well - it goes very well with white fish, chicken and roast vegetables. I've also used it as a dip - you could try it with my Lotus root chips! Once you've prepared the sauce and let it cool, it may look a little too thick but you can easily loosen it up by mixing in a little water. If you'd like to make this and try it for yourself, you can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking Miso Tahini sauce or by scrolling to the bottom of the page. The written recipe is just below. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. If you want to combine this sauce with my Lotus root chips, you can find the recipe for the chips here. Miso Tahini sauce ingredients: (makes about 150ml of sauce) 2 tbsp miso 1 tbsp tahini 2 tbsp japanese cooking sake 1 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp water how to: combine the miso, tahini, sake, sugar and water in a pan cook and stir on a medium heat for approx. 4 mins once the sauce starts bubbling, it is ready -just make sure the alcohol has evaporated Miso Tahini sauce

Tofu Skewers in Miso Tahini sauce I'm in Japan at the moment visiting friends and family. Before I left, I developed a really nice Miso Tahini sauce which I thought would be a perfect accompaniment for barbecue foods - I posted it on the blog last week. The weather at the time wasn't great so I resorted to my grill indoors to try out some grilled Tofu kebabs with the sauce and I can safely say it worked very well! This is a great dish to serve to vegetarians, vegans and also those who simply don't want to eat too much barbecued meat. I use firm or "cotton" tofu and wrap each chunk in a strip of raw courgette before pushing the tofu onto skewers with baby tomatoes and chunks of red onion - the courgette strips keep the tofu a little more moist while the skewers are over the barbecue or under a grill. They're done in 3 or 4 minutes. All that's left is to spoon on some of the Miso Tahini sauce and you've got a light, healthy grill/barbecue dish that's really tasty as well! If you like the idea of this dish, you can find the tofu kebab youtube tutorial by clicking Tofu skewers or just scroll to the bottom of the page. The written recipe is just below. The Miso Tahini Youtube tutorial is here and a written version is below too. Happy grilling! Kurumi XXXX. If you want to try out this sauce with a meat dish, why not try my yakitori recipe? You can find it here. (Just replace the yakitori sauce with the miso tahini.) Tofu Skewers ingredients: 4 skewers 270g firm tofu 12 cm (approx.) courgette 1/2 small red onion, peeled 4 baby tomatoes 4 x 20cm skewers 2 tbsp vegetable oil a baking tray (if grilling indoors) Tofu Skewers how to: cut the tofu into approx. 2.5cm cubes cut the onion into 4 pieces peel 12 strips from the courgette with a peeler wrap each tofu cube with a courgette strip and gently push it onto a skewer repeat with a piece of onion, then another wrapped tofu cube, baby tomato and finally another wrapped tofu cube repeat this 3 times more for a total of 4 skewers oil the baking tray (if grilling indoors) and the kebabs well turn your grill to hot, then grill the kebabs on a high heat for 4-5 mins turn over and grill another 4-5 mins or until lightly browned if barbecuing, the kebabs will be done in 5-6 minutes, turned once serve with miso-tahini sauce (recipe below) Miso Tahini sauce ingredients: (makes enough sauce for the tofu kebab recipe above) 2 tbsp miso 1 tbsp tahini 2 tbsp japanese cooking sake 1 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp water Miso Tahini sauce how to: combine the miso, tahini, sake, sugar and water in a pan cook and stir on a medium heat for approx. 4 mins once the sauce starts bubbling, it is ready - just make sure the alcohol from the cooking sake has evaporated Tofu skewers with Miso Tahini sauce Miso Tahini Sauce

Teriyaki Salmon Skewers I hope you checked out my "easy teriyaki sauce" post last week - it's a quick way to make a yummy teriyaki sauce without any of the nasties (stabilisers, emulsifiers etc) that you get with a shop bought sauce. Here's a great way to use teriyaki sauce - teriyaki salmon skewers. Summer is beach barbecue time in Japan and this is a firm favourite, especially if you want something a little lighter over your charcoal than steak. Of course, you don't have to go to the beach to make this recipe - I actually made this under my grill in the kitchen! I used red bell peppers, onions and courgette along with the salmon but you could just as easily try out some other veggies. If you want to try this recipe out you can find the written recipe just below and the Youtube tutorial by clicking Teriyaki`Salmon skewers or scroll to the bottom of the page. I've also popped the Teriyaki sauce tutorial in at the bottom of the page too. Happy grilling! Kurumi XXXX. If you want to try a different recipe using teriyaki sauce, why not try out my Pork stuffed Peppers recipe? Teriyaki Salmon Skewers ingredients: (makes 4 skewers) 210g salmon fillet 3 tbsp teriyaki sauce* 1/2 onion, peeled 1/3 red pepper 1/2 courgette 4 barbecue skewers (20cm) 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil * see my easy teriyaki sauce recipe how to: cut the salmon into 12 pieces and marinade them with 2 tbsp of teriyaki sauce for 30 mins in a bowl cut the onion, red pepper & courgette into 4 pieces push a piece of salmon, courgette, another piece of salmon, onion, another piece salmon & pepper onto each skewer repeat for the other three skewers cover a baking try with aluminum foil and oil it place the skewers & the sauce from the bowl onto the tray and roast at 220’C for 15 mins. if you are barbecuing, these should take no more than 5 mins turned once. drizzle 1 tbsp of teriyaki sauce over each skewer when you serve Teriyaki Salmon skewers Teriyaki sauce

Cold Soba with Summer Vegetables There are some days when the weather gets so hot you need your food to cool you down. (Yes, even in the UK!) With that in mind, here's my recipe for Cold Soba with Summer Vegetables. Ready in a jiffy, you get the goodness of buckwheat soba (protein, fibre and gluten free) and your 5-a-day veggies all in one tasty, cooling hit. There are three parts to this dish - first, prepare your soba broth in 5 mins. then boil your soba also in 5 mins. Flash deep fry your thinly sliced veggies in double quick time. Finally, divide your soba into bowls, place your veggies on top and dress with finally chopped spring onions. When you are ready to eat, pour over your broth and tuck in. (Soba noodles absorb the broth very quickly, so this needs to be done just before eating). You can make this dish even more quickly by preparing the soba broth in advance - it will keep for up to two weeks in the fridge. The servings here are ample for a lunch or supper. If you want to make this more substantial for your main meal, you can just use more veggies than I use here. If you want to try this out, you can find the written recipe just below and the Youtube tutorial by clicking Cold Soba with summer vegetables or just scroll to the bottom of the page. Happy noodling! Kurumi XXXX. You can find an alternative cold soba noodles recipe here. Buckwheat Soba with Summer vegetables. ingredients: (2 servings) for the cold soba broth: 400ml water 1 japanese dashi bag* 3 tbsp soy sauce 3 tbsp mirin 2 portions, soba for the soba and topping: 1 thin slice of butternut, halved 1 thin slice of aubergine, halved 1/3 red bell pepper, halved 4 baby asparagus 2 finely chopped spring onions for garnishing veg oil for shallow fry some kitchen paper *if you can’t buy japanese dashi bags, use 2 tsp of dashi granules for the broth instead. how to: to make the cold soba broth: put the water and dashi bag in a pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 4 mins drain the dashi bag add the soy sauce & mirin and simmer for 2 mins set aside to cool to make the soba noodles and topping: cook the soba in boiling water according to the packet instruction, drain & rinse well with cold water. leave to drain and cool now shallow fry the vegetables. fill a saucepan with 1cm of oil and heat to 170’C fry the vegetables for 1-2 mins, (the baby asparagus will take only 30 secs) drain the vegetables on kitchen paper to assemble, put the soba in bowls, top with the fried vegetables and garnish with chopped spring onion just before eating, add the cold soba broth & serve Cold Soba with Summer Vegetables Cold Soba with Summer Vegetables

Simmered Turnip with Fried Tofu) My latest post is another recipe designed to help you recover from the excesses of Christmas and New Year. This dish is called Simmered Turnip with fried Tofu. Turnip is a much under-rated vegetable here in the UK (in fact, more of it is fed to cattle here than humans which is crazy!) In Japan, turnip (known as kabu ) is widely eaten in raw, cooked and also pickled forms. It's very good for you, containing high levels of vitamins a, c and k as well as folate and phosphorus. My recipe doesn't use the leaves of the turnip but you can even eat those as well. Combining the turnip with fried tofu and some sugar snaps in a soy based broth gives you a tasty lunch or light dinner that's nutricious and calorie light on the one hand and tasty and satisfying on the other. The turnip and the tofu soak up the flavours of the broth quite easily, especially if you make this dish a few hours in advance. If you want to try out this out, you can find the Youtube tutorial by clicking Simmered Turnip with fried Tofu or scroll to the bottom of the page. The written recipe is just below. Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. (PS: You can buy fried tofu at Asian supermarkets. It is also widely available online.) If you would like to try out another turnip recipe, why not try my uber healthy Marinated Turnip and Choysum recipe ? Simmered Turnip with fried Tofu ingredients: (makes 2 servings) 300g turnip 1 tsp japanese dashi granules 1 tbsp soy sauce 2 tbsp mirin 1/2 salt 12 pieces fried tofu 10 sugar snaps how to: peel & quarter the turnip, and then cut each quarter into 4 segments put the water, dashi granules, soy sauce & mirin in a frying pan and mix, then add the turnip & fried tofu put a small lid on the top so the lid is in contact with the turnip and tofu, then bring to the boil and simmer for 8 mins add the sugar snaps and simmer for a further 1-2 mins Simmered Turnip with Fried Tofu)

Broccoli with black Sesame Here's another simple vegetable side dish - Broccoli with black Sesame /Goma Ae- that's packed with nutricious uber-goodness and top scoring in the flavour chart too. What's more, it's ready for the table in a matter of minutes. I ground my own toasted sesame but you can make this even more quickly by using ready ground sesame instead, if you prefer. I used the whole broccoli head in this recipe including the stalk, which I cut into small chunks. If you don't want to use the stalk, don't through it away - just put it aside and use it in a vegetable soup - why throw away good food, however humble? I shan't go into the health benefits of broccoli as its status a super-food is well known - but did you know that sesame is a great food to eat to boost your immune system? Sesame is packed full of zinc, selenium, copper and iron as well as B6 and E vitamins. Ready to try this out? Go to the Youtube tutorial Broccoli with black Sesame or scroll to the bottom of the page to view. You can find the written recipe just below. Happy healthy cooking! Kurumi XXXX. If you would like a healthy soup to accompany this dish, why not check out my Japanese Sweetcorn soup recipe? Broccoli with black Sesame ingredients: (makes 2 servings) 250g broccoli 3 tbsp toasted black sesame seeds 1.5 tbsp sugar 1 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp miso 1 tsp mirin how to: remove the florets & stem cut the stem into bite sized chunks and halve any large florets to make the sweet sesame, grind the sesame seeds really finely then mix the sesame, sugar, soy sauce, mirin, miso well in a bowl cook the broccoli in boiling water for 3 mins & drain add the sweet sesame mixture to the broccoli and mix well your recipe is ready Broccoli with black Sesame