Okura and Sakura shrimp Japanese-style Spaghetti

Have you ever eaten Japanese-style Spaghetti?

It's seasoned with soy sauce, mirin, sake.

Let's enjoy Japanese taste (^o^)♪

■INGREDIENTS (serves 2)
2 oz sakura shrimp 
8 okura

7 oz spaghetti

3 Tbsps pasta cooking liquid

2 Tbsps olive oil

1 red pepper

★sauce

  2 Tbsps soy sauce

  1 Tbsp  sake

  1 Tbsp  mirin sweet cooking sake

■DIRECTIONS

1. Remove the seeds from red pepper. Cut the Okura into bite-sized pieces.

2. Bring the water and salt to the boil in a pot. Place the spaghetti in the pot to boil, and strain the water. (Reserve about 3 Tbsps of the cooking liquid)

3. Heat 1 Tbsps olive oil in a pan over medium-low heat, and fry the red pepper. Add ★sauce and Okura and fry it for a minute. 

4. Place the spaghetti and the pasta cooking liquid and 1 Tbsps olive oil in the pan over medium-low heat. Add half of the sakura shrimp, and mix all the ingredients. 

5. Arrange the spaghetti in a bowl and garnish with remaining half of the sakura shrimp.

Pork Bowl (Buta-don)

Sweet and salty sauce soaking rice will stimulate your appetite.

It's very easy but makes me feel satisfaction.

I recommend it! (・v・)b

■INGREDIENTS (serves 3-4)

11 oz pork loin

1 onion

3-4 donburi bowl portions of rice

edge-cut green onion

☆sauce

　4 Tbsps soy sauce

　3 Tbsps sake

　3 Tbsps suger

　1 Tbsps  mayonnaise

   0.5 inch grated ginger

■DIRECTIONS

1.  Peal the onion ond cut lengthwise into four to six wedges.

2. Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan, and fry the onion until it become soft.

3. Add the ☆sauce into the frying pan and bring to the boil. Add the pork and fry until it is cooked through.

4. Put rice into individual donburi bowls. Put the onion and pork on top of the rice. Sprinkle edge-cut green onion.

Natto Fried Rice

"Natto" is very popular in Japan, but not all Japanese like it. This food has people divided between those who like it and those who hate it. Because it has a special flavor and taste. 

Do you like "Natto"?
I like "Natto" very much because it's really good for health. 

Today, I introduce Natto fried rice. (^o^)

■INGREDIENTS (serves 3-4)
3-4 bowl portions boiled rice
3 packs (5.25 oz) natto
3 eggs
1/2 cabbage
1 Tbsps soy sauce
1 Tbsps olive oil
salt and pepper
dried bonito flakes
green laver

■DIRECTIONS

1.  Cut the cabbage into into big pieces.

2. Mix the natto and eggs and packet of sauce together in a bowl. When all mixed well, add the boiled rice and mix them using a rice scoop.

3. Put 1 Tbsps oil into the pan, and place over a medium heat. Place and spread the mixed 2 in the pan and keep in place for 2 min. When browned surface, add the cabbage and soy sauce. Stir until they are completely mixed and heated through. 

4. Try tasting, add salt and pepper to taste. Arrange on individual plate, and sprinkle dried bonito flakes green laver.

Sake Steamed Short-Neck Clams

Sake Steamed Short-Neck Clams is simple dish. We can make it easily and quickly.

This menu is low fat and low calorie♪ (^u^)♪

■INGREDIENTS (serves 2)
9 oz short-neck clams
4/5 U.S. cup water
2/5 U.S. cup sake
1 tsp soy sauce
Edge-cut green onion

■DIRECTIONS

1. Soak the short-neck clams in salted water (slightly less than 1 tsp salt per 4/5 U.S. cup of water) for about 2 hours to allow them to expel sand. Wash the clams.

2. Put the water, sake, soy sause and the clams into a pot. Place over a medium heat, and cover the pot.

3. Simmer for 5 to 6 min. When the shells have fully opened, arrange the clams in a bowl and sprinkle edge-cut green onion.

Osaka Style Okonomiyaki

Have you ever heard of a food called "Okonomiyaki"?
Okonomiyaki is Japanese savoury pancake.
It contains a variety of ingredients, for example, cabbages, Chainese yam, meat, etc. 
Okonomiyaki is local specialty of Osaka and Hiroshima. Both has different style.

In Hiroshima, noodles are also used as a topping of okonomiyaki.
Today, I introduce Osaka style okonomiyaki. Please try and enjoy making okonomiyaki! (^u^)♪


■INGREDIENTS (serves 4)
5 1/4 oz hakurikiko flour
3 1/2 oz Chinese yam
1 Tbsp soy sauce
3 eggs
12 thin slices pork belly
4/1 cabbage
2 naga-negi onions
Dried bonito flakes
green laver
Okonomi sauce
Vegetable oil

■DIRECTIONS

1. Rince the cabbage and naga-negi onions in water. Cut the cabbage into thin strips and cut the naga-negi onions into small pieces. Peal the Chinese yam, and grate.

2. Place the flour, Chinese yam, soy sauce, eggs in the bowl, and mix well to make batter.

3. Add the cabbage and naga-negi onions and mix well.

4. Heat the frying pan, and add some vegetable oil. Pour the batter mixture prepared 3. above onto the frying pan. Place the thin slices pork belly on top of it and heat until browned surface (for about 5 min).


5. Turn the pancake over, and heat until browned surface (for about 5 min). Reverse again, and heat for about 3 min. Reverse again, heat for about 3 min. 


6. Arrange the pancake on plate, and spread the okonomiyaki sauce all over the surface. Put some mayonnaise, and sprinkle on the green laver.

☆arrange☆　with boiled whitebaite 

Simmered Mackerel in Miso

Simmered Mackerel in Miso is very popular simmered fish dish. 
Mackerel contain a lot of DHA. DHA is effective at having a good memory.
Please try to cook and eat it. (*^▽^*)

■INGREDIENTS (serves 4)
2 fillets mackerel

1 naga-negi onion

Fine strips of naga-negi onion
☆sauce 1☆
  1/2 U.S. cup water

  3 1/2 Tbsps sake

  3 Tbsps sugar　

★sauce 2★

  1 Tbsp  soy sauce

  2 Tbsps mirin sweet cooking sake
  3 Tbsps miso

■DIRECTIONS

1. Cut the mackerel into bite-sized pieces. Make a cross-shape incision on the skin surface of each mackerel piece. Blanch the mackerel by first plunging it into hot water, and then soaking in chilled water with ice. 

2. Cut the naga-negi onions into 1 1/2 inch lengths.

3. Place the ☆sauce 1☆ in a frying pan, and bring to the boil. Put the mackerel pieces with the skin side facing up into the frying pan, boil briefly and add the soy sauce.

4. Mix the ★sauce 2★ in another pot. Take some liquid out of the frying pan in which the mackerelwas simmered, add to the mixture of ★sauce 2★ and stir well. Add the chopped naga-negi onion. Cover the frying pan and boil them over a medium low heat for about 10 min.

5. Arrange the mackerel and naga-negi onion in a bowl, pour over the simmering liquid and garnish with fine strips of naga-negi onion.

Yellowtail Teriyaki

Yellowtail Teriyaki is popular in Japan and it's very easy to cook. 
All you need is one frying pan and one bowl. Please try it ♪




■INGREDIENTS (serves 2)
2 fillets yellowtail

4 sweet green peppers
1 tsp vegetable 

☆sauce

　2 Tbsps mirin sweet cooking sake

　2 Tbsps soy sauce
　1 Tbsp  sake

　1 Tbsp  sugar

■DIRECTIONS

1. Soak the yellowtail fillets in the ☆sauce mixture for about 10 min. Turn it over and soak it again in the ☆sauce mixture for about 10 min. Wipe off the moisture.

2. Heat the oil in a frying pan, and fry the sweet green peppers. When browned, remove it.

3. Fry the fillets in the frying pan. When browned, turn over, cover the pan and fry the other side over a low heat.

4. Remove excess oil from the frying pan above with a paper kitchen towel. Put the ☆sauce  used in 1. into the pan, and simmer the sauce thoroughly.

5. Arrange the fillets with the sauce on plate, and garnish with the sweet green peppers.

Burdock Kinpira

Kinpira is one of Japanese side dishes. 
The dish features the use of soy sauce and mirin.
Please try it. (〃・v・〃)

■INGREDIENTS (serves 4)
1 burdock

1 carrot

1 Tbsp white parched sesame

1 Tbsp  sesame oil

☆sauce

　2 Tbsps sake
　1 Tbsp  mirin sweet cooking sake

　2 Tbsps soy sauce
　1 Tbsp  sugar

■DIRECTIONS

1. Scrape off the skin of the burdocks, rinse in cold water, cut into 1 1/2 inch-long (4cm) strips and keep in cold water.

2. Peel the carrots, and cut thinly intostrips of a similar size to that of the burdocks.

3. Place the oil in a pot, and fry the burdocks gently. Add the carrots, and fry briefly.

4. Add the ☆sauce, and fry until all the liquid is gone. Sprinkle the parched sesame before serving.

Japanese Chiken Saute

This Chiken Saute full of the flavor of chicken suitable.

The souce made from Japanese seasoning.

Please try it! (*^v^*)

■INGREDIENTS (serves 2)

1 chicken thighs

2 cherry tomatos

lettuce

1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 Tbsp suger

☆sauce

　2 Tbsps sake
　1 Tbsp mirin sweet cooking sake

　2 Tbsps soy sauce

■DIRECTIONS

1. Remove the excess skin and fat from the chicken things, pierce a few times with a fork and cut into bitesized pieces. Place the chicken in a bowl, pour in A mixture, let stand for 10 min and drain. Reserve the liquid in which the chicken was soaked for later use.

2. Rinse the cherry tomatos and lettuce in cold water.

3. Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan, and fry the chicken. Cover the pan, Reduce the heat to low and continue to fly.

4. Add the luquid set aside in 1. Above and the suger, and shake the pan until the chicken is covered with the sause completely.

5. Arrange the cherry tomatos and lettuce on plates. Put the chicken on the plate.

Hakone

Do you like hot spring?

Hakone is known as a hot spring town and is located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.

Hakone-Yumoto Station is about 85 minutes from Shinjuku Station by Odakyu Romancecar.

It is full of nature there, so you can get in touch with beautiful nature.

↓Lake Ashinoko the view from "Kaizokusen"

↓This is "Kaizokusen"

"Owakudani" (Great Boiling Valley)

↓The view from ropeway (Mount Fuji)

And there are many museums. Hakone Garasunomori Museum displays of about 100 pieces of Venetian glassware that so enchanted the royalty of the Middle Ages.

You can eat "Hakonesoba" at there. 

There are good hot spring, beautiful nature, museums, and delicious foods. 

I'm sure our minds will be soothed if we go there.

Yokohama (Minato no Mieru Oka Kouen)

Have you ever heard of a city called Yokohama?

Yokohama is a port town located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.

Yokohama is about 30 minutes from Tokyo Station.

There are many commercial facilities. Buildings such as the 269m tall Yokohama Landmark Tower and Yokohama Cosmo world with its giant Ferris wheel are symbolic of Yokohama. And a little away from here is Japan's largest Chinatown. There are many shops and Chinese food restaurant.
So Yokohama is a variety of towns to enjoy.

Among them, I love the park called Minato no Mieru Oka Kouen.
It means Harbor View Park and we can see beautiful harbor from there.



Walking through the park makes me feeling good.
If you get a chance, please go there.(＞▽＜)♪

My mom's potato salad

My mom often makes potato salad for dinner. 
And it’s loved by my family.

■INGREDIENTS (serves 4)

4 potatoes 　　　

2 eggs

1 carrot

1/2 oinion

1 cucumber

1/3 Tbsp vinegar (rice or cereal)

1 Tbsp apple juice

5 Tbsps mayonnaise

salt and pepper

■DIRECTIONS

1. Boil the eggs.

2. Peel the potatoes, cut into sixths or eights and soak in the water to eliminate bitterness.

Peel the carrot, and cut 0.1inch (3mm) quarter rounds.

3. The onion and the cucumber slice thin using a vegetable slicer. And they rub in salt and squeeze to drain. Chop the boiled eggs.

4. Place the chopped potatoes and carrot in a pot. Fill the pot with just enough water to cover the vegetables, and the salt and boil over a high heat. When it comes to the boil, reduce the heat to low and continue to simmer until the potatoes become tender enough for bamboo skewer to pierce without difficulty. Take the carrot out of the pot whenever they are tender.

5. When the potatoes are tender enough, discard the hot water from the pot. Add the vinegar and apple juice. And place over heat again and mash them with a wooden spatula or a fork for about 2 minutes.

6. Place all the ingredients and mix together in one bowl. Adjust the flavor with mayonnaise and salt and pepper. Cool everything in the fridge. Arrange in individual bowls.

Tsurutontan (The udon restaurant)

Do you have ever eaten udon? 

Udon noodle is a major kind of Japanese traditional noodle.

This time I would like to introduce you to the udon restaurant named Tsurutontan.

There are more than 50 kinds of udon menu, so you can enjoy many different versions of noodle.

For example, shrimp in cream sauce, curry sause, mentaiko (seasoned cod roe) sause, carbonara pasta sause, etc.

They are served in very big bowls. You can choose thick noodles or thin noodles whichever you like. And you can be freely selected by three sizes at the same price.

↓The large udon

↓The small udon

Not only udon but also sashimi (raw sliced fish), yakizakana (grilled fish), and also tempura, desserts, etc.

↓Sashimi

↓Yakizakana

I think you can enjoy udon there. Please try to eat udon when you get a chance. (*^▽^*)