Savory Stuffed Yomogi (Mugwort) Rice Cakes

Savory Stuffed Yomogi (Mugwort) Rice Cakes

Around now (March) is when mugwort is popping up in the garden which means it’s time to start weeding it. If I don’t, it inevitably becomes an unmanageable mess, and most people view it as a noxious and invasive weed. It is and it isn’t, 

Enoki Nametake (Seasoned Enoki Mushroom Rice Topping)

Enoki Nametake (Seasoned Enoki Mushroom Rice Topping)

My oldest loves nametake (although she’s generally a fiend for all mushrooms)–and at 9 years old it’s really easy for her to grab some rice from the rice cooker and top it off with some for an after school snack. I make a few jars 

Fresh Eel Tempura

Fresh Eel Tempura

This past summer we spent a lot of time catching eel off the local docks, and what a boon it was! There’s so many delicious ways to use eel, including smoked and grilled Japanese style (Kabayaki) for sushi. It is probably my absolute favorite fish 

Kingfish/Kingcroaker Sashimi

Kingfish/Kingcroaker Sashimi

I forgot to post this the past summer—when we fished up a large Northern Kingfish (Menticirrhus saxatilis), also known sometimes as whiting or kingcroaker. It’s a relatively common fish we can catch here on the south shore of Long Island, and although most people catch 

Japanese Garlic Oysters

Japanese Garlic Oysters

This is the dish of my husband’s dreams, not because it’s particularly difficult but because the sauce is one he had never again been able to find outside after the sushi restaurant he used to always order them at closed down. It’s a restaurant that 

Torched Wagyu Onigiri (Rice Ball)

Torched Wagyu Onigiri (Rice Ball)

If you ask me what my favorite kitchen purchase this year has been, the mini kitchen torch is definitely it. It imparts a smokey charred flavor you would normally only get on a barbecue and it’s so easy for me to use. This is a 

Deconstructed Chicken Nanban

Deconstructed Chicken Nanban

Chicken nanban is a popular dish with a tasty tartar sauce from the Kyushu Island. It’s a relatively easy recipe with lots of things that I usually have ready in my pantry and freezer. The tartar sauce to me is almost like deviled eggs in 

Quail Egg Onsen Tamago (Hot Spring Eggs)

Quail Egg Onsen Tamago (Hot Spring Eggs)

Hot spring eggs are fun in that in Japan (and elsewhere where hot public baths and springs exist), you can purchase a couple of eggs to cook while you… cook. The unique temperature result is an egg with runny silken tofu-like whites, with semi firm 

Atlantic Blowfish Satsuma Age (Japanese Fish Cake)

Atlantic Blowfish Satsuma Age (Japanese Fish Cake)

Some years there are so many blowfish in the water you can’t catch anything else because they are voracious and will take any line with any bait at any time. Then there are years where they don’t show up at all, for whatever reason may 

Torched Wagyu Donburi (with Yuzu Sansho Sukiyaki sauce and Quail Egg)

Torched Wagyu Donburi (with Yuzu Sansho Sukiyaki sauce and Quail Egg)

My sister bought 12lbs of A5 Wagyu for a pretty and decadent penny and then gave me a hunk of it after we had a barbecue. This level of marbling in the wagyu makes it a slightly difficult ingredient to work with–heat it for too