Japanese Burger with Daikon

While going through the Japanese Light cookbook, I have been making what I tend to think of as traditional Japanese recipes. But this cookbook has alot of "American" recipes too. For example, the Japanese-Style Chicken Burger with Grated Daikon is a traditional American burger but it is made with Japanese ingredients.

I didn't make this because I love new types of burgers. In fact I rarely eat burgers because there seems to be many better food options. But decided to give this a try just to see what a Japanese flavored burger would be like.

And I am pleased to report that this is a really tasty burger! Combining tofu with ground chicken made it very light and not a bit greasy. The daikon (Japanese white radish) and soy sauce topping made it perfect to eat with alone - no bun required.

Japanese-Style Chicken Burger with Grated Daikon 4 ounces firm cotton tofu, well drained 8 ounces ground chicken 2 shallots, finely chopped 1 garlic clove, minced 2 teaspoons peeled and grated fresh ginger 1 small free-range egg, lightly beaten 1 tablespoon cornstarch salt and black pepper 8 ounces daikon, peeled and grated Juice of 1/2 lemon 2 tablespoons soy sauce 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

In a large mixing bowl, mash the tofu with a fork and drain off any excess water. Mix in the chicken, shallots, garlic, ginger, egg, and cornstarch. Season with salt and pepper. Shape the mixture into four equal-sized patties about 1 1/4-inches thick. Put them on a plate lined with paper towels, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to develop the flavors.

Meanwhile, grate the daikon and combine with the lemon juice and soy sauce.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the burgers for 5 minutes on one side, then turn them over and cook 4 minutes, or until golden on the outside and white throughout but still juicy. Top each burger with a generous spoonful of the daikon mixture.

Soy-Marinated Roast Chicken Legs

Chicken legs are my favorite part of the chicken. I was excited when I found this recipe for Soy-Marinated Roast Chicken Legs in the Japanese Light cookbook. I made a double batch and used the extra chicken for leftover tacos and in a salad.

It may be a simple concept, but the process patting the chicken dry after marinating and then brushing with oil makes them extra crispy. It was perfect and I learned something new!

Soy-Marinated Roast Chicken Legs 4 chicken legs 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil for the marinade: 1/3 cup soy sauce 3 tablespoons sake 3 tablespoons mirin 4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed 2 tablespoons sugar

Make 3-4 incisions on each chicken leg across the muscle tendon to help the marinade penetrate. Put the chicken in a bowl, mix together all the marinade ingredients, and pour over the chicken. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Take the chicken legs out of the marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Mix the vegetable and sesame oils, brush the legs with them and roast for 25-30 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the chicken inside until you are ready to serve. This way the chicken legs will be juicy and succulent.

Warm Veggie Salad with Umeboshi Dressing

I remember the first time I tried tofu. I was about 22 and on a diet. The recipe was for a tofu stir-fry. Health magazines were raving about tofu and soy at the time so I gave it in try. I fell in love.

But since then I have found it hard to find tofu recipes I really like. Tofu takes on the flavor of sauce (which is probably why the stir-fry was so good). But many recipes I have tried are very light and healthy so they keep the purity of the tofu. And I just don't like the taste on its own. But the warm tofu and steamed vegetable salad with plum dressing from the Japanese Light cookbook is a keeper. It is a perfect mix of light vegetables that nicely compliment the lightness of the tofu.

The dressing is made from pickled plums. They may sound gross but to me that sound interesting. Known as umeboshi, you can find these in an Asian market. They are very small, about the size of large grapes. This recipe calls for them to be mashed and I found that a bit hard to do. There are pits inside and I just mashed them up with a fork as best as I could. But the flavor went perfect with the veggies. The dressing was light and not oily at all. I really enjoyed this meal - and I learned a new way to cook spinach!

Warm Tofu and Steamed Vegetable Salad with Plum Dressing 1 pound soft silken tofu, drained 1 pound spinach 8 ounces bean sprouts, roots trimmed 1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into matchstick-sized pieces 8 fresh shitake mushrooms, stems removed, cups sliced 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 teaspoon sesame oil for the umeboshi dressing 6 tablespoons rice vinegar 4 umeboshi (pickled plums), finely mashed 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 tablespoon sugar 1 garlic clove, peeled and grated 1/2 teaspoon salt

Wrap the tofu with paper towels and let drain for 30 minutes. Bring a saucepan of water to a boil and add the spinach, then immediately turn off the heat and drain the spinach. Squeeze the excess water from it. Steam the rest of the vegetables and cover them to keep warm.

Mix together all the ingredients for the umeboshi dressing and set aside.

Cut the drained tofu into 1/2-inch cubes. Arrange the vegetables and tofu in a large warm serving dish. Put the vegetable oil and sesame oil in a metal cooking spoon and heat until the oil mixture is almost smoking hot. Pour it over the salad and add the dressing. Toss and serve immediately.

Chilled Tomato Somen

Lucky me, I got to work from home today! I made myself a nice fresh lunch. Chilled Tomato Somen from Japanese Light is a hybrid of Japanese and Italian cuisine. The tomato topping is like an Italian bruschetta with the addition of soy sauce. The somen noodles are Japanese and have the perfect consistency for a chilled salad. The author, Kimiko Barber, mentions that this dish was inspired during a stay in an Umbrian farmhouse while visiting Italy.

I used a box of imported Italian chopped tomatoes. It would have been better if I used fresh vine-ripe tomatoes as suggested in this recipe. But it still came out okay because these tomatoes still kind of had their chopped shape. I just hate the whole process of peeling tomatoes!

Chilled Tomato Somen (Serves 2) 1 pound very ripe vine-ripened tomatoes 1 garlic clove, peeled and grated 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce 3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 7 ounces dried somen noodles plenty of freshly ground black pepper fresh basil and flat leaf parsley, cut into strips

Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water and immediately plunge them into ice water. Peel, halve and discard the seeds. Chop them coarsely and mix with the grated garlic, salt, soy sauce, and olive oil. Refrigerate the tomato sauce while you cook the somen noodles.

Bring a saucepan of water to a boil and add the noodles. Stir to ensure that the noodles stay separate. Add a glass of cold water when the water is about to boil over. Return to a boil, drain and rinse under cold running water. In a large mixing bowl toss the noodles with the tomato sauce. Divide the noodles between two serving plates, season with pepper, garnish with the fresh herbs and serve.

Steamed Eggplant with Spicy Miso Dressing

This Steamed Eggplant with Spicy Miso Dressing from the Japanese Light cookbook is a quick and healthy meal. And it was fun for me because I have never made anything with miso before.

I am not sure from the recipe if I was supposed to use regular or Chinese eggplant. I happened to be at the Asian market so I bought two Chinese eggplant because I have not tried them. They are much smaller in size and I had a bunch of extra dressing so I think that I should have purchased regular Italian eggplant.

Didn't I have a really healthy dinner? I had this eggplant and the Shimeji Mushrooms and Ginkgo Nut Parcel. I ate the entire recipe full of eggplant and one parcel of mushrooms. It was neat to eat veggies in a way other than stir-fry.

Steamed Eggplant with Spicy Miso Dressing 2 medium eggplants 1 garlic clove, peeled and grated 1 (1-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated 1 shallot, minced 3 tablespoons soy sauce 1 tablespoon medium-colored miso paste 2 tablespoons rice vinegar 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

Cut off and discard the eggplant stems and quarter them lengthwise. Soak them in water for 10 minutes to reduce the bitterness. Drain and pat dry with paper towels. Steam the eggplants for 12-15 minutes or until they are soft in the middle. Lay them out flat on a chopping board and fan them to cool down.

Mix together all other ingredients for the dressing. Transfer the eggplant to a serving dish, drizzle with the dressing and serve.

Shimeji Mushrooms and Ginkgo Nut Parcel

I chose to make this Shimeji Mushrooms and Ginkgo Nut Parcel from the Japanese Light cookbook just because it looked like fun. I love mushrooms and the recipe includes photographs of wrapping up the little tin foil parcels. I haven't made anything like that in a while. The only problem was, I had no idea what shimeji mushrooms were. Long story short, they are also known as beech mushrooms. I found them in a package in the refrigerator section of the Asian market.

I wasn't all that impressed with these. It is a simple recipe with pure and simple flavors. Everything tasted fresh and healthy. I just wanted . . . something. Maybe more garlic or some soy sauce. After I ate half of my parcel I mixed them in with the Steamed Eggplant with Spicy Miso Dressing so that they could have some of the dressing on them. Maybe they would have been better if I ate them with a stronger flavored main dish.

Shimeji Mushrooms and Ginkgo Nut Parcel 2 packets shimeji mushrooms 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed with the side of a knife 12 ginkgo nuts* (sold ready to use in vacuum packs or cans in Asian markets) 1/2 teaspoon salt 4 thick slices lime 4 (12-inch) squares of aluminum foil *if using the canned variety, rinse off the brine

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the base off of the mushrooms and separate them (or if desired, keep them in little clumps). Heat a skillet over a moderate heat and add the garlic to the olive oil to flavor. Remove the garlic when it turns golden. Increase the heat and quickly saute the mushrooms and ginkgo nuts; season with the salt.

Divide the mushrooms into four equal portions and transfer each portion into the center of an aluminum foil sheet. Add a lime slice to each one and gather up the corners to make parcels. Make the parcels as roomy as possible so as not to crowd the ingredients. Put them on a baking sheet and bake them for 5 minutes. Serve unopened and let your guests enjoy the fragrance as they open them at the table.

Seared Tuna Steak with Daikon Dressing

I almost cried when I had my first bite of this Seared Tuna Steak with Daikon Dressing from the Japanese Light cookbook by Kimiko Barber. I used sushi-grade tuna and I think that was key because I love my tuna rare. The marinade is so simple and really compliments the natural flavors of the tuna. I'm definitely going to have to make this for my mother the next time she comes down to Florida to visit me because I know she will love it too.

I made a few changes to the recipe in the book: I used sesame oil instead of vegetable oil and I omitted the arugula because I could not find any at the grocery store. The daikon called for in the recipe I found at an Asian grocer and I didn't even look at my local store so I am not sure if it is widely available or not.

Seared Tuna Steak with Daikon Dressing 4 tuna steaks, each weighing about 4 ounces and cut 1 1/4-inches thick 1 tablespoon vegetable oil handful of arugula leaves 8 chives, finely chopped for the marinade 1/3 cup soy sauce 3 tablespoons sake 2 tablespoons rice vinegar 1 garlic clove, minced for the daikon dressing 1/4 cup grated daikon (Japanese white radish) 1/4 cup soy sauce 4 teaspoons lemon juice

Instructions:
In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients together for the marinade. Add the tuna steaks and let sit for at least thirty minutes. Turn tuna steaks once or twice.

While the tuna is marinading, mix all of the ingredients together for the daikon dressing in a small bowl.

Remove the tuna from the marinade the pat dry with paper towels. Brush one side of the tuna with half of the oil.

Heat a griddle pan or heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Make sure pan gets very hot before adding the tuna. Cook tuna for two minutes and brush the raw side of the tuna with the other half of the oil while cooking. After two minutes turn over and cook for another two minutes. (Tuna will be rare. If you like it more well done you can cook the second side up to five minutes.)

Transfer steaks to a cutting board and slice. Arrange slices on serving plates. Spoon dressing over tuna slices and top of a few arugula leaves. Garnish with chopped chives.