Grilled vegetables in dashi broth

 Ingredients:

Aubergine, asparagus, kabocha (in 6 mm slices) ... 

For dashi broth:

200 ml dashi stock (or 200 ml water + ⅓ tsp dashi stock powder) 
1 tbsp sake
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp soy sauce
¼ tsp salt
6 g grated ginger 

1. Make the dashi broth by combining all the ingredients and bringing to a boil. Cool. 

2. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. Make numerous shallow cuts along the outer skin diagonally.

3. Cut each aubergine half into 3 pieces.

4. Cut the asparagus into thirds. 

5. Toss the vegetables thoroughly in cooking oil. 

6. Grill the vegetables. For the aubergine, start skin side first. 

7. Once the vegetables soften, put them in the dashi to soak for 1-2 hrs. 

8. [Optional] Top with bonito flakes and serve. 

Okra with Bonito and Rocket

 

Ingredients: 

Okra
Arugula
Bonito flakes
Spring onions
Soy sauce

1. Blanche the okra for 2-3 minutes; drain and rinse under cold water. 

2. Chop the rocket and spring onion. 

3. Add thinly sliced okra. 

4. Add bonito flakes and a bit of soy sauce. Mix well and serve with rice. 

Crab fried rice with crab butter

 

Crab fried rice with crab butter

Ingredients:

1 crab
softened butter (1/2 for 1 crab, 1 for 2 crabs)
spring onions
garlic
ginger
onion or shallots
fish sauce
sesame oil
oyster sauce
day-old cold rice
2 eggs, beaten

1. Separate the white meat and the brown meat / “head juice,” keeping the brown meat in a measuring cup. 

2. Blend the (softened) butter and the brown meat. 

3. Heat some oil in a pan and put the scallions in. After a little while, add the ginger and chopped onions or shallots. When beginning to brown, add oyster sauce, fish sauce, and some sesame oil, stirring to mix.

4. Add the day-old cold rice and mix. Then add half the white crab meat and mix. 

5. Flatten out the rice, leaving a rim around the edge. Drizzle more sesame oil around the rim. Leave for a while so that a crust forms at the bottom of the rice. 

6. Beat the eggs and pour around the rim. 

7. Lastly, put some crab butter along with the second half of the white meat in a shell (if using that for serving) and place on top of the rice. Leave for a bit to melt. Then serve in the pan at the table!