Name: Sushi Rice in a Cooking Pot
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 5 to 6 people
Ingredients: 4 cups of japanese rice (about 600g); 4 cups of water (about 640ml); For the vinegar seasoning :; 100ml rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar; 35g white sugar; 15g fine salt

January 15, 2021

Sushi Rice in a Cooking Pot (no rice cooker!)

Sushi Rice in a Cooking Pot

Persons

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

45 minutes

Total Time

1 hour

Ingredients

4 cups of japanese rice (about 600g)
4 cups of water (about 640ml)

For the vinegar seasoning :

100ml rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
35g white sugar
15g fine salt

Instructions

1. Wash the rice well and drain (do it 5 times). Transfer the rice in the bowl and add enough water to soak. Soak for about 30 minutes.
2. In the meantime, make the vinegar seasoning. Add the vinegar, sugar and salt in a small cooking pot. And cook over medium heat until almost boiling. Melt completely the sugar and the salt. Set aside.
3. Drain the rice and transfer into a cooking pot. Add water (640ml). Cover and cook over medium-high heat, bring it to a boil. Once it boils, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Remove from the heat (do NOT open the lid yet!) and let the rice steam for another 10 minutes with the lid on.
5. Moisten a "Sushi-Oke" (or a large glass bowl), and transfer the rice into it. Pour the vinegar seasoning in one go. Slice the rice, let it cool down, using a hand fan occasionally.
6. Once it has cooled to room temperature, cover with saran wrap until you are ready to serve!

January 1, 2021

Brioche with a bread machine

Serving Size

8 to 10 brioches

Ingredients

200g bread flour (or 195g T65 + 5g gluten flour)
25g white sugar
4g salt
45 to 50g unsalted butter
4g dry yeast
1 egg + enough whole milk to make a total of 150g
3g whole milk powder
50 to 60g pearl sugar

Instructions

1. Add milk, egg, bread flour, (gluten flour), sugar, salt, and milk powder in the pan of your bread machine. Select dough cycle and press start as per manufacturer's instructions.
2. After 5 min, add butter and add yeast in the yeast compartment.
3. When the dough cycle is complete, remove the dough from the machine and place it on a floured surface.
4. Punch the dough down while sprinkling pearl sugar and knead together gently. Then divide it in 8 to 10 pieces and lightly shape the dough into balls. Cover them with a dry cloth. Let rest for about 15min bench time.
5. Re-shape each piece into a round ball. Arrange them on a lined baking tray or in a cupcake or muffin mold (as you prefer). Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for 40~60min in a warm place or until the dough has doubled in volume.
6. Bake in a preheated 180℃ oven for 10 to 12 min. Remove from the oven and let it cool down on a wire rack.

December 12, 2020

Shio Ramen v2 – Salt Flavored

Shio Ramen V2 - Salt Flavored

Persons

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Total Time

1 hour, 10 minutes

Ingredients

For the soup stock :

700g (approx) Chicken breast or Thighs - boneless
1/2 tsp fine salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp cooking sake or cooking white wine
2L water (approx)

For the soup base :

50 to 80g green parts of a leek - chopped
1 tbsp sesame oil
60ml vegetable oil
5g katsuo/dried bonito flakes
5g garlic cloves - grated
3 tbsp kosher salt
1 tsp kobucha/kelp powder
2 tsp chinese chicken bouillon powder
150ml boiled water
Ramen noodles for 5 people
1 tbsp sesame oil

Instructions

1. Make the soup stock In a big cooking pot, add about 2L water and bring it to a boil. Once it boils add the chicken.
2. Bring it to a boil again, then remove from the heat. Cover and leave it for 1 to 2 hours.
3. Meanwhile make the soup base
In a heat-safe bowl, add katsuo flake, garlic and kosher salt and set it aside. In a small cooking pot, add leek, sesame oil and vegetable oil. Bring it to a boil and once it is boiling, simmer for 3 minutes.
4. Then immediately pour this oil mixture into a bowl. Mix well.
5. Add kobucha, chicken powder and boiled water. Mix well : the salt should melt completely. Set aside. You can leave it until the chicken is ready.
6. Using a cooking sieve, strain the soup base into another bowl. Press or squeeze well against the sieve.
7. Transfer the sieve residual into another bowl and blend it with your hand blender until it is smooth like a paste.
8. Remove the chicken from the water and cut it in slices. Set it aside. With the soup stock, strain once and add more water to reach a total of about 2.5L (it's about 500ml per person) then bring it to a boil.
9. Prepare the noodles Cook your ramen according to the package instructions. Place 2 to 3 tbsp (or more) soup base into your serving ramen bowl, add the boiled soup stock, then place the cooked ramen into the soup.
10. Top your ramen with chicken, leek, egg etc.....Sprinkle sesame, and enjoy :)

December 12, 2020

Homemade Olive Oil Sardines　オイルサーディン

Homemade olive oil sardines

Persons

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Total Time

1 hour, 10 minutes

Ingredients

10 sardines in filets - cleaned, scaled
500ml water
5g fine salt
olive oil - enough to cover the sardines

Ingredient A

1 dried red chili or more
1 to 2 bay leaves
1 to 3 garlic cloves (or more!) - thinly sliced
1 tsp soy sauce
some oregano flakes

Instructions

1. Prepare the sardines, Remove if any bones left and cut in half. Remove skin if you prefer.
2. Add 500ml water and add 5g fine salt (1%). Mix. Add the sardines in the salted water and soak for 1 hour.
3. Wipe the sardines with a kitchen towel and place in the frying-pan. Pour some olive oil to cover the sardines. Then add all the ingredient A.
4. Cook over medium-high heat and bring it to a boil. Once it is boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 40 minutes.
5. Sprinkle salt to your taste. Remove from the heat.
6. Serve hot or cold :)

Notes

You may keep it a few days in the fridge.

November 22, 2020

Lemon shortcake

Serving Size

15cm round cake

Prep Time

1 hour

Cook Time

1 hour

Total Time

2 hours

Ingredients

For the sponge cake :

2 eggs
60g white sugar
35g plain flour or cake flour (T45) - sifted
20g wheat starch - sifted (or 20g cake flour)
15g unsalted butter
20ml milk

For the syrup :

3 tbsp water
1 1/2 tbsp sugar

For the cream :

300g heavy cream (more than 35% fat is preferable)
40g white sugar (10%)
6g cremfix (whipped cream stabilizer) - better use this if your cream is less than 35% fat

For the lemon cream :

40ml lemon juice (sieved)
1 egg
50g white sugar
10g unsalted butter
1/2 tbsp corn starch

Instructions

We get the sponge cake done
1. Sift together the flour and wheat starch. Set aside. In a small saucepan, combine the syrup ingredients (water and sugar) and bring to a boil. Cook until all the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. Set aside.
2. Line the bottom and the sides of a 15 cm circle cake pan with parchment paper. Tip : Put a bit of butter on the inside of the cake pan, it helps the parchment paper stick to it. Set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl add eggs and sugar. Whisk to combine in a hot water bath with an electric mixer until the mixture whitens, doubles in volume and forms ribbons (about 5~6min). Remove from the hot water bath and slow down to low speed for a few seconds and then stop.
4. Gently add the sifted flour mixture from #1 and mix with a egg whisk until incorporated. (make sure the batter is free of lumps.)
5. Microwave the butter (15g) and milk (20ml) for 15 sec at 600W, mix until the butter is melted.. Add about 2 tbsp of cake mixture (from #4) and mix. Pour the butter mixture little by little into the rest of the cake mixture from #4. Mix gently with a spatula until it is homogeneous. Do not over mix.
6. Preheat the oven to 170°C. Pour the cake mixture into the prepared cake pan and gently tap the bottom of the pan on your counter top a few times to eliminate air pockets. Bake for about 20min or until done. Insert a skewer in the center of the cake : if there is no sticky butter residual, then your baking is done.
7. Remove from the oven and take the cake out of the pan. Let it cool to room temperature on the wire rack.
Meanwhile, make the lemon curd
8. In a medium bowl, whisk together egg and sugar. In an another microwave safe bowl, add lemon juice and microwave 20~25s at 600W. Gradually add the hot lemon juice into the egg mixture. Mix well after each addition. Add the corn starch (sifted) and mix.
9. Transfer the egg mixture into a cooking pot, using a sieve. Add the butter and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
And fix the whipping cream
10. In a mixing bowl, combine the whipping cream and sugar, beat at high speed until stiff.
NOTE : if your cream is less than 35% fat, I recommend you to add whipped cream stabilizer (I used "cremfix" here). In that case, mix the cream stabilizer to the sugar ahead of this step. Add when your cream is getting a soft peak, then continue to beat until firm-peak.
Put it all together
11. Using a sharp knife trim 2 to 3 mm from the top and the bottom of the cake to remove the brown surface layer. Then slice horizontally in 2 halves. Place 1 layer of cake, brush syrup from #1 on top, spread lemon cream, and then spread whipped cream. Repeat this one more time (cake+syrup+lemon). Finally add the top sponge cake layer, spread and whipped cream on top and sides of the cake.
12. Sprinkle with any nuts your like to decorate. (I used Pralin for this cake.) Let sit in the fridge until you serve.

November 22, 2020

Tai-Meishi | Tai Gohan | Sea Bream Rice (Japanese Mixed Rice)

Tai-Meshi | Tai Gohan | Sea Bream Rice (Japanese Mixed Rice)

Persons

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Total Time

50 minutes

Tai-Meshi | Tai Gohan | Sea Bream Rice (Japanese Mixed Rice)

Ingredients

3 rice cooker cups of japanese rice (about 450g)
3 rice cooker cups of water (about 520ml)
2 sea bream fillets - rinse with cold water and wipe with a kitchen towel
1/2 tsp kosher salt

For the seasoning :

2 tbsp cooking sake or white wine
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 thumb of fresh ginger - sliced
1.5 tsp hondashi powder
1/3 tsp kosher salt

For the garnish :

some long grenn onion - thinly sliced

Instructions

1. Wash the rice (wash and rinse, 5 times) and then submerge with water to soak the rice. Let it soak for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile prepare the fish. Sprinkle the salt on both sides of the fillet. Lightly rub in the salt. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
3. Remove the excess water from the fish using a paper towel. Place on a non-stick frying-pan (skin side down) and cook until lightly brown. Flip it over and immediately remove from the heat. Note: You can roast the fish skin with a cooking torch, it's nice. Transfer the fish to a plate and set aside.
4. Take the rice out of the water and drain it well. Transfer to a cooking pot. Add water, soy sauce, cooking sake, hondashi powder, kosher salt and ginger. Mix well.
5. Place the sea bream on the rice!
6. Cover, cook over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover & simmer for 10 min.
7. Turn off the heat (do not open the lid yet) and let it steam for another 10 minutes.
8. Lightly toss with a rice paddle to mix. Place the tai-rice into a bowl. Sprinkle on the long green onion. Serve hot!