Saturday, April 23, 2011

The Simplest Way to Japanese Curry

I have a recipe for homemade curry roux, the stuff in the picture, to share as well, though I figure I'll go for the simple way first.

In short, this was the first thing I learned how to make on my own involving an oven/stove and, as a result, is pretty much a comfort food for me. It's my go-to for when I come home after a long day and don't feel up to making anything yet still need to get some food in me.

If you're not familiar with this type of curry, especially if you get a box lacking English/can't understand Japanese, it might seem intimidating at first. That or the roux might make you think of it as a weird smelling chocolate(one of my cousin's impressions of it). Don't fret though, it's pretty straightforward.

While you can use any veggies that sound good, I tend to go with onions, carrots, potatoes, and tofu. Using a small pot, chop enough to fill it halfway. Typically one carrot, one potato, half a cube of tofu, and quarter of an onion or one scallion stalk. Fill the pot with enough water to cover the veggies then boil it over medium heat for the amount of time it takes for a rice cooker to cook two cups of rice(or until the potato and carrots are soft... don't you love how vague my instructions tend to be? Sorry, I rarely cook with timers and eyeball most measurements).

For a little added/personal taste, you can also choose to fry the onions/other veggies before adding them to the pot, though since this is my definitive lazy meal, I tend not to.

Once the veggies are ready, add the roux half a bar at a time, I find that a small pot filled roughly to the top takes 2 and a half bars to get it just right though this may vary by the size of your pot. Mix each until it's fully dissolved and keep adding until the curry is a thick, almost batter-like, paste.

Congrats! You've got curry! Serve over fresh rice or udon and dig in!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Poor baby...

It was so young(to me) and happy. Can't believe I did that.

On the plus side, a package from Maiko came today bearing sencha, gyokuro, and maccha, so it wasn't an all bad day.
Also, have a few posts in the works, will get those up over the weekend. For now, I'll drown my tears in Maruyama.

ETA: Nevermind, I fixed it. :D

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Mini Matcha Bunny Cakes

Easy as pie(which isn't actually that easy to make, so... easier than pie?), tasty, and cute.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

In a large bowl mix 1c. flour, 1/3c. sugar, 3/4 Tbsp. industrial/cooking grade matcha, 1 tsp. soy butter, and 1c. hot water together into a green and slightly runny batter.

Spray the cooking pan or mold(s) of your choice(I obviously went with bunnies) with non-stick spray, then pour the batter in, distributing evenly if using more than one pan/mold. I used three at a time.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, give or take for your oven, do the 'fork test'(stick it in to see if it comes out clean) to test if they're finished.

When done, remove from the oven and let cool before removing them from the pan/mold.

Enjoy plain, or with a light sprinkling of powdered sugar, and a cup of hot sencha!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

The Green Stuff

I said before I would post a picture of the new chawan with matcha in it, so here it is with some of Den's Tea's Matcha Kaze. Not the best matcha on the market, but for usucha(thin matcha) I can't complain.

I considered making this out into a post about how to prepare matcha, but then I noticed that Tales of Japanese Tea, Kohei, had posted a rather lovely video that covers pretty much everything you'd want to know about matcha preparation*, so I'll just link to him instead. ;p

*Well, for usucha. This is roughly how I prepare it, two scoops with 60ml of water. For koicha(thick matcha) you need both more scoops/less water as well as a higher quality matcha.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Friday, March 18, 2011

Large Leaf from Old Trees Pu' erh

Got this as a sample from Chicago Tea Garden and it's nearly everything I like in a pu'erh.

The description:
"This pu-erh is made from the large leaves of old tea trees. It is aged in loose form, so there is no need to purchase a large cake. This tea is bold and earthy, with a smooth, sweet, lingering aftertaste. These leaves have been aging in a man-made pu-erh cave in the United States since the mid-90s."

It's got a strong earthy aroma and the brew, from the very first steep, has this rich, old flavor to match.

Took about half of the sample in a 160ml pot filled to ~100ml, think I'll see if it brews differently in a gaiwan for the latter half. Used water ranging from 205 to 195, the hotter producing stronger/shorter/darker brews, and poured into a ~140ml cup.

The only downfall was the longevity of the leaves, only about a day's worth of brewing and faster to require long steeps than other pu'erh I've encountered. Depending on your taste, there was a bit of dustiness to the first steep or so, even after having been rinsed. Also, I couldn't find any of the bitterness I've read about it in some reviews, and only ever got a little sweet around the fourth brew. Not sure if the lack of bitter is a pro or con for me, but the sweet was pleasant while it lasted.

Along with this and the Zealong Pure, I also received a sample of their Wu yu and the Camel's Breath Toucha. Have only gotten around to the Wu yu so far, but definitely enjoyed it. My first impression was that it tasted a little closer to a Japanese green than a Chinese, though as it progressed it grew more into that familiar Chinese green taste. Might order some eventually(newer harvest?), but for now my curiosity is sated.

Edit: Oh! And I've been repurposing decor/gardening things lately for my tea time. See: the candle stand that I found just the right size for a pot.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Kimchi Jjigae(김치찌개)

This is, in short, a soup/stew made using kimchi. It's very spicy and very delicious. Also, pretty easy to make.

Take a medium-sized pot and pour a little oil on the bottom and put over medium-high heat. Mince some garlic, chop some scallions(and maybe mushrooms and matchstick chop daikon), and cut about a half a block of tofu into one inch squares.

Toss all these things into the pot. While they cook, chop one-two cups of kimchi and, when done add it to the pot.

Use a fork/spoon/chopsticks to shift the items in the pot so nothing gets overcooked then, about a minute after adding the kimchi, add enough water to cover everything and either a dab of gouchujang(if the kimchi is new) or a quarter cup of kochukaru(for older kimchi). Bring it to a boil, stirring on occasion, then lower the heat and let simmer for 20 minutes to an hour.

If the water gets low, feel free to add more. Once done, I tend to add some fresh scallions on top and a pinch more of kochukaru. Serve with plain white rice and a little soy sauce to taste.

I tend to drink hot water with this, and most spicy foods, rather than tea. Hot, because that's how I drink it and it seems to work better than cold for spicy, and water because tea would be wasted to drink with this since you won't be able to taste it. ;p