Stir fry

Recipe by no one in particular

Ingredients:

Orange pepper 1

Leek 1

Chicken breast about 230g

Baby Corn 2 packs

How to make:

1. Cut everything up into small pieces.

2. Put oil in a frying pan and heat it up. When the oil shimmers, add the meat.

3. Once the meat has changed colors, add the vegetables. (You can cook the meat and veggies separate too. I don't have space though)

4. Add whatever stir fry sauce you like at the end (I use just plain old soy sauce) Serve on rice.

Really, you can make stir fry with about anything-broccoli, onions, moyashi (bean sprouts), sugar peas, green peas, or whatever else you have! I like making mine with chicken rather than beef, since I've found that beef gets a bit tough.

Chinese stir fry

Recipe link-Cookpad

Translation:

Ingredients:

Beef 200g (cut into small pieces, yakiniku meat is good)

Bamboo shoot 1

Piman (green pepper) 1

Red pepper, yellow pepper 1/2 pepper each (I used a whole one each)

Chopped garlic 3 cloves (the kind in a tube is OK)

Meat marinade:

Soy sauce 1 tbsp

Cooking sake 1 tbsp

Sugar 1/2 tbsp

Starch 1 tbsp

Stir fry sauce:

Tobanjan (spicy red bean paste) (豆板醤) 1 tsp

Oyster sauce 1 tbs

Soy sauce 1/2 tbsp

Chinese flavoring (中華味) 2 shakes

Cooking sake 1 tbsp

How to make:

1. Mix the marinade and pour it over the meat, mixing it in. Set aside. Chop up the rest of ingredients.

2. Put 3 tbsp of oil into a frying pan. Cook the meat. When it's about half done, take it out and set aside. Put 1 tbsp of oil into the pan and add the garlic.

3. When you start smelling the garlic, add the vegetables. Stir fry them for a bit, then add the meat back in and stir fry it a little more. Add the sauce right at the end. Done!

I really like this recipe a lot! It's kind of spicy, so you could tone down the red paste stuff. Definitely will make it again!

Sweet and Spicy Chicken Sticks

Recipe link - Cookpad

Translation

Ingredients:

Sasami (boneless chicken breasts) 6 (about 330-350g or so will be fine)

Starch 2 tbsp

Salt and pepper

Sauce:

Soy sauce 3 tbsp

Sugar 1 tbsp

Honey 1 tbsp

Cooking sake t tbsp

Mirin 1 tbsp

Chicken stock powder 1/2 tsp

Seven spice blend (七味）5 shakes (I'm not sure what's in the blend)

Sesame seeds 1 tbsp

How to make:

1. Cut the chicken into strips. Coat with starch, salt, and pepper.

2. Heat up some oil in a frying pan to 180 degrees. Fry the chicken. Once it's done, drain off the oil.

3. In a separate pan, mix the sauce ingredients. Heat it until it just starts to bubble.

4. Coat the chicken with the sauce. Done!

I rarely fry things. I'm actually a bit scared of the oil! But, I managed to fry the chicken without getting popped. The sauce turned out really good, but the chicken a bit on the dry side. I guess I did fairly well for my first time making fried chicken. I think I'll dry cutting the chicken into nuggets next time; that might help with the dryness.

Spaghetti with meat sauce

I almost hesitate to call this a recipe, since I just dressed up a jar of premade sauce.

Ingredients:

Makes 2 servings

Spaghetti noodles

Spaghetti sauce (I used Anna Mama's Tomato and Garlic. Most other Japanese sauces are really sweet!)

Leek 1

Mushrooms 2 packs, precut

Ground beef/pork mix 240g(or so)

How to make:

1. Boil the noodles. I have a plastic thing that lets me cook pasta in the microwave. Handy!

2. Brown the meat in a frying pan and chop the leek. Add the leek when the meat is browned.

3. Drain the juice from the mushrooms and add them. Let them cook a minute to let their flavor soak in the meat.

4. Turn off the heat and add the sauce. Stir and let sit for a minute. Done!

You can change portions and ingredients and it'll probably be ok. I like a lot of meat in my sauce, and I also like a lot of sauce on my spaghetti. Make it however you like it!

Mabotofu

Recipe is from the Muji Recipe Book (pg47)

You'll need a medium size silicone steamer for this

Translation:

Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:

Tofu (momen) 350g (I used a 360g pack)

Leek 1

Garlic 1 clove (I used the squeeze tube, just whatever amount looked right)

Ginger 1 clove? (Again, squeeze tube.)

Ground pork 150g

Starch 2 tsp

Water 1 tbsp

Sesame oil 2 tsp

Sauce:

Miso 1 tbsp

Oyster sauce 1 tbsp

Cooking sake 1 tbsp

Soy sauce 2 tsp

Toubanjan (豆板醤) .5 tsp (You can add more if you like spicy. Just be careful, this stuff is hot!)

How to make:

1. Cut up the tofu and leek into small pieces.

2. Mix the sauce ingredients in the steamer. Add the ground pork and leek. Put on the lid and microwave for 2 minutes, 30 seconds.

3. Stir and add the tofu. Put the lid back on and microwave for 3 minutes.

4. Mix the starch and water. Pour it on while the stuff in the steamer is still hot. Add the sesame oil and mix. Done!

I love my steamer! I really recommend getting one. Muji (No Name Brand store. I would compare it to Target in America, at least by how the stuff looks) has the medium size one for about 1000 yen (a little less than $10 American). They also sell a recipe book for it for another 1000 yen. Everything is super easy and fast. I'd recommend getting it in black though. You can't really tell in the picture, but mine's stained pretty bad in some places. Still works though!

Bacon and Bamboo shoots

Recipe link- Cookpad

(sorry for the crappy pic)

Translation

Makes 5 servings (I guess this is meant to be a side. I had it as my main dinner, so it only made 2)

Ingredients:

Bamboo shoot 250g (I used the other half left over from the happosai)

Bacon 40/1 pack (they didn't have a 40g pack at the store. Mine was around 60g)

Red chili 1 pepper (they didn't have this either. I used a little powder instead)

Nam plaa/ Thai fish sauce 1 tbsp

Lemon juice 1-2 tsp (I used 1)

Benito/katsuo flakes 1 pack/3g

How to make:

1. Cut the bamboo up into small pieces.

2. Cook the bacon in a frying pan. Add the pepper and bamboo once the bacon fat is cooked

3. Mix the nam plaa in 100cc of water. Pour it in. Once all the water cooks away, turn off the heat and add the lemon juice and benito. Done!

I really liked the different flavors in this- spicy, fishy, sour, smokey (from the katsuo), bacony, bamboo-y... But, this recipe doesn't make very much. I'll probably double it next time. I was still hungry after eating half (saving half for lunch tomorrow) so I'm having a persimmon for dessert.