Nizakana with Japanese-Style Pumpkin

 

Nizakana is literally boiled fish. It is fish boiled in a flavoured broth. This recipe is a boiled version of teriyaki fish. It is very easy to make, and makes a quick easy meal with the rice and pumpkin. A side salad and miso soup could be added.

Nizakana served on a Mashikoyaki plate on aizome indigo-dyed cloth

 

500g (1 lb) white meat fish fillets with or without skin

½ cup water

¼ cup soy sauce

 ¼ cup sake mirin*

2 tablespoons sugar

Place water, soy sauce, mirin and sugar into a frying pan. Bring to the boil and stir to dissolve sugar. Add fish fillets in a single layer (skin side up), cook for 5 minutes on medium high. Use a drop lid (if you have one) or piece of foil to with a hole in the centre, to ensure fish stay submerged in the liquid, or press down with a fish slice. Reduce heat as cooking juices decreases and spoon juices over the fish.

Arrange the fish with sauce on individual plates to serve in true Japanese style, or with rice and a vegetable on the same plate as I have done. I used a little furikaki, rice seasoning to sprinkle over the rice, seasame seeds could also be used.

Note: in Japan the rice, fish and pumpkin would all be served on separate plates. I added the parsley for the photo, but it is not traditional in this recipe. 

*mirin is a sweet Japanese rice wine that is used in cooking, it can be omitted from this recipe and replaced with a little more sugar.

There are many variations of what exactly is in the cooking liquid for nizakana, so feel free to adjust to taste, with more of less of the various flavours. Freshly grated ginger can be added.
 

Japanese-Style Pumpkin

close up of the Japanese-Style pumpkin

500g (1 lb) pumpkin, peeled seeded and cut into 3cm (1¼ in) cubes.

3 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons butter (optional)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Place pumpkin in base of a large saucepan and just cover with water. Bring to the boil and boil for a few minutes then gradually reduce the heat as the pumpkin cooks and softens. Cook until most of the liquid is absorbed.



Pumpkin served as a side dish

Mashikoyaki  is earthy looking pottery from Mashiko, a pottery town near Tokyo.

 

Fresh Fruit

 

Fresh fruit is a lovely and healthy way to end a meal. Here I present pawpaw (papaya) in the way that Japanese people present melons. Pawpaw and rock melons are abundant in sub-tropical Queensland. I used a frangipani (which are in many gardens in Queensland) as my “seasonal touch”. I love the way the skin is cut 2/3’s of the way along so that it is easy to pick up and eat.

The glass plate looks like a slab of ice evoking coolness. Japanese people use a lot of glassware and blue and white china serving ware in summer to create a summery look.

 

I restyled the pawpaw onto a black octagonal lacquer ware style plate to give a more formal look, perhaps for a dinner party. I then added some purple perilla (a Japanese herb with a mild fresh minty flavour) that is available at major supermarkets in Australia.

The pawpaw (or other fruit) could also be served with tooth picks or lovely handcrafted bamboo sticks as pictured here on the vintage imari Japanese plate.

Pineapple on skewers is something I have seen at street stalls in Japan.  A good way to pass around some pineapple after a BBQ.

 

 

 

Fruit is always “served” in Japan. You don’t see people walking around biting into an apple. It is eaten at breakfast time, lunch and dinner and for snacks. A bowl of mandarins is often on the table in winter. Many places in Japan sell direct to the public as the grapes pictured here were.

Grapes in Hiroshima prefecture

 

 

 

 

 

Coffee Jelly

Coffee Jelly

Everybody knows that the Japanese drink green tea, but coffee is very, very popular in Japan. Coffee jelly is a refreshing dessert on a hot day. The ones I tried in Japan do not have sugar in them, rather a syrup is poured over the jelly when it is served, to taste. Also an artificial tasting white substance is also served with the jelly, I suggest using fresh pouring cream or ice cream.

4 tablespoons sugar

1 cup water

2 teaspoons (10g) powdered gelatine

¼ cup (60ml/2 fl oz) boiling water

2 cups (500ml/16 fl oz) strong black coffee

Ice cream or cream to serve, optional

1.       Make syrup. Place sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil without stirring to make a syrup. When boiling turn off the heat.  Allow to cool. Chill until using.

2.       Boil water in a kettle, and pour into a measuring jug. Sprinkle the gelatine over the boiling water and stir briskly to dissolve it. Continue stirring until it is all dissolved. Add dissolved gelatine to the coffee and stir through. Divide between serving glasses, sundae glasses or teacups. Alternatively set jelly in a shallow tin and cut into cubes to serve. Refrigerate for several hours or until set.

3.       Serve coffee jelly with the syrup and cream. 

Variations: Make fruit juice jellies using good quality fruit juices, or fruit tea jellies.

#CoffeeJelly #Coffeejello #JapaneseDesserts #JapaneseCoffeeJelly #SummerDesserts #JapaneseFood

 

White Peach Jelly

White peach jelly

White peaches are delicious in Japan in summer. You can use golden peaches instead or a combination of both as I did in the pictured jelly.

4-5 white peaches (about 500g, or 1lb)

4 tablespoons sugar

a strip of lemon rind (or ½ teaspoon lemon juice)

3 teaspoons (15g) powdered gelatine

¼ cup boiling water

1.       Place peaches in a bowl, cover with boiling water and allow to stand for 10 minutes or so. Rinse with cold water and gently rub to remove skins. Cut into segments and remove seeds.

2.       Place sugar in a small saucepan and pour in water to cover the sugar with about 5cm (2in) water. Bring to the boil without stirring to make a syrup. When boiling add the fruit and lemon rind. Simmer for 1 or 2 minutes to just soften and remove from heat. Allow to cool slightly.

3.       Sprinkle the gelatine over the boiling water and stir briskly to dissolve it. Continue stirring until it is all dissolved. Add dissolved gelatine to the fruit and syrup mixture and stir through.

4.       Spoon peaches into moulds, sundae glasses, teacups, or a shallow tin. Refrigerate for several hours or until set. Serve by itself or with a scoop of green tea ice cream or your favourite flavour.

I used cups as moulds and unmoulded onto small serving plates. To encourage unmoulding place some warm towels on the outside of the cups.

 #WhitePeachJelly #JapaneseDessert #JapaneseJelly #JapaneseWhitePeachDessert #WhitePeach

 

Desserts in Japan

A traditional style dessert with maple leaves to suggest autumn and served in autumn colours.
 

Most commonly in Japan fresh fruit, beautifully but simply presented, is served as a dessert in Japan. Fresh fruit is served in  a similar manner to the dessert pictured above. Seasonal touches from nature are often present, as with the maple leaves here, and the colour and style of dishes change to match the changing seasons. In this way the Japanese enjoy each season as it passes. The fruits that I remember having for dessert were pale green coloured musk melons, Japanese nashi (pears), grapes and kaki (persimmon). 

A tea ceremony  "cake" served on a pottery serving dish

There is a whole range of sweet food in Japan, but it is usually eaten as a snack through the day, perhaps for afternoon tea, on a special occasion or as part of the tea ceremony. However, having a dessert after the evening meal is becoming more widespread in Japan. Many of the very traditional desserts in Japan feature ingredients not available or familiar to Australians, things like sweet red bean paste and jelly-like youkan based sweets.

Traditionally the Japanese did not have ovens and did not bake, so there is no long tradition of baked desserts or puddings. Dairy foods have only been a part of the Japanese diet for just over 100 years. Nowadays baked or steamed custards such as crème caramel are popular. There are many Japanese cake shops these days, and a visit to the food hall of a major department store is a must see in Japan.

a window display at a café in Tokyo

Green tea ice cream is popular in Japan as are a variety of other familiar flavours and some unusual ones such as wasabi ice cream. Fancy looking parfaits and sundaes made from fruit and ice cream feature in menus at restaurants and cafes. Japanese people are fond of jelly (as in jello to any readers from the States, not what you spread on bread) as a dessert. See my next 2 blog posts for recipes.

 

Icecream in Tokyo, flavours include tomato, fig, apple ginger and blueberry milk

 

 

Classic Miso Soup



Tofu, negi and wakame miso soup

2 ¼ cups water

I teaspoon dashi* (dashi no moto, dried Japanese soup stock)

4 tablespoons white miso*

1 tablespoon dried wakame* (type of seaweed), reconstituted by soaking in 1 cup water

300g (10 oz) block soft tofu (kinugoshi doufu)“silk” tofu*

3 green onions (negi), thinly sliced (use the white part and discard fibrous outer skin)

*Wakame, miso, dashi and tofu are available at Asian food stores.

1.      Place the water in a saucepan. Bring to the boil.

2.      Gently stir in dashi and simmer for a minute or two.

3.      Drain wakame add to the stock together with the spring onions, cook for a few minutes on a low simmer.

4.      Add the miso and stir to dissolve into the soup.

5.      Place tofu on your hand and gently rinse with water. While it is still on your hand cut it into cubes with a not too sharp knife taking care not to cut yourself. Add the tofu to the soup.

6.      Divide the soup between 4 miso soup bowls. Garnish with additional green onions if desired. Serves 4



Miso soup with tofu, pumpkin, negi and wakame

Note: If the wakame is omitted you will have a simple but delicious tofu and negi miso soup.

Variations:  You can add and combine ingredients as you like. Any ingredients requiring boiling to cook and soften (eg potato) need to be added at step 3. Add delicate ingredients like tofu at the end. Avoid boiling the miso, keep it just simmering.

Other ingredients to try: pumpkin and fried tofu (use small cubes of diced pumpkin), mushrooms; any Japanese mushrooms, such as fresh shiitake sliced, enoki or shimeji, alternatively brown or mushrooms, sliced or button mushrooms, potato (jagaimo not Japanese potatoes) and wakame, shell fish or small prawns and negi (green onions). Other vegetables such as carrots, turnips and parsnips.

Note: miso comes in red, white and mixed red/white types. Personally I like the white better as it is milder, but it is a matter of taste. They are interchangeable but flavour of the soup will reflect the miso type chosen.

 

 

Chilled Tofu

Tofu with grated fresh ginger, katsuobushi and soysauce

Known as Hiya-yakko in Japan this is a favourite dish for Japanese people on a hot summers’ day. Hiya means “chilled”, and yakko I don’t know. The tofu is served chilled with toppings and soy sauce. So simple and so healthy. Add some rice, a salad, a clear soup and some pickles to make a complete meal of it, or just a salad for a light lunch.

 

Note about tofu: Tofu blocks in Japan come in two textures, silk (soft) and cotton (firm), try to get good quality tofu as it will make a big difference. You can also purchase fried tofu, which is the firmer tofu, that has been fried.

I thank Yoko Nakano for showing me how to make this and sharing this meal with me.

toppings and soy sauce ready to serve

Ingredients:

2 x 300g blocks soft tofu (kinugoshi doufu) “silk” tofu, chilled 

for toppings: 5g dried bonito shaving (katsuobushi)
2 green onions or shallots, finely chopped
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger root

To serve:
good quality natural soy sauce (such as Kikkoman)

 

Method:

1.      Place tofu on your hand, rinse under the tap (faucet) then cut directly the tofu into squares while still on your hand.

2.      Place tofu on serving dishes, top with desired toppings, pour over a little soy sauce and eat at once.

Tip: add a little water to the soy sauce as it can be too concentrated straight from the bottle.

Variations: Use “momen” cotton (firm) tofu if you prefer. For the toppings, you like it hot try some finely chopped chilli. A little mustard can also be used as a topping. Combine toppings as you like.

Serves 4



ready to eat