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Chicken, Dinner, Japanese, Recipes

Chicken Katsu

April 30, 2013

Chicken Katsu PlateMy friend Colleen recently told me about the Coastal Range Organics chicken she purchased at Costco and how much she likes it.  Typically when I go to Costco I zoom around with my cart trying to dodge the shoppers that clog the aisles.  I zero in on the items that are familiar to me and don’t pay attention to other products.  So thanks, Colleen, for bringing the Coastal Range Organics chicken to my attention!  I found it to be superior to the chicken I always bought in the past.Panko & Hot MustardChicken katsu is one of my favorites and very simple to prepare.  Chicken breasts become much more tender when pounded and this also allows them to cook evenly.  Properly prepared chicken katsu has a crunchy exterior and tender interior.

Panko Crusted ChickenLightly dust your pounded chicken cutlets in flour then in the egg mixture.  Repeat this process once again and finally coat the chicken with panko.  The double coating of flour and egg gives the chicken a super crunchy crust.

Tonkatsu Sauce

There are many brands of tonkatsu sauce but the selection here on Maui is very limited.  I’ve tried a few and found this brand to be my favorite so far.

Chicken Katsu

Chicken Katsu 2

Chicken Katsu

Serves 4 -6

Ingredients

3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half crosswise and pounded 1/3 inch thick.

1/2 cup flour

3 large eggs

2 1/c cups panko (4 oz. package)

3/4 cup canola oil

Preparation

Cut each chicken breast in half, crosswise.  Pound chicken in a Ziploc bag until each piece is about 1/3 inch thick.

Place flour and panko on two large paper plates.  Whisk eggs in a wide, shallow bowl.

Lightly salt and pepper the chicken.  Dust the chicken in flour then in the beaten eggs.  Repeat this step one more time then dredge the chicken in panko, patting the panko crumbs on both sides of the chicken.

In a large 12 inch saute pan, heat 3/4 cup canola oil over medium high heat.  Once the oil is hot, add half of the chicken to the pan and cook for 3 minutes or until nicely browned.  Turn chicken over and cook for about 2 minutes more.  Remove chicken to a paper towel lined plate.  Continue cooking the rest of the chicken.

Cut chicken into 3/4 inch slices and serve with finely shredded cabbage, hot mustard, tonkatsu sauce and steamed rice.  With its sweet and tangy dressing, cucumber  and carrot namasu is a perfect side dish.

 

Chicken, Dinner, Japanese, Recipes

Chicken Karaage

January 21, 2013

Chicken KaraageChicken karaage or Japanese fried chicken is a quick and delicious meal to prepare for your friends and family, a real crowd pleaser.  Because the chicken is boneless and cut into small pieces, it cooks quickly and that means you spend less time standing over your stove.

Karaage MarinadeThe marinade for the chicken is flavorful and made with ingredients you’re likely to have in your pantry.  Fresh ginger is the only item you might need to pick up at the market before you make this dish.  Though I only made dinner for two, the marinade will season up to 10 chicken tenders.  Just remember to turn the pieces now and then so each one soaks up the tasty sauce before frying.

Chicken Karaage CoatingLet the marinated chicken absorb the corn starch before frying.

Chicken Karaage - Japanese Fried Chicken

Chicken Karaage

Serves 2

Ingredients

6 chicken tenders – each cut into 3 pieces

1 cup corn starch

canola oil for deep-frying

Marinade

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tablespoons mirin (sweetened rice wine)

2 tablespoons Sherry (Amontillado if available)

1/4 teaspoon sesame oil

2 medium garlic cloves – minced

1 teaspoon finely minced or grated ginger

Preparation

Combine soy sauce, mirin, sherry, garlic and ginger in a medium bowl large enough to hold the chicken pieces.  Marinate chicken in refrigerator for about 1/2 hour, turning chicken pieces occasionally.

Place corn starch in a pie plate or medium bowl.  Once the chicken is ready to fry, remove pieces from marinade and coat well in cornstarch.  Transfer chicken to a plate and continue with the rest of the chicken.

Let the marinated chicken pieces absorb the corn starch until they turn a light brown color (see photo above).  Now they are ready to cook.

In a wok or sauce pan heat oil over medium high heat – 355 degrees.  Use just enough oil to cover the chicken for deep-frying.

Once the oil is hot, cook chicken in batches.  Try not to over crowd the pan.  This will cause the heat to drop and the chicken will become greasy if the oil is not hot enough. Turn chicken after 1 minute and continue to fry until cooked through, about 1 1/2 minutes more. The chicken should be a deep brown color on both sides.  Remove a piece of chicken from the pan to check for doneness.

Transfer cooked chicken to a paper towel lined plate and sprinkle with coarse salt.  Continue to cook the rest of the chicken.

Place fried chicken on a serving plate with lemon slices or as I prefer, with Sriracha hot sauce on the side.

Japanese, Reviews

Sushi Paradise ~ Maui

January 4, 2013

Spicy SalmonChef Watanabe-san at Sushi Paradise makes the finest sushi on Maui.  Sushi Paradise is  a tiny restaurant with just a few tables in the dining room and few seats at the sushi bar.  He is a one-man operation.  On the night we dined there, a couple who didn’t have a reservation strolled in and luckily found two seats at the sushi bar.  The server let them know they would be waiting at least a half hour before their sushi order arrived. They placed their order left to do some shopping at the stores in the complex and promptly returned in time for their sushi order to be placed in front of them!  Now that’s what I call making good use of your time.

EdamameEdamame is always a tasty way to start the evening.  Place your sushi order and nibble on these salty pods with your cold beer or sake.

California RollCalifornia Roll.

ToroToro. Sublime!

Shrimp Tempura Roll Shrimp tempura roll.

Seared SalmonSeared salmon lightly wrapped with a pat of rice and topped with finely grated toppings served with ponzu sauce.

Spicy ScallopSpicy scallop roll.

Maguro & HamachiMaguro and Hamachi.

Veggie RollThis veggie roll is the best I ever tasted.  Crunchy ingredients perfectly wrapped in creamy avocado slices.

Watanabe-san at Sushi Paradise makes some of the best sushi we have ever eaten and he does not compromise by serving mediocre ingredients to his customers. Everything we ordered was fresh and delicious and of the best quality imaginable.  Simple touches such as ground sesame seeds on the takuan pickles makes this place special. If you love sushi, as we do, you will find no finer than at Sushi Paradise!

Japanese, Recipes, Rice Dishes, Side Dishes

Japanese Sushi Rice

December 30, 2012

Sushi RiceThis is a simple variation on sushi rice or Chirashi Sushi which means scattered sushi. Hot rice is mixed with a vinegar sauce (sushi meshi) and colorful toppings are added.  It’s an excellent side dish that goes especially well with grilled teriyaki chicken, beef, fish or tofu.  If you want to make it in advance, I suggest making it the same day you plan to serve it since rice tends to dry out and harden the longer you refrigerate it.

Benriner

Let me introduce you to the Benriner.  It is made in Japan and comes with assorted blades and a small plastic guide.  I’ve had my Benriner for about 20 years.  It is not fancy and as you can see this model has no container attachment for storing vegetables and I like that because it fits in your drawer without taking up too much space.  You can find this at Amazon.com

Carrot & Green Beans

Red GingerPickled Red Ginger.

TakuanTakuan (pickled radish).

Takuan & Pickled Red  GingerTakuan and red ginger.

Japanese Egg PanThis little Japanese rectangular egg pan makes it simple to slice the egg into thin slivers once cooked.

Sushi Rice

Sushi Meshi

2 cups short grain white rice (uncooked and rinsed well)

1/3 cup rice vinegar (not seasoned)

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

Vegetables

12 green beans – sliced thin

1/2 medium carrot, julienned and cut into 1/3 inch lengths

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon sake or dry sherry

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon red ginger – finely chopped

1/3 cup takuan, finely diced

1 egg scrambled and fried (do not brown) sliced in thin strips (optional)

White and black roasted sesame seeds

Preparation

Cook 2 cups of short grain white rice. When the rice is done have the vinegar sauce ready and do not open the rice cooker until you are ready to add the sauce.  The rice must be hot.

For the vinegar sauce combine rice vinegar, sugar and salt in a small pot and heat on medium heat until sugar has dissolved, stirring occasionally.  Pour sauce into a small measuring cup and set aside.

While the rice is cooking prepare the vegetables.  Rinse out the pot you used to make the vinegar sauce and combine soy sauce, sugar, sake or sherry and water.  Bring to a simmer on medium heat then add the green beans and carrots.  Turn heat up to high and cook for about a minute  then remove from the heat and set aside.  You want to blanch the beans and carrots and not overcook them.  Once cool enough to handle, drain and squeeze out the excess moisture.  Set aside.

You can use as much or little of the red ginger and takuan that suits you.  The ginger has a little kick to it though once you add it to the rice you will barely notice it.  Takuan is pickled radish and has some sweetness to it.  Drain both the ginger and takuan on paper towels before you chop them.  Start with a smaller amount if you are unsure.  You can always add more.

When the rice is done use a rice paddle and lightly toss the rice so that it is not clumped together.  Quickly put the rice into a large baking dish (Pyrex works well) and slowly add the vinegar sauce drizzling it evenly over the rice tossing gently to mix while fanning madly with a paper fan.  Trying to do this all at once by yourself might seem tricky but there is a good reason to this fanning procedure.  It helps the hot rice soak up the vinegar sauce without the rice becoming mushy.  I don’t have a paper fan so I use a small hairdryer and turn it to low/cool and voilà, it works like a charm.  Bribing a family member to help you is even better.

Add the green beans, carrots, ginger and takuan to the rice and toss gently.  Now’s the time to transfer the rice to your serving bowl.  Top with the sliced egg if using, and sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving.

Dinner, Japanese, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies

Cucumber & Carrot Namasu

December 5, 2012

Pickles are addictive.  Crunchy, tangy goodness in every bite.  Namasu is a simple Japanese pickle that’s ready in an hour.  Not only is it quick to make, there are just 6 ingredients.  It can double as a refreshing tangy-sweet salad.

The first 3 ingredients – Cucumber, Ginger & Carrot.

It’s easy to make attractive carrot florets with a knife and steady hand.

Grated ginger adds a refreshing flavor to the vegetables.

Beautiful pickles, Japanese style.

Cucumber & Carrot Namasu (Japanese pickles)

Ingredients

1 large English or 2 Japanese cucumbers

1 medium carrot

1/2 cup unseasoned rice vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons grated ginger

1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation

Cut the cucumber in half diagonally and peel thin strips of skin off of each half.  Cut each piece of cucumber in half, lengthwise.  Remove seeds.  Slice the cucumber into 1/4 inch pieces and set aside.

Peel the carrot and cut into thirds.  With a small, thin knife cut narrow lengthwise grooves in the carrot to make a floret shape (about 5 cuts if the carrot is thick, 4 if the carrot is very thin).  Using a mandoline or sharp thin knife slice the carrot into florets.

Peel ginger and finely grate, set aside 2 teaspoons.

Mix 1/2 cup unseasoned rice vinegar with 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt until sugar and salt has dissolved.  Add 2 teaspoons grated ginger.

Combine cucumbers, carrots and vinegar mixture in medium size bowl.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.  Cucumbers and carrots will become delightfully crispy when chilled.   The pickles will keep well in the refrigerator for a couple of days.  These pickles go well with tofu or grilled teriyaki chicken.

Beef, Chicken, Dinner, Japanese, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Granny’s Teriyaki Sauce

November 20, 2012

 

A recipe named after “Granny” might not sound all that exciting but if you love homemade teriyaki sauce this is really delicious. My mom gave me her recipe card for this sauce a long time ago and she made a note on it “the best.”  She was right. It’s the best teriyaki sauce I have ever had.

The secret ingredient that makes this sauce so tasty is sherry.  So go ahead and buy a bottle of sherry.  Not the cooking sherry they sell in the condiment aisle, decent sherry like Hartley & Gibson’s Amontillado sherry which you can find at a full service grocery store or liquor store.  Stash the bottle in your cupboard until your next craving for really good teriyaki sauce, it will last indefinitely.

You can use this marinade for chicken, tofu, fish and beef.  I use part of the sauce to marinate whatever I’m cooking and simmer the rest of the sauce until it becomes thick and syrupy.  I drizzle this on grilled chicken, tofu or fish and finish with a few sliced green onions before serving.  Really good.

Granny’s Teriyaki Sauce

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons soy sauce (Kikkoman recommended)

4 tablespoons sherry (Hartley & Gibson’s or similar quality)

1 tablespoon canola oil

2 large garlic cloves chopped

green onions, sliced (use a good amount since they tend to shrink quite a bit once mixed into the sauce)

Preparation

Combine sugar with soy sauce and sherry until the sugar has dissolved.  Add oil, garlic and chopped green onions.

Use to marinate boneless chicken breasts chicken thighs, or your favorite cut of steak for about 3 hours.  For tofu and fish such as salmon or ahi marinate for just one hour or so.  Turn pieces occasionally.

Note: Prior to marinating your chicken, fish, beef or tofu reserve part of the sauce and simmer until syrupy, about 10 minutes on medium low heat.  Watch so the sauce does not boil and burn.  You can do this in advance, the sauce will thicken as it cools.  Drizzle over grilled chicken, fish, beef or tofu.  Sprinkle on green onions and roasted sesame seeds before serving. For a larger quantity of meat double the recipe.

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