Dinner, August 1, 2011

Our friends gave us some tomatoes. Very round, small, ripe tomatoes. They should not go to waste. There is one tomato dish I've always wanted to try, tomato miso soup. Sounds radical, but it should taste pretty good.

• Unagi no yanagawa-fu donburi / grilled eel with gobo burdock root and egg on rice, with sansho leaves
• Tomato no misoshiru /miso soup with tomato, chives
• Mizuna no ohitashi / mizuna in light broth, with coarsely ground toasted white sesame seeds

Leftover grilled unagi in the freezer would upgrade my typical gobo donburi. The aroma of sansho leaves is indispensable for grilled unagi. They add a peppery aroma and taste with a hint of citrus. It is tasty and refreshing at the same time.

Aka miso with its distinctive aroma and punchy salty taste works well with the mild acidity of ripe tomatoes. A great combination for summer.

Mizuna keeps its crispy texture well even after being blanched and soaked in ohitashi marinade. It has a clean taste. A perfect little green dish that fits right between rich grilled unagi donburi and unique tomato miso soup.

A very satisfying meal.