Recipes for Tom

どくだみ Houttuynia cordata In the US, a tricolor variegated form called chameleon plant is commonly available for ornamental u...

A handy, toasty and crunchy topping or deep-tasting ingredient for lots of Southeast Asian dishes and more. While widely available a...

Okara-konnyaku is a hybrid of okara soybean pulp (rich in soluble fiber) and konnyaku yam cake (rich in non-soluble fiber), and has be...

むかご Aerial tubers of jinenjo Japanese yam (Dioscorea japonica) While mukago technically means vegetative reproduction or...

Right: 赤皮栗かぼちゃ Akagawa kuri kabocha ( Cucurbita maxima Duchesne "Red Kuri") Left: 黒皮栗かぼちゃ Kurokawa kuri kabocha ( Cucurb...

This simple mixture of egg yolk and oil is often used to give fluffy texture and impart subtle richness. It also works as a moderate binder....

Kumiage-yuba is a type of fresh yuba tofu skin (beancurd sheets). It has a very silky, creamｙ texture that melts in your mouth. Making it r...

芹 (せり) Oenanthe javanica Seri is native to the Northern Hemisphere and Australia. In addition to growing near clean stre...

An or anko sweetened azuki bean paste comes either as tsubuan with visible beans, or this silky version called koshian . Koshian highlights ...

Aoyose [lit. blue/green put together] is a vegetable-based colorant commonly used at restaurants in Japan. From the following simple proces...

I much prefer head-on shrimp over headless shrimp for taste and texture. They take a bit more time to devein and whatnot, but then you have ...

貝割れ大根 (かいわれだいこん) A standard sprout in Japan that comes with crispy stems and a pungent taste, which naturally remind of  fr...

Kogomi fiddleheads of kusasotetsu ostrich fern ( Matteuccia struthiopteris ) As a juicy and succulent curled-up young shoo...

Shoyukoji is technically the base of soy sauce in the production process (see Kikkoman website). However, today the term is more commonly u...

Chikuwafu 竹輪麩 : Common yakifu variation ; chikuwa lit. means "bamboo ring" The soft, boiled or steamed form ( namafu 生麩) and...

Lentinula edodes The mushroom most commonly eaten in Japan, and perhaps in China and Korea as well. Shiitake is availabl...

Often made into shinjo boiled fish dumplings or satsumaage deep-fried fishcakes, ground fish can be another way to preserve fresh fish. ...

Shishito (right) Fushimi togarashi (left) (Japanese varieties of Capsicum annum ) Shishito The size of your pinky or ind...

みょうが Buds of Zingiber mioga Myoga is the name of the plant, yet the word usually means the plant's buds when food is ...

(Red umezu in photo) While umezu literally means “plum vinegar,” it is not a true vinegar ( umezu does not contain acetic acid). Umez...