Age no negi-shoga ae / thin deep-fried tofu with green onion and ginger

Originally introduced by a reader in a magazine as her grandmother's recipe. While I was more interested in Western-origin food back in college, this became one of the regular side dishes I kept in the fridge in my tiny apartment.

Sake no shoyu sotee, daikon oroshi zoe / salmon soy sauce saute, with grated daikon radish

Crispy saute lightly flavored with soy sauce and sake. Grated daikon and finely chopped green onion add mildly pungent spiciness while lemon gives a zesty, fruity note.

Dinner, April 25, 2012

We are vegetable rich these days. Off the top of my head, in the fridge there are carrots, daikon radish, gairan (gailan) Chinese broccoli, regular broccoli, cauliflower, celery, asparagus, gobo burdock root, hakusai napa cabbage, cabbage, renkon lotus root, green onions, kabocha pumpkin, cabbage raab, red Russian kale, tomyo (doumiao) pea sprouts, lettuce, red peppers, pasilla peppers, jalapeno peppers, cilantro and parsley; on the kitchen counter, potatoes, satsumaimo sweet potatoes, satoimo baby taro root, nagaimo Chinese yam, ginger and onions. We also have eringi mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms and oyster mushrooms.
Too many choices? More than enough pieces to finish a menu puzzle, for sure.

There is also an open can of clams and prep-boiled usuage thin deep-fried tofu, both of which need to be eaten shortly. Moyashi bean sprouts go bad quickly, and they also have to go pretty soon. So these ingredients will determine dinner.

Mizuna to atsuage no nibitashi / mizuna and deep-fried tofu in light broth

A comforting low-key dish of basic ingredients in a mild flavored broth. This is something I crave for from time to time.

Dinner, April 23, 2012

I love shopping for vegetables, especially tender leafy ones. A few days ago I was on a veggie shopping high, and with that momentum I made a purchase error – a large fillet of previously frozen salmon. It was a good piece for previously frozen fish, but we ended up eating salmon every day since then. There are many ways to prepare salmon, but eating the same fish every day is tiresome. With the last uncooked portion, I made yet another saute as an easy solution.

Rutabaga, jagaimo, sumookusaamon no korokke / rutabaga and potato croquettes with smoked salmon

Adding rutabaga lightens starchy potato croquettes, which also get a boost from a small amount of smoked salmon in this recipe.

Shungiku sauce / garland chrysanthemum sauce

Great with mild tasting vegetable, seafood or chicken dishes.