Читать книгу Mini Japanese Favorites - Angela Nahas - Страница 5

Dashi Stock

6 cups (1.5 liters) water

3 tablespoons dried bonito flakes

3 fresh shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

2.5-cm (1-in) length of konbu seaweed, thoroughly washed

1 Place the water, dried bonito flakes, mushrooms and konbu into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes or until the bonito flakes sink to the bottom.

2 Drain the stock and set aside to cool. Store cooled Dashi Stock in the refrigerator until use, for not more than 3 days. Dashi Stock is used in the recipes for Classic Miso Soup with Tofu on page 8 and Braised Daikon Radish on page 20.

Makes about 6 cups (1.5 liters) of stock

Preparation time: 5 mins

Cooking time: 15 mins

Tempura Batter

1 egg, lightly beaten

3/4 cup (180 ml) iced water, adding extra as needed

130 g (1 cup) tempura flour or 60 g (½ cup) cornflour mixed with 75 g (½ cup) flour

1 To make the Tempura Batter, combine the egg and iced water in a bowl. Sprinkle half of the tempura flour over the top and whisk. Add the remaining tempura flour and mix until almost combined. The batter should still be a little lumpy. Tempura Batter is used in the recipes for Udon Noodles in Soup with Prawn and Vegetable Tempura Fritters on page 49 and Tempura Rice Broth on page 59.

If the Tempura Batter settles while you are preparing the food, a new batch of batter must be made, since the batter that has settled does not yield crispy tempura. Therefore, try to prepare the Tempura Batter at the last minute, after all the other tempura ingredients are prepared and ready for frying.

Tempura flour or tenpura ko, generally contains corn-flour, baking powder and wheat flour. It IS mixed with eggs, wheat flour and water to form a batter and is available as a powder sealed in foil or plastic packets in supermarkets.

Preparation time: 5 mins

Miso Soup with Clams

150 g (5 oz) baby clams

4 cups (1 liter) water

4 dried shiitake or black Chinese mushrooms, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes, stems discarded and caps sliced

2 teaspoons dashi powder

5-cm (2-in) strip of nori, washed thoroughly

3½ tablespoons red miso paste

Few sprigs mitsuba or chervil, to garnish

1 Place the clams in a basin, scrub with a brush to clean, then rinse. Soak the clams in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain, rinse well and set aside.

2 Meanwhile, place the water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the mushrooms, dashi powder and nori, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes covered. Increase the heat to medium, add the clams and cook for 2-3 minutes covered or until the shells open slightly, discarding any that do not open. Remove the pan from the heat and discard the mushrooms.

3 Divide the clams into 4 serving bowls using a slotted spoon. Place the miso paste into another small bowl and stir in a little of the soup stock until the paste is of pouring consistency. Gradually stir the miso mixture into the soup stock.

4 To serve, pour the miso soup over the top of the clams and garnish with sprigs of mitsuba or chervil.

Serves 4

Preparation time: 10 mins

Cooking time: 25-30 mins

Classic Miso Soup with Tofu

5 teaspoons dashi powder dissolved in 3 cups (750 ml) water or 3 cups (750 ml) Dashi Stock (page 6)

2 tablespoons dried wakame seaweed, torn

4 tablespoons red miso paste

½ cake (150 g/5 oz) soft tofu, cubed

1 tablespoon thinly sliced spring onions, to garnish

10-12 pickled apricots, to serve (optional)

1 Place the dashi mixture or Dashi Stock into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and sprinkle with the dried wakame seaweed.