Hiroko’s Kitchen | Blog

I have tweeted pohtos and quick notes on the Culinary Tour to Japan, 2013, with Hiroko Shimbo from March 19th through the beginning of April. I will blog some of them with details and more photos shortly – little by little.

On my way back to NYC I stopped at San Francisco to attend the IACP Cookbook Award Reception. Hiroko’s American Kitchen was nominated as one of three finalists under American cookbook category. April 9th was the day for all of uss, nominees, to find out who became the winner. I was competing the Finalist with two other highly respected professionals – Ian Knauer who wrote The Farm: Rustic Recipes for a Year of Incredible Food and Robb Walsh who wrote Texas Eats: The New Lone Star Heritage Cookbook, with More Than 200 Recipes.

With the most honor and pleasure Hiroko’s American Kitchen won the IACP CookBook 2013 Award under American.

In this post I would like to express deep thaks to the following poeple who contributed to the production of the book; Dorothy Kalin who introduced me to the publisher; Kirstie Melville, the publisher; Janis Donnaud, the agent; Jean Lucus, the editor; Frances Janish, the photographer; Tim Lynch, the art director; Michael Pederson, the food stylist; Christina Wong, Anna Yeung, Jennifer Batt, Georgia Freedman, kitchen assistants; Buzz Beitchman and my mother and fater. I also want to express heartfelt thanks to Helen Buldus, my publicist, and Emily Farris, publisher’s publicist for a great exposure of the book.

I look forward to seeing many of you are enjoying recipes from Hiroko’s American Kitchen!

https://www.iacp.com/award/more/iacp_2013_awards_winners

Hiroko’s American Kitchen was born out of my need to simplify my daily cooking in my own kitchen. After much thought and testing in my kitchen I settled on a system that reduced time and effort, but resulted in easily and quickly prepared, satisfying and nutritious meals. Recipes in my Hiroko’s American Kitchen are grouped into chapters based on 2 simple stocks and 4 “mother sauces”. I make and store these easily prepared basic ingredients in my freezer and refrigerator for quick and easy use in my cooking. I now live in America and shop in typical American supermarkets and green markets as do you. So, the partners for my stocks and sauces are readily available American produce, cuts of meat and seafood. The resulting dishes are easily prepared, Japanese-flavored East-West hybrids that appeal to American diners. Simplifying and speeding the process in this way results in wonderful meals that have universal appeal. My book shows you the secrets of this new way of cooking in your American kitchen with familiar American ingredients and techniques. Once you try these ideas for delicious, healthy and quick cooking, you will become as addicted as I have! You can order Hiroko’s American Kitchen with autograph on my Product page.

Suddenly in the past couple of days in NYC we are enjoying (with a big ?; we did not have a real cold usual winter) spring like weather. Some people are already switching sweater and coat to tank top and summer dress. Now I am eagerly waiting for lamps at our local Union Square farmers market. Lamps has become my shun favorite at early spring after moving to NYC 13 years ago. Here is a part of shun description, an excerpt from my upcoming book, Hiroko’s American Kitchen: Cooking with Japanese Flavors/ 6 easy sauces/125 modern recipes. I will post the excerpt of this story in several batches.

Shun: The Peak of Flavor – From Hiroko’s American Kitchen
“Shun is a Japanese word given to food items that are at the peak of their seasonal availability and quality. The word shun has no equivalent in the English language and shows our near religious obsession with what we eat in each season. Japan’s geography and climate surely helped to shape this unique food culture. For example, asparagus becomes shun in early summer. Shun asparagus is bursting with flavor and has a tender and moist texture. In order to enjoy shun asparagus, we apply the absolute minimum cooking time and minimal flavoring ingredients. The shun concept applies not only to fruits and vegetables, but to seasonal seafood as well.” continues to next blog.

While I lived in Japan I loved tender textured, sweet and earthy burdock which appears at the beginning of April. I always made kinpira gobo with these tender burdock. This Monday I had an urge to make it (I wanted to eat it), so went to the Japanese supermarket and bought two long, thick and sturdy-looking roots. I cooked it the way which I show it in The Japanese Kitchen (page 241-242), except one revision. By the way to make julienned burdock you have to have a julienne peeler. Go to my Product page and find the julienne peeler. This one is the best julienne peelers among many which I have tested. Here is the photo of Kinpira gobo which I made. Here is the revision of the recipe. Before adding julienned burdock to the wok or skillet to cook with oil, cook it in water (water should barely cover the burdock) for about 4-5 minutes. Drain them and add to the wok or skillet to stir-fry. By taking this step in advance, you can omit the water and reduce the oil used in the recipe to half. This version tastes less oily with the same great flavor and texture (crunchiness).

Finally let me slowly give you a peek into my new book, whose name is not yet finalized. It is a book about Japanese meals made easy for American Kitchen by using prepared (home-made) two Japanese stocks (you can substitute them with chicken stock or vegetable stock) and four Japanese sauces (no substitution), Japanese preparation techniques and ingredients which you can find at your local food stores and supermarket. In the next several months I will post here some recipes.

Let’s start with miso soup. Most miso soup served in America has a stereotyped list of ingredients – tofu, wakame (sea vegetable) and scallions. In Japan miso soup is much more exciting and varied. We use varieties of ingredients, from vegetables to seafood and often some chicken or meat. The selection of ingredients depends on the season. Here is the Brussels sprouts miso soup which I enjoy in autumn through cold winter time (4 servings). You will get more information about how to enjoy miso soup everyday at home in the new book; miso variety, sodium in miso, how much is proper to use, list of American seasonal vegetables which you definitely enjoy in your miso soup….etc. Enjoy the soup and give me your feedback. Another peek-in recipe will be posted sometime in January-February. My next post will be Osechi Ryori.

8 large Brussels sprouts, cut into halves, then into thin slices lengthwise
1 medium peeled carrot or parsnip, cut into matchstick-size sticks
1 thumb size ginger, julienned
1 teaspoon canola oil
3 cups dashi stock or chicken stock
2 tablespoons aged brown miso
Little dab of Colman mustard paste (1 teaspoon mustard powder mixed with 2 teaspoons hot water)

Heat a medium pot over medium heat and add the canola oil. Add the ginger and cook for 20 seconds, stirring with a spatula. Add the stock, Brussels sprouts and carrot and bring it to a simmer. Cook the vegetables for 5 minutes over medium-low heat. Add and dissolve the miso. Divide the soup into four small soup bowls or mugs. Garnish with a dab of the Japanese mustard paste and serve. Enjoy the soup with your favorite sandwich, salad or with your dinner.

Last Saturday, Sunday and Monday, the 14th, we did much awaiting photo shoots for my third book – still the title of the book has not been finalized ! Our team members were Tim Lynch, Executive Art Director of Andrews McMeel Publishing, Frances Janisch, photographer, Micael Pederson, Food Stylist and his assistant Tracy, Jody Kivort, Digital technician, Tammy Schoenfeld, Prop stylist assistant, Anna Yeung and Jennifer Batts as my kitchen assistants and Hiroko Shimbo. Here are few photos from the shoot. This book is very different from my previous two books. It is all about how to enjoy preparing new dishes using Japanese flavors, Japanese cooking techniques and ingredients which you love. Sake braised short-ribs, rice cooked with chorizo and shrimp (takikomi-gohan), sukiyaki in American kitchen (using not thinly sliced beef but large steak cut of meat), ginger flavored pork burger, miso smeared pork-ribs, kale salad with tofu dressing, beet and potato miso soup, white bean and sausage soup with miso, chicken rice bowl, bacon, tomato and avocado rice bowl…every dishes were beautifully photographed before disappearing to some of our stomach. There is no ridged or mystifying elements in the photos. As the photos show dishes are approachable and easy to prepare with Japanese flavors and Japanese cooking techniques in an American kitchen. You can enjoy the dishes in the book, except ramen and traditional noodle dishes, with fork and knife.

Late last night I have submitted my manuscript (my third book) to my publisher Andrews McMeel Publishing. I felt like leaving my baby in the incubator at the publisher. Starting tomorrow editor-surgeons will apply all sort of surgeries (editing) to my baby to help her grow normal……..very worrisome!

My third book is all about how to enjoy Japanese meals in America using American ingredients – produces, large cut of meats (your favorite ribs is included), properly frozen fish – and Japanese cooking techniques (this is important) and flavoring ingredients (miso, shoyu, kelp,…). To make the preparation of Japanese meals at American home kitchen approachable (I know that there are so many people who scare to do), I categorized 125 recipes under 2 stocks and 4 sauces. I ask you at the beginning of the book to prepare these stocks and sauces and store them, frozen or refrigerated, in your refrigerator to enjoy quick preparation. 2 stocks are kelp stock and dashi stock. I even suggest you that (if kelp and fish flakes are hard to find in your local) you can replace them with readily available chicken stock and vegetable stock. Again, as I said before cooking in the Japanese way – preparation techniques -matters a lot. Conjunction with the book publication I am now seeking the production of basic sauces, so that you even do not need to make them in your home…grab a bottle and use it in my recipes. Japanese flavored meals are simple and easy. The name of the book…we are still debating.