Anna N

Yes. Just when I think I have plumbed the depths of Japanese cuisine I discover I have barely even scratched the surface. And it is constantly adapting, innovating and reaching back to its roots. I envy you the opportunity to explore it first hand but I’m grateful that you share that experience with us.

Osaka-style okonomiyaki. Based loosely on this.

Broccoli, coleslaw, shiso-wrapped chicken patties, soy sauce simmered shiitake mushrooms and rice cylinders with aornori furikake.

Planned-over taco rice.

Taco rice. A little background.

As discussed earlier in this topic here. I knew it sounded all-too-familiar.😊

A welcome gift of a steak and kidney pie. I reheated it (in its foil pie plate) in the Cuisinart Steam Oven 325°F for ~15 minutes until its internal temperature exceeded 168°F. I tossed together some shredded cabbage and carrot and some kewpie mayo to make a quick coleslaw.

But it turned into such an interesting lunch hour. There wasn’t a single word of unpleasantness. Stuff happens and this restaurant really tried to remedy the problem.

Today Kerry and I were dithering about where to go for lunch. Were we feeling adventurous or were we more in the mood for familiarity. In the end adventurous won. Earlier in the morning we had passed by Canyon Creek Restaurant and I had asked what it was not realizing it was a restaurant. When it came time to decide where to eat this popped into the conversation. We headed back in its direction. One of Kerry’s favourite dishes is a well prepared pork chop. On their specialty menu is a photograph of a very lovely looking pork chop. When the server came to take our order Kerry and she got involved in a discussion of pork chops and Kerry expressed her desire for some fat on her pork. The discussion seem to devolve into something in which Kerry thought perhaps she should order something else. However, the server said she would tell the kitchen to find the fattiest porkchop they could and prepare that. She assured Kerry that this would be probably the best pork chop ever. (Bear with me. All of this is preparatory material which will make sense eventually.) One of the things on the menu was steak frites but with truffle french fries. Of all the things in the world that I despise it is even the slightest whiff of truffle in any form. I asked if we could forgo the truffle and the server was kind enough to point out another option which was more to my liking. We also ordered calamari. It was very satisfactory. Tender, tasty and sprinkled with fried onion strings, fried jalapeño rings and a strip or two of red pepper. Shortly after the server had taken our order and presented it to the kitchen and while I was powdering my nose, someone from management came over to talk to Kerry about her wish for a fatty pork chop. I am sure they expected to find a two headed, bearded and inebriated freak. Who else would want fat on their pork chop in this age of healthy living. Scott, was most delightful. He discussed the preparation of the chop in considerable detail with Kerry. He explained that it was brined for six hours and there were other details that I missed while repairing my shiny nose. We munched away on the calamari and before we were even halfway through it our chosen dishes arrived. Mine was satisfactory. The steak was tasty and tender, the onion strings were good. Only the fries could’ve been improved with a little more seasoning. Kerry’s plate looked quite delightful and when she cut into her pork chop I remarked that it did look juicy. But it was quickly obvious that this pork chop was not living up to any expectations. Kerry cut off a small piece and asked me to try it. I was forced to spit it out into my napkin something that I’m not proud of but I sure as hell wasn’t swallowing it. Kerry said it tasted like cleaning solution. I wasn’t sure it was cleaning solution but it was a very strange flavour that I just wasn’t going to swallow. Scott must have followed our plates out of the kitchen as he arrived at our table just as we had both taken a bite of the pork chop. He could not have been any more apologetic. He immediately offered to replace it with something else. Kerry opted for a small steak like mine. Her pork chop was removed from her plate but at her request the rest of the meal was left with her awaiting a replacement protein. Scott returned at some point with further information about the preparation of the pork chop when we learned that the brine contained not only salt and sugar but also white wine, bay leaf, rosemary and perhaps some other things. We have no idea who would think that this made an effective brine but it certainly would explain the resiny taste of the pork particularly so if anyone had been heavy-handed with the bay and the rosemary. Neither Scott nor our server seem to be able to apologize enough. Kerry’s plate was brought back with a steak which was much more satisfactory, and an interesting selection of green beans, golden beets and carrots. In fairness to all, the staff did bend over backwards to try to make up for the pork chop which included a discount on the total bill and a membership in their customer club which involved among other things a $10 gift certificate.

Noodles with gyoza, egg, broccoli and toasted nori.

Inspired by @chefmd and @kayb ((here), I made the Food52 version of okonoyimaki. It’s an easy, adaptable and tasty dish but, in my mind, much closer to the Korean kimchijeon (kimchi pancake) than to either of the two more traditional Japanese versions of the dish (here). I added grated carrots and shiitake mushrooms to the Food52 version. Thanks for the inspiration to attempt the Osaka and the Hiroshima versions of this dish. Stay tuned.😊

I tried Instacart once. Cost was prohibitive and the constant emails drove me to distraction. The service I do use is not cheap but the interaction is limited to a single phone call a few minutes before they expect to arrive at my house and then a very brief and very polite monetary transaction.

And now for something completely different. I was surfing the web for something or other but it certainly wasn’t cookies. I came across a recipe from Dan Lepard. I am familiar with Parkin but have never run across it in cookie form. So when Dan Lepard’s Chocolate Parkin Biscuits popped up , I knew I would have to make them. I like Dan’s recipes because he almost always uses weights rather than volumes. But I have to nitpick this one thing about this recipe. He suggests that the dough for each cookie be the size of a shelled walnut. Why could he not have given a weight? I am pretty sure I mis-judged the size since I got at least twice as many cookies as suggested. These are very good but given the amount of ginger in the recipe I am surprised how little ginger I detect in the finished product. I baked them for 14 minutes rather than the 20 minutes recommended.

I find one of the biggest frustrations with online grocery shopping is the amount of stuff that is out of stock. I get it that fresh meat and vegetables are sold out. I don’t understand canned goods being out of stock. Sometimes I place an order because I want one particular item and when my order arrives that is the one thing that is not in the box. Grrrrrrr.

Black pudding sounds so much more appetizing. I loved it as a child but haven’t seen it in years. I don’t know how I would react now. If I close my eyes and concentrate I can recall the mouth feel more so than the taste.

Stuffed mini peppers, cucumbers, and three inari sushi with soy marinated shiitake mushrooms.

Egg and mushroom onigirazu.

But I got the off cuts! I did try one but I’m not a fan of brownies in general so I stuck them in the freezer for my grandchild. She would likely commit a felony in order to get her hands on any kind of brownie.

Gyudon — Beef and onions over rice.

Teriyaki chicken balls and salad in the upper portion & inari sushi and sweet and spicy shiitake mushrooms in the lower.

A small bowl of rice topped with some leftover pieces of tamagoyaki and some freshly made sweet, spicy and sticky shiitake mushrooms (from dried).

Ditto!

Yep. And I have been known to remove them from the wrapper, poke a few holes in them, drizzle a little something something....

Yakiudon - Stir-fried meat and vegetables with udon noodles.

Tamagoyaki with nori and cheese, cocktail tomato, and miso soup with wakame seaweed.