Simple Japanese menu

[mojoman]

I've been reading eGullet for months and have probably read thousands of interesting posts. I have been tempted to chip in my 2 cents but don't really feel that I have that much to add.

My first post will be a request for advice. This Sunday I'm having my GF and another couple over for dinner. The wife wants me to teach her how to cook Japanese (I know some simple dishes and can execute them competently). Here's what I was thinking about making (the weather will be rainy in the DC area--otherwise we would have had a cookout at their place).

Miso shiru

Chicken teriyaki (made in the style of America's Test Kitchen-broiled w/ S & P, then napped with a cornstarch-thickened teriyaki sauce (homemade))

Steak (NY strip) teriyaki (marinated/"brined" in a non-thickened homemade teriyaki then cooked on a grill pan--minimal extra sauce put on at the end of cooking-caramelizes a little)

Plain white rice

Beaq sprouts blanched then marinated in a rice vinegar/sugar mixture (su)

Green beans, cooked then mixed in a toasted sesame seed/miso/su dressing

Steamed broccoli crowns with soy sauce/mayo sauce

For dessert, I was thinking about a vanilla panna cotta with fresh orange supremes and an orange-ginger reduction (yeah, that's not really Japanese but it's a nice, light dessert).

Any other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Edited March 30, 2007 by mojoman (log)

[annecros]

Welcome mojoman! You've come to the right place!

Unfortunately, I cannot personally help you with your menu - not my area of expertise. But I can assure you that there are knowledgable and friendly people here who will be chiming in soon with feedback!

[Blether]

Hi, Mojoman. It sounds like a good dinner

If authenticity concerns you, miso soup isn't so much of a dinner dish - clear soups are more common in the evening. What are your seasonal ingredients for Spring ? It's part of the traditional Japanese approach for some things to be obviously seasonal. Can you get some na-no-hana (rape blossoms), say ? (And where are you writing from ?)

[BarbaraY]

Fish? No fish? How can you have a Japanese meal with no fish?

I agree that a clear soup with small garnishes like shrimp? scallions and sliver of a citrus would be more appropriate than a miso soup.

Good luck on your dinner. And yes, where are you writing from?

Edited March 30, 2007 by BarbaraY (log)

[mojoman]

Thank you for the words of welcome.

1. One of the guests is not a fish fan so no fish dishes.

2. I'm a decent amateur cook of Western cuisines but I have a very limited Japanese food repertoire thus the menu and lack of authenticity. I can execute these dishes well though. Although I can usually doctor a goofed up or bad recipe, isn't it most important that the food be good?

3. RE: the clear soup suggestions. Should I make a broth with kombu? Can I use dashi but strain it thoroughly?

I live in the suburbs of Washington DC.

Edited March 30, 2007 by mojoman (log)

[Blether]

3.  RE:  the clear soup suggestions.  Should I make a broth with kombu?  Can I use dashi but strain it thoroughly?

←

Normal dashi is fine - but I'm wondering what you use. Dashi should be clear, and the solids all strained out anyway. In fact if you make from scratch (konbu and katsuobushi), 'ichiban (first) dashi' is normally used for the refined stuff like clear soups. 'niban' (second - using the same solids) will go into miso soup and cooking.

If you're using granules, just use them

See if your 'doesn't like fish' guest can resist that stock.

Edited March 30, 2007 by Blether (log)

[mojoman]

3.  RE:  the clear soup suggestions.  Should I make a broth with kombu?  Can I use dashi but strain it thoroughly?

←

Normal dashi is fine - but I'm wondering what you use. Dashi should be clear, and the solids all strained out anyway. In fact if you make from scratch (konbu and katsuobushi), 'ichiban (first) dashi' is normally used for the refined stuff like clear soups. 'niban' (second - using the same solids) will go into miso soup and cooking.

If you're using granules, just use them

See if your 'doesn't like fish' guest can resist that stock.

←

Yup, I do use the dashi granules most of the time.

Edited March 30, 2007 by mojoman (log)

[JasonTrue]

Misoshiru is still almost always a daily dinner feature when Hiromi and I cook Japanese food at home, but I also like suimono at dinner...

However, I don't think chicken or beef teriyaki is very Japanese. To me it's a Korean American thing, in spite of the name, or sometimes Hawaiian... it's quite unusual that you'd find it served in Japan, since teriyaki as a technique is primarily used for red fish. The mirin-shouyu combination is used pervasively, however.

However, perhaps if you grill it with skewers over charcoal and coat it with a mirin-shouyu based "sauce" you could call it "yakitori" or "yakiniku".

Ohitashi (blanched spinach with splash of soy sauce, with ginger or katsuobushi on top) would be a good idea, and some Japanese pickles, perhaps just a couple of slices of shibazuke, sliced takuan, or a single umeboshi, are nice. You can also make a simple sunomono (sweet vinegared dish) with salt-rubbed cucumber slices, rested a few minuts, and splashed with sweetened vinegar; let it sit in the refrigerator an hour or two before serving.

Since you're serving "stamina" food, perhaps a little raw cabbage with some slightly sweetened miso paste to nibble on... that seems to be all the rage in izakaya the last couple of years, as heads of cabbage became expensive.

[sanrensho]

I would vary the proteins and add some hiyayakko (cold tofu). I also think you need some more color with your menu. Perhaps work in some carrot or daikon. Matchstick daikon salad with a Japanese-style dressing? Takikomi gohan (rice cooked w/vegetables and/or meat)?

All of the above would be simple to execute. Threads can be found in the Japan forum.

[JasonTrue]

It just occurred to me that blanched spinach "aemono" is also one of the most popular Japanese vegetable side dishes I've served people not already accustomed to Japanese side dishes.

Basically, blanch and ice-shock spinach, squeeze out the water, as you would for ohitashi; take ground sesame seeds, a little mirin, sugar, and salt, (try 3 tbsp sesame, 1 tbsp mirin, 1 tbsp sugar, one half teaspoon salt, adjust to taste), mix it into a paste, then stir in the chopped blanched spinach.

[mojoman]

I would vary the proteins and add some hiyayakko (cold tofu). I also think you need some more color with your menu. Perhaps work in some carrot or daikon. Matchstick daikon salad with a Japanese-style dressing? Takikomi gohan (rice cooked w/vegetables and/or meat)?

All of the above would be simple to execute. Threads can be found in the Japan forum.

←

Agree on the color critique. I think I will blanch some carrots and add to the green bean/miso/sesame side dish for color.

Again, I'm not super concerned with authenticity (but thank you for the suggestions). I will give a disclaimer to the woman I'm teaching (sort of...not that I'm qualified to teach Japanese/American/Hawaiian food...I just know how to make a few dishes where she doesn't know how to make any).

I am much more familiar with Japanese-American food than authentic Japanese food. Japanese-Americans do make chicken and beef teriyaki (grilled, fried, broiled, etc.).

[sanrensho]

A simple tempura dish might be fun and would add some color, but you might not want to deal with the mess.

The Japanese side of me says one teriyaki dish is enough, although I do understand its attraction to a large part of the population.

I second the recommendation for spinach goma-ae. How about some edamame to snack on? You can show her how simple it is to perepare from frozen edamame.

Another classic would be a hijiki dish. You could incorporate some carrot into that as well for color.

Edited March 30, 2007 by sanrensho (log)

[JasonTrue]

I've made sunomono with daikon and carrot before... that's pretty and tastes nice.

[nduran]

I can't recall ever seeing broccoli or green beans on the menu at any Japanese restaurant--maybe in a green salad or something.

One thing that's really easy to make is baked kabocha and satsumaimo. You pretty much just wrap them in foil and shove them in the oven for an hour or so. For the potato I like to spritz on just a little bit of a sake and ponzu sauce mixture for seasoning. The pumpkin I usually just eat straight, but I've had good results including a shot of mirin in the foil while it baked.

[SuzySushi]

Welcome to eGullet posting!

Personally, I wouldn't serve both chicken teriyaki and beef teriyaki in the same meal, but maybe that's just me...

I'd also leave out the broccoli, which is not typically Japanese, and substitute a carrot-and-daikon "salad" in vinegar dressing.