Why This Recipe Works? A mix of several types of seaweed, including wakame, konbu, agar and tsunomata provides a wide variety of natural colors and textures. Sliced cucumbers add a splash of green without using food coloring, and it also gives the salad a nice refreshing crunch. I like to accent the tangy, savory, sweet taste of the trademark seaweed salad dressing with nutty toasted sesame oil and a touch of ginger to add a warm burst of flavor....

Well, Katsu sandwiches are originally from Japan, where “cutlet” is transliterated to katsuretsu (カツレツ) and then abbreviated to katsu (カツ). You might also hear of these referred to as Katsu Sando because the word for sandwich is sandoichi (サンドイッチ) in Japanese, which is usually shortened to sando (サンド). Are ya still with me? Despite the eye-watering prices outside Japan, Katsu Sando are an on-the-go fast food in Japan and don’t usually command prices over $10 (though there are some exceptions)....

In preparing for the second challenge of Project Food Blog, I came across a line in the prompt that says “We’re bypassing the French and Italian standards in favor of more challenging cuisines.”. The problem is, I’m Japanese, so cooking an “exotic” Asian dish felt like it was cheating. That’s why I decided to make a dish that’s ubiquitous and utterly simple, and yet it’s something that is made wrong ninety-nine times out of a hundred....

I made this dish as my submission for this month’s Dinner and a Movie event. It’s a monthly food event where a movie is chosen and participants use the movie as inspiration for creating a dish. Since this month’s movie was Chocolat, it only seemed natural to make a dish featuring chocolate. For those that haven’t seen the movie, it’s about a mother daughter pair that blow into a staid French village with the “west wind” during Lent....

It’s a simple dish, but high-grade Japanese beef makes it unique, commanding ridiculous restaurant prices. Unlike its Western counterparts, Wagyu (和牛), or “Japanese beef,” has a ton of intramuscular marbling with low melting point fat. This makes the meat melt-in-your-mouth like butter. When fried and stuffed between fluffy Japanese bread, you get a katsu sando that’s soft and fluffy on the outside, crisp on the inside, and melt-in-your-mouth tender in the center....

The origin of Shrimp Cocktail is a bit unclear. Some say it’s so named for the cocktail of condiments in the sauce, others say it’s because they are traditionally served in cocktail glasses–a clever repurposing of unused stemware during Prohibition. Whatever the case, Shrimp Cocktail is a quintessential retro American dish that’s undergone little innovation over the past century. At its best, Shrimp Cocktail is a titillating appetizer with plump juicy shrimp doused with lemon juice and dipped in a sweet spicy sauce that goes down kicking courtesy of the horseradish....

But the thing about food is that it can’t be eaten objectively. Every food is inextricably linked to memories. For me, baked beans conjures up images of sitting around a crackling campfire and eating them straight out of the can, the smell of burning wood hanging in the air, infusing each bite with a marvelously smoky flavor. Even if you’ve never tasted a food before, certain expectations are set by things you have heard, the atmosphere in which you taste it, or even your mood that day....

The trick to preparing a delicious Tofu Steak is to think of tofu like a blank canvas on which you can paint textures, tastes, and flavors. Why This Recipe Works? Using extra firm tofu and pressing it minimizes the water content in the tofu, which allows the soy protein to puff up and crisp. Once glazed with sauce, this gives the tofu a meaty texture. Frying garlic into crisp garlic chips infuses the oil with flavor, and the garlic oil can then be used to pan-fry the tofu and mushrooms....

Why This Recipe Works? Deveining the shrimp using a toothpick instead of butterflying helps keep the prawns plump and juicy. Trimming the tail with scissors prevents it from exploding when you fry it. Dipping the prawns in a wet batter makes the coconut coating stick, and it’s easier than the flour and egg method. It also ensures a nice, thick coating of crispy coconut. Using an all-coconut coating instead of a panko crumb and coconut mixture ensures the most coconut flavor while giving these a lasting crunch....

I’ve used a few culinary techniques I’ve learned over my years in the kitchen to make the filling velvety smooth and creamy with enough flavor to be eaten with a side of rice or shredded cabbage, or stuffed into a roll to make a Korokke Sando. Why This Recipe Works? Boiling the potatoes with the skin on prevents them from absorbing too much water as they cook. Cutting the pork into a mince by hand provides a better texture than ground pork....

The dish may be pronounced more like gōng bǎo in China, but it certainly packs more pow than the Chinese-American Kung Pao thanks to the copious addition of chili peppers. Face-meltingly spicy, the flames are both fanned or tamed by the handfuls of tongue-numbing huā jiāo (Sichuan Pepper) in the original. I know it’s neither here nor there, but personally, I’m not a fan of the candy-sweet sauce in the Chinese-American version, and the Sichuan original is a little more heat than I can handle....

For me, that something from nothing magic is what pasta is all about. Sure, those sugos and ragus can be tasty, but at the end of the day, how often do you have time to simmer a sauce for hours? Here are three key things to remember that will make or break this dish (as well as most simple pastas) 📖 Recipe

In the decade since I made my exit from Silicon Valley, I’ve lived in areas of the world where good Pho is nearly impossible to find. That’s why I’ve spent the time perfecting my own take on this relatively modern Vietnamese classic. The great thing about Pho is that once you have the base broth, you can season it how you like, and top it with what you like. In the north of Vietnam, the noodles are broader, and the toppings are limited to meat and a generous sprinkle of scallions....

In Japan, both pork and garlic are considered stamina-boosting foods due to their high concentration of B vitamins. So chef Hashimoto experimented with different combinations of these ingredients to develop this legendary variation on butadon. While I can’t vouch for its ability to reduce fatigue, I can tell you that the garlicky aroma of this hearty rice bowl will wake up your appetite and power you through the rest of your day....

I had a lot of great food in Singapore, including the inspiration for this Mie Goreng Java recipe, and while I couldn’t pick a favorite, there were some dishes that stood out: like Biryani at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, or Hainanese Chicken Rice at Maxwell Hawker Center. One dish that stuck with me throughout the rest of my sojourn in Asia was something I had early one morning at Changi Airport as I was leaving for Japan....

The battle of Chaliapin Steak Food Wars starts in episode 6 of season 1. The usually confident protagonist, Yukuhira Soma, hits the chef’s equivalent to writer’s block as he plans a dish for his first food battle. Inspired by some words of encouragement from a classmate, Soma starts to lay out the dish. In the next episode, he makes and presents his version of Chaliapin Steak in donburi form, and it’s a hit with the judges....

Compared to the Sichuan original, Japanese Mapo Tofu has a milder flavor, sweeter taste, and is much less spicy. I prefer the fiery original version of the dish these days, but there’s something very comforting about the Japanese adaptation that I crave from time to time. It’s also an excellent alternative for families with kids or for people who don’t have a high tolerance for heat. Why This Recipe Works?...

Ganmodoki literally means “mock goose” in Japanese and early versions of this dish were made with konnyaku, which has a dark color that could have made it more closely resemble its namesake. Whatever its roots, Ganmodoki’s current incarnation is a tofu patty that’s loaded with vegetables and mushrooms. In my version, I like to go a little extra on the mix-ins to pack it full of flavors, textures, and nutrients....

Some of you may consider this comforting Mexican offal stew cringe-worthy, but I think it gets a bum wrap because of the odd ingredients, which admittedly require some amount of care to prepare correctly. I have to tell you though that Menudo is piquant, hearty, and comforting; the perfect recovery food after a long night spent throwing back cervezas. To be totally honest, I’m not a huge fan of offal....