That last pic has me drooling
Reminded me of the leggy crab meal I had in Tokyo… delice!
My favourite is still deep fried soft-shell crabs.
Wow!
Thanks, I used the classic pork gyoza recipe from the same book, with store bought gyoza wrappers. Usually I keep them in the freezer for a few months and just take out a few and cook from frozen.
Also found the recipe online:
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Mirugai
Mirugai, Kaki don… I really need to work on my plating
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LOL I love your dashida story! I think in many cases it was because people thought MSG was poison. Now that it’s become very clear it is not I think people are turning around, and my mom has accepted MSG and dashida’s role in the kitchen as well.
As for liquid smoke, I think it’s different, because whereas liquid smoke is literally just smoke in a bottle, dashida/msg isn’t really a shortcut as much as it is a major flavor booster. There is no “long cut” that can replicate its flavor. For instance you simply can’t make naengmyun taste like it does at a restaurant without msg, period. All that stuff about boiling bones to get the right broth is BS, it’s like 90% MSG/dashida powered. Same with junky treats like tteokbokki.
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Agreed. You can make good broth without MSG, but the cost is very expansive as one needs to add meat, not only bones for a tasty soup. Not sure the restaurants can afford to do that without raising price.
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Looks good, preparing a mirugai seems like a bit of work!
The third picture is a bit unsettling 
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One of my favourite Japanese dish: Hiyayakko - chilled tofu with Mentsuyu and soy sauce.
Hokkai-don - tuna roe and sliced scallop sashimi on shiso and Japanese rice with soy sauce and wasabi.
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Takoyaki - octopus balls, made with the newly bought aebleskiver pan.
Precooked the octopus in boiling salted water. For the batter, mixed the okonomiyaki mix with cold dashi and egg. Sliced the preserved ginger, sliced green onion, I also deep fried some Tenkasu (tempura scrapes) for extra crispiness to be added during cooking.
Topped with aonori, bonito flakes, takoyaki sauce and kewpie mayo…
You’ve to watch this impressive professional made them in Korea!
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They funny thing about your post - as I and many immigrant kids will have experienced - is that no little kid in the US wants their parent’s ethnic cuisine foods at school. They want ham and cheese or lunchables, with cookies and chips. It’s only when we grow up that we appreciate those beautiful heritage foods. When we’re young it makes us stand out and not in a good way. At least we think everyone is looking at us and wrinkling their nose.
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Might depend on the kid.
As a half Greek kid, I was delighted if I had leftover spanakopita or Greek meatballs for lunch, and I’ve always disliked ham sandwiches. I often didn’t eat my pb and j sandwiches , much more likely to eat lunch if it was leftover baked chicken.
My Italian friend , here in Canada, was sent to school with veal or chicken cutlet sandwiches. I would have loved that!
I’ve been an adventurous eater since I was a kid, and admit even by age 12 , a bit of a food snob, looking down my nose a little at kids who insisted on chicken nuggets or pepperoni pizza, or kids who wouldn’t touch garlic/ Chinese food/ chicken with bones in it, etc. I still have trouble tolerating adults who insist on chicken breast only.
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I’m full Russian. Our cuisine is chock a block full of onions and garlic. If I had Russian food for lunch, I’d try to kick my backpack as far from me as I could, and the odors still permeated a 20 foot radius.
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Both meal looked yummy.
I read a bit on Tonjiru, the recipe you’ve used included Konnyaku. Did you use it? Actually my question is, how does it taste like?
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Not directed at me, but I’ve used it before and it really is more of a springy texture than an actual taste.
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I see, thanks.
Yes, it doesn’t have much taste, just a springy and bouncy texture. In the picture of the tonjiru, there is one konjac visible, it’s the speckled purplish looking thing.
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