tofu, or chunks of broiled salmon. Instead of croutons, this salad calls for Japanese rice crackers, which add a welcome crunch.
One 2-pound kabocha squash, halved and seeded
8 cups spinach leaves, rinsed and patted dry
1 cup corn kernels
1 cup diced cucumber (about one third of a medium cucumber)
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
⅓ cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons dashi ( page 48 ), or chicken or vegetable broth
4 teaspoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
⅔cup mixed Japanese rice crackers
Preheat the oven to 400° F. Place the squash, cut side down, in an ovenproof dish coated with nonstick spray. Roast for an hour, or until the squash is tender when pierced with a sharp knife. Let cool.
Cut the peel off the squash and slice the flesh into bite-size chunks. Mound the spinach in a salad bowl and top with the squash, corn, cucumber, and tomatoes.
Whisk together the mayonnaise, dashi, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and ginger until the sugar dissolves. Just before serving, spoon the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Garnish with rice crackers.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Similar to fondue or Mongolian hotpot, this cold weather favorite involves cooking vegetables and thinly sliced beef in a dashi base. As the ingredients cook, the noise they make sounds like “shabu-shabu,” hence the dish's name. The two dipping sauces below are typical accompaniments and are commercially available in most Japanese markets (along with the thinly sliced beef, which is usually in the freezer section). If you do not have a traditional shabu-shabu pot, an electric fondue pot works just as well. A small strainer is handy for cooking the tofu. However, if you don't have one, simply add the tofu to the cooking liquid and after one minute retrieve it with a slotted spoon.
6 Chinese cabbage leaves
One 15-ounce can whole bamboo shoots
1 small head of cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets
12 shiitake mushroom caps
3 leeks, white and light green parts only, trimmed, rinsed, and cut into 1-inch pieces
¾ pound spinach, leaves rinsed and trimmed
1 pound firm tofu, drained and cut into 1-inch cubes
1½ pounds well-marbled beef sirloin, cut into very thin ribbons
8 cups dashi ( page 48 )
Two prepared dipping sauces ( pages 49 , 50 )
½ pound fresh (or partially cooked) udon
Bring a large shallow saucepan of water to a boil for pre-cooking the cabbage, bamboo, and cauliflower. Beginning with the cabbage, add the leaves to the boiling water and cook for 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Remove the leaves from the water with kitchen tongs and pat dry. Roll each leaf into a cylinder and cut in half to create two rolls. Set aside.
Drain and rinse the bamboo. Cut each piece lengthwise in half and then cut each half into ½-inch-thick semicircles. Bring the same large saucepan of water used to cook the cabbage back to a boil. Add the bamboo and cook for 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
Bring the same saucepan of water back to a boil. Add the cauliflower florets. When the water returns to a boil, cover and cook the cauliflower until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Drain and cool on a clean tea towel.
Arrange the cabbage rolls, bamboo shoots, cauliflower, mushroom caps, leeks, spinach, tofu, and beef on one or two large platters.
Heat all ofthe dashi in a shabu-shabu pot, or half of it in an electric fondue pot until bubbling. Add several leeks and mushroom caps to the broth to begin softening. Using long forks or chopsticks, pick up the meat and vegetables from the central platter and swish them through the dashi to cook. (For the tofu, place a cube in a small strainer and place the strainer in the broth. After a minute, lift the strainer from the broth to eat the tofu.) Dip the cooked meat and vegetables in either one of the sauces before eating. (If using a fondue pot, add the remaining broth to the pot, as needed.)
When no more meat or vegetables
One 2-pound kabocha squash, halved and seeded
8 cups spinach leaves, rinsed and patted dry
1 cup corn kernels
1 cup diced cucumber (about one third of a medium cucumber)
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
⅓ cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons dashi ( page 48 ), or chicken or vegetable broth
4 teaspoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
⅔cup mixed Japanese rice crackers
Preheat the oven to 400° F. Place the squash, cut side down, in an ovenproof dish coated with nonstick spray. Roast for an hour, or until the squash is tender when pierced with a sharp knife. Let cool.
Cut the peel off the squash and slice the flesh into bite-size chunks. Mound the spinach in a salad bowl and top with the squash, corn, cucumber, and tomatoes.
Whisk together the mayonnaise, dashi, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and ginger until the sugar dissolves. Just before serving, spoon the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Garnish with rice crackers.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Similar to fondue or Mongolian hotpot, this cold weather favorite involves cooking vegetables and thinly sliced beef in a dashi base. As the ingredients cook, the noise they make sounds like “shabu-shabu,” hence the dish's name. The two dipping sauces below are typical accompaniments and are commercially available in most Japanese markets (along with the thinly sliced beef, which is usually in the freezer section). If you do not have a traditional shabu-shabu pot, an electric fondue pot works just as well. A small strainer is handy for cooking the tofu. However, if you don't have one, simply add the tofu to the cooking liquid and after one minute retrieve it with a slotted spoon.
6 Chinese cabbage leaves
One 15-ounce can whole bamboo shoots
1 small head of cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets
12 shiitake mushroom caps
3 leeks, white and light green parts only, trimmed, rinsed, and cut into 1-inch pieces
¾ pound spinach, leaves rinsed and trimmed
1 pound firm tofu, drained and cut into 1-inch cubes
1½ pounds well-marbled beef sirloin, cut into very thin ribbons
8 cups dashi ( page 48 )
Two prepared dipping sauces ( pages 49 , 50 )
½ pound fresh (or partially cooked) udon
Bring a large shallow saucepan of water to a boil for pre-cooking the cabbage, bamboo, and cauliflower. Beginning with the cabbage, add the leaves to the boiling water and cook for 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Remove the leaves from the water with kitchen tongs and pat dry. Roll each leaf into a cylinder and cut in half to create two rolls. Set aside.
Drain and rinse the bamboo. Cut each piece lengthwise in half and then cut each half into ½-inch-thick semicircles. Bring the same large saucepan of water used to cook the cabbage back to a boil. Add the bamboo and cook for 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
Bring the same saucepan of water back to a boil. Add the cauliflower florets. When the water returns to a boil, cover and cook the cauliflower until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Drain and cool on a clean tea towel.
Arrange the cabbage rolls, bamboo shoots, cauliflower, mushroom caps, leeks, spinach, tofu, and beef on one or two large platters.
Heat all ofthe dashi in a shabu-shabu pot, or half of it in an electric fondue pot until bubbling. Add several leeks and mushroom caps to the broth to begin softening. Using long forks or chopsticks, pick up the meat and vegetables from the central platter and swish them through the dashi to cook. (For the tofu, place a cube in a small strainer and place the strainer in the broth. After a minute, lift the strainer from the broth to eat the tofu.) Dip the cooked meat and vegetables in either one of the sauces before eating. (If using a fondue pot, add the remaining broth to the pot, as needed.)
When no more meat or vegetables
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