前に説明した私の豚汁のレシピーは、どの具材もちょうど良く調理したい（調理し足りない、調理し過ぎなく）という考えに基づいています。
Today, I improved my tonjiru by adding two additional ingredients: sub-standard enoki that I got from a friend who runs an enoki factory and the leftover pan-fried pork slices from last night's supper.
今日は、具材を２つ足して、豚汁を改良しました。えのき工場を経営するお友達から頂いた規格外のえのきと昨日の夕飯の残りの豚の焼肉です。
煮物と同様、豚汁は次の日もっと美味しくなります。
A friend who runs an enoki factory is a real jewel ;-)
ReplyDeleteI didn't know Japanese simmered dishes also taste better the following day. Somehow I have always assumed everything must be freshly cut and prepared and the second cooking would spoil Japanese dishes...
I am wondering which of your tonjiru looks better: the freshly made or the leftover one!
By the way, I went to my Japanese shop today. They call my noodles "shirataki". There were lots of konnyaku balls too, but only with dark spots, not the white ones you had.
They didn't have dried squid. Apparently three big containers of imported food have been blocked for a long time at the customs (the radioactivity issue adds now apparently lots of strange and complicated paperwork...), so hopefully they will soon have dried squid and good quality, grainy miso I like.
Sissi: Which LOOKS better? Freshly made one, naturally. Freshly made ones TASTE good because they are freshly made, and leftover ones also TASTE good because they are leftover! (laugh)
ReplyDeleteIs your tama konnyaku like this?
http://vision.ameba.jp/watch.do?movie=3792970
The dark spots are seaweed such as hijiki.
Hiroyuki, I have just taken a photo, look here:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.withaglass.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/konnyakuballs.png
I think I will prepare them very soon. Thank you once more for the recipes you left on my blog!
For me both tonjiru look appetising!
Sissi: Thanks for the link.
ReplyDeleteI have just identified your konnyaku.
It's a product of Ishibashi ya, located in Kyushu.
http://www.konjac.jp/
Japanese only
According to their website, they make konnyaku with a unique manufacturing method called "bata neri". Today, only a few manufacturers in Japan manufactuture konnyaku with this method. They sell their products mainly to department stores and high-end supermarkets.
No wonder that their products are exported to Europe and other countries.
This blogger made oden, using your konnyaku:
http://www.cocopri.jp/article/detail/201262
Looking forward to seeing your konnyaku in action!
Hiroyuki, thank you for the link and the information! It means then that I have a high quality tama konnyaku? (It's very cheap here! About 3chf, which equals about 3 US dollars I think).
ReplyDeleteIt's funny because I have just come back to report that between the moment I sent you the photo and your answer I couldn't resist cooking tama konnyaku for lunch. It was very good, even more filling than noodles, and the texture was very unusual. It was harder than the konnyaku block, but still delicious! I based all on the second recipe you gave me (soy sauce, sake, dashi instead of the dried squid) and added some other things... It was great with a tomato and shiso salad as side dish. I will post it very soon!
Thank you once more for the recipe!
By the way, do you know how I should store the half of the package that is left? Should I put it into a bowl of water and refrigerate? Or maybe freeze them? (I have never had this problem with shirataki, I have a whole package on my own!).
Sissi:
ReplyDeleteAccording to this site:
http://hanapluskan.cart.fc2.com/ca7/9/p-r-s/
A 300 g pack costs 230 yen in Japan.
It is a high-quality product, I suppose, because it is hand-made. I have never had such high-quality konnyaku before!
As for your question, your first answer is correct. But, I hope you use it up quickly, say, within 3-4 days. NEVER freeze konnyaku! If you do, you will get spongy konnyaku called shimi konnyaku 凍みこんにゃく.
Thank you, Hiroyuki! I don't want to have shimi konnyaku ;-)
ReplyDeleteI am impressed that it costs almost the same price here! I will respect my Japanese grocer even more now!
Sissi: Shimi konnyaku has its own uses, though.
ReplyDeleteLook at the 2nd to 4th photos here:
http://www.pref.ibaraki.jp/hakase/info/17/index.html
They show how to make shimi konnyaku.
Scroll down, and you will see several dishes using shimi konnyaku.
Tofu can also be frozen to make spongy "shimi dofu" (< tofu), also known as "koya dofu" 高野豆腐.
http://www.tsuji.ac.jp/hp/gihou/Basic_Techniques/japan/rehydrating/freeze_dried_tofu/koya.htm
Shinshu (Nagano), my father's birthplace, is famous for its shimi dofu. My father likes it a lot.
The second link doesn't work.
ReplyDeleteCould you combine them all:
http://www.tsuji.ac.jp/
hp/gihou/Basic_Techniques/japan/
rehydrating/freeze_dried_tofu/koya.htm
Oh, I thought shimi konnyaku was when it was good for nothing :-)
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of freeze dried-tofu. One more extraordinary soy product! It looks very appealing. I wonder if it's available here... Thanks for the links! Is it the famous Tsuji cooking school?
Sissi: My father likes koya dofu for its porous and spongy texture, and I hate it for the same reason, so you may or may not like it depending on your palate.
ReplyDeleteYes, Tsuji!
http://www.tec-tsuji.com/english/
Recipes site:
http://www.tec-tsuji.com/recipe2002/index.html
Techniques site:
http://www.tsuji.ac.jp/hp/gihou/Basic_Techniques/index.html
Hi Hiroyuki, your tonjiru looks delicious! When you added the extra pork the next day, did you have to be careful not to overcook it?
ReplyDeleteAlso, do you mind if I ask your advice on an unrelated question? I remember sometime back I think you posted that you didn't like to use a fish grill, preferring to use the toaster oven instead. Right now I'm about to buy a tabletop gas grill for our picnic table outside -- this is the one I'm thinking of:
http://www.marukaiestore.com/p-2814-iwatani-gas-cassette-grill-size1555x780x461.aspx
but I remember your comments about the fish grill and wonder whether this will be hard to clean? It looks different from a fish roaster but it's hard to tell since I haven't had the chance to examine either. Or should I just buy a shichirin? I would love to have outdoor picnics with it and any advice would be much appreciated!!
YSC: Of course, I did. And, I'm all for eco-cooking! I don't want to waste my gas!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I'm no expert on such gas grills, so think of my advice as that of a non-expert.
First, clarification: I was referring to a fish grill pre-installed in a kitchen when I said it was hard to clean.
The one you linked to is an general-purpose grill, not a fish grill, right? I wouldn't say it's particularly hard to clean. It will be just as hard (or easy) to clean as any other grill.
I personally would'nt think of buying a shichirin and taking it with me on a picnic... If you like outdoor cooking and you like using charcoal, you may enjoy cooking with a shichirin...
I hope that you turn to someone else who is experienced in outdoor cooking!
Thank you for the links! (the English version wasn't easy to find from the home page!)
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thought, Hiroyuki! I really appreciate hearing your opinion. Maybe I'll just try this grill and see what happens!
ReplyDeleteYSC: Have you checked out that post of mine?:
ReplyDeletehttp://hiro-shio.blogspot.com/2011/01/kanto-style-sukiyaki.html
where OkiHwn provided this link:
http://www.tune-in-tokyo.com/2009/04/portable-gas-cookers/
I hope you use a portable gas stove in a proper way, never placing anything over the canister area.