Doenjang Jjigae (된장 찌개) is not much to look at, and it’s often called Korean miso soup, but that is really doing it a disservice as the two are nothing alike. Beneath its earth-toned surface lies a hearty stew that’s loaded with big chunky vegetables and creamy tofu. Like it’s spicier sibling Kimchi Jjigae , the broth is redolent of garlic, but this stew gets its heat from green chili peppers and a bit of funk from the Doenjang....

There are few things simpler and more magical than fried potatoes. The perfect french fry, crisp on the outside, and piping-hot and pillowy on the inside, can be an ethereal experience. Unfortunately, for many, it’s an experience that’s only had in a restaurant (usually of the fast food variety). Restaurant fries give fried potatoes a bad name, running the gamut from chewy boot-leather salt-lick, to flavorless and limp grease-stick....

Considering its relative simplicity and abundant array of vegetarian dishes, Indian food never fails to amaze me with its full-flavored culinary repertoire that never leaves me wanting meat. Some may argue that if you add enough spices you can make boot leather taste good, but Indian cuisine isn’t about wanton seasoning. At its core, the cuisine is subtly nuanced with dishes that are brimming with umami, while maintaining a palate pleasing balance of the other four basic tastes....

Crisp, salty, and packed with umami, Japanese pickled vegetables bring a burst of contrasting colors, textures, and tastes. Known as tsukemono (漬物) in Japanese cuisine, these aren’t just condiments; they’re an essential part of every Japanese meal. They cleanse the palate, preserve produce, and sneak in big flavor with minimal effort. From the light crunch of asazuke to the briny depth of shoyuzuke, this lineup of common types of pickles encompasses a spectrum of textures and tastes....

When it comes to carbs, I’m more of a noodle person. Yet despite my love of those lanky strands of deliciousness, Chicken Chow Mein has never been a dish that’s drawn my attention. If I’m going to go for noodles for take-out, my order inevitably veers in the direction of Chow Fun or Singapore Noodles . That’s probably because most versions of these stir-fried noodles I’ve had has been bland and soggy with scraps of vegetables and meat, more like an Asian noodle pilaf than a dish that can stand on its own....

Chickpea Spaghetti This easy delicious chickpea pasta is perfect for those times when you just can’t make it to the grocery store. Although it may seem basic, the techniques covered in this recipe turn these ordinary ingredients into a mouthwatering meal that’s versatile enough to be adapted to whatever you have on hand. I’m also going to share five variations that you can make with just a few tweaks to the seasonings....

Update 2023/9/10 : I’ve posted a new definitive guide to making ikura from salmon roe along with a new video . I’m leaving this one up for those who prefer curing ikura in a dashi brine. With spawning season in full swing, the salmon are packed to the gills with roe. If you’re able to find a skein of salmon roe at your local seafood shop (or you happen to know someone that’s going salmon fishing in Alaska), this salmon roe recipe, 5 minutes, and a handful of ingredients is all it takes to turn that ugly sac of roe into a decadent bowl of ikura (salmon caviar)...

There are few desserts that I can think of that cause as much debate as the proper texture for a chocolate chip cookie. Some like them chewy, others like them crunchy while there’s another camp that prefers a more cake-like texture. I’ve always been on the fence, loving the crisp caramelized snap of a good crunchy cookie while feeling equally partial to the soft and chewy cookie more reminiscent of the dough before it’s been cooked....

This is a universal marinade used in Japanese cooking. Used fresh it’s great for marinating meats or fish and when cooked down, it makes a fabulous teriyaki sauce for grilled things (yaki-mono). I use this all the time and yet until today I never actually measured anything out. I tried to keep the proportions equal to make it easier to remember, it’s basically equal parts soy sauce, mirin and sake then half a part sugar and some garlic and ginger....

Other Names iriko, myulchi, dried baby sardines, dried baby anchovies. Description Niboshi are baby sardines (anchovies by some translations) that have been boiled once then dried. They vary in size from about 1.5" (pictured below right) to over 3"(pictured below left) long with the smaller ones having a milder flavour. They’re used in both Korean and Japanese cooking as a flavouring for stock or cooked as a snack. What’s it taste like?...

Pickled Sushi Ginger (ガリ - Gari) Pickled sushi ginger or Gari (ガリ) is a Japanese pickle made by brining thin slices of young ginger in vinegar, sugar, and salt. It has a refreshing sweet and sour taste with a hint of spiciness, making it a popular side dish to serve with sushi. It’s a great way to preserve fresh ginger, though, and my instructions for how to make sushi ginger will have your imagination sparking....

Wagyu Roast Beef Don (ローストビーフ丼) Roast beef has been around in Japan for over 150 years, but this modern take on the wagyu beef bowl has been rising in popularity over the past decade. With thinly sliced sheets of melt-in-your-mouth wagyu roast beef atop a mound of rice, drizzled with a savory sweet onion sauce and spicy wasabi cream, this wagyu rice bowl is a symphony of textures and tastes....

Oh the things I go through to get a descent photo for the website… Let me start from the beginning… I made a batch of salsa verde last week to go with some tacos, but having had a few cervezas on an empty stomach, the tacos and salsa were demolished before I had a chance to take a photo of the salsa verde by itself. Oops! Fast forward a week and I’ve made a fresh batch of salsa verde....

What is Kakuni? Kakuni (角煮) literally means “simmered cubes,” and is a dish hailing from the island of Kyushu in southern Japan. It’s made by braising cubes of pork belly with aromatics such as ginger, garlic, and scallions until the meat is fall-apart tender. Most pork belly kakuni recipes are seasoned with a lot of soy sauce and sugar, which gives it a glossy, golden brown patina. While this gives it some visual impact, this style tends to be quite sweet, and the soy sauce becomes the star of the show....

This Teriyaki Eggs recipe, or Teritama (照り玉), is a simple yet elegant Japanese rice bowl dish with a sublime balance of textures and flavors. Breaking the molten egg yolk releases a torrent of creamy goodness that mingles with the sauce to season the bed of fluffy rice underneath. The crispy edges of the egg, the savory-sweet teriyaki glaze, and the flavorful nori, scallion, and sesame seed garnish make this egg and rice bowl a standout option for a quick breakfast or satisfying lunch....

Yaki Udon dates back to post-war Japan when a noodle shop in northern Kyushu turned the Japanese staple into a hearty stir-fry to stretch a scarce supply of meat and vegetables. While it was initially conceived as a variation of yakisoba, it’s become a ubiquitous part of the Japanese street food landscape, and you’ll find these stir-fried udon noodles in dozens of variations. In this version, I’ve created a mashup of broccoli beef and yaki udon for a quick weekday meal that’s as satisfying as it is delicious....

I’m not much of a chocolate guy. After a big restaurant meal, I’ll usually pass over chocolate desserts in favor of something light and fruity. If after reading that, you’re thinking I must be from another planet, rest assured, I’m human and I do get an occasional chocolate craving. Perhaps it’s my palette’s way of protesting all the chocolate that I pass up, but when the urge hits, it’s pushy and unrelenting like a sleazy telemarketer....

Chicken Udon (鶏肉うどん) Adding chicken to udon noodles is a fairly common practice in Japan; however, the soup is usually a dashi broth made using kelp and dried, smoked and fermented skipjack tuna. Since these ingredients can be hard to find outside of Japan, I wanted to create a chicken udon recipe that can be made anywhere. The result was better than I could have imagined, and it has now become a regular part of our lunch rotation here in Tokyo....

There were always bananas in the house when I was growing up, which meant there were always a few that got a little too ripe. And in our home, that only meant one thing-a loaf of banana bread. My mom hated wasting food, so whenever they turned speckled and soft, she’d turn simple ingredients into a dreamy treat, filling the house with the sweet, buttery aroma of caramelized bananas. On rare occasions, she added chocolate chips; to this day, banana and chocolate is amongst my favorite flavor pairings....

Chocolate Mochi (チョコ餅) After making butter mochi a few months ago, which infuses soft, chewy mochi with the creamy flavor of butter, I started to wonder what other kinds of hybrids between Japanese sweets and Western treats would be possible. Of course, as someone who’s addicted to all things cacao, my mind quickly wandered to chocolate mochi. Inspired by chocolate truffles, which get their name from the knobby subterranean fungi of the same moniker, I created these decadent confections which pack a triple dose of chocolate....