Recipe: Soboro Gohan

Another day for Obento, I made Soboro Gohan, shown in the box with egg piggie.
This sweet and savory soboro is one of the easiest dish to make, but it's definitely delicious and you would like to make it again.

(Please excuse me for the blurry photo, I made it before sunrise and no natural light...)

It's a common dish for bento since it tastes good even if it gets cold. Using a microwave is not popular in schools in Japan, so it's important to choose what to put in the bento box.. it still  has to taste good when lunchtime comes!

Also soboro stays good for up to 5 days(when cooked well) in refrigerator and a month in freezer. Sometimes I make in larger batch, let it sit until it gets cool, separate it in small portions, seal tight with cling wrap, put in a ziplock and save them in the freezer so I always have something quick to eat :)

(Make sure it's completely cooked and cooled before wrapping, if not it gets spoiled faster)

It's so quick and easy but tastes absolutely delicious.

そぼろご飯

Soboro Gohan : Flaked meat over rice

10 minutes

Ingredients for 4 

• Ground beef/pork/chicken : 10 oz
• Sugar: 2 tbsp
• Mirin: 2 tbsp
• Sake: 2 tbsp
• Soy sauce: 3 tbsp
• Grated ginger: 1 tbsp

Steps

1. Heat oil in a pan over medium heat, and cook the meat until almost cooked through
2. Add sugar, sake and mirin and mix for one minute
3. add grated ginger and soy sauce
4. Stir fry until most of the liquid is gone, breaking meat into small pieces

Best served over warm white rice with scrambled eggs. 

You can also adjust the amount of sugar and soy sauce for your taste.. or skip ginger, add garlic or chili, etc. 

Enjoy!

Recipe: Miso Marinated Pork

It is just  delicious but so easy to make that I am almost embarrassed to share. Usually I marinate it in the morning and just do the last step before serving it for dinner.

If you bought miso to make miso soup and wondering what to do with leftover miso sitting quietly somewhere deep in the fridge, you should definitely try it! Not only it has wonderful flavor and probiotic benefits, Miso soften pork and make it juicy.

豚の味噌漬け
Buta no Misozuke: Miso Marinated Pork
2.5 hours( Including 2 hours marinading)

Ingredients for 4

• 4 Pork Chops
• Miso: 1.5 tbsp
• Sugar: 1 tbsp
• Mirin: 1 tbsp
• Sake: 1 tbsp
• Soy Sauce: 1.5 tsp
• Garlic: 2 cloves, minced
• Ginger: 1/2 inch, minced

Steps

1. Combine all ingredients beside pork chops
2. Add pork chops to marinade in ziplock and let it sit for 2 hours to overnight in refrigerator
3. Heat 1 tbsp oil in nonstick pan over medium heat, add pork and sautee both sides until cooked 

1. 
   

This dish is the best friend of white rice. Just note, miso gets burnt easily so please try not to overcook it.

Itadakimasu :)

Recipe: Fried Salmon

Tatsuta is a way of cooking Japanese friend chicken/fish(karrage), which

Tatsuta age is at its best when the skin is crispy. Step 6&7 is the secret of making extra crispy skin with nice brown color so please be sure not to skip!

鮭の竜田揚げ
Sake no Tatsuta Age: Marinated Fried Salmon
1 to 2.5 hours( Including  30 minutes to 2 hours marinading)

Ingredients for 4

• Salmon Fillet : 2 
• Soy Sauce: 2 Tbsp
• Sake : 2 Tbsp
• Ginger: Grated, 1 Tbsp
• Garlic: Grated, 1 Tbsp
• Katakuriko(Potato Starch) 4 Tbsp
• Line a wire rack with a sheet of paper towels 

Steps

1. Combine soy sauce, sake, ginger and garlic into ziplock to make marinade
2. Cut salmon fillet into bite size
3. Add salmon to marinade and let it sit for 30 minutes to 2 hours in refrigerator
4. Drain off excess liquid from the salmon and add Katakuriko, mix gently by hands
5. Heat oil at 350°F. Deep fry until the exteior is light brown and salmon is cooked
6. Take out the salmon on the rack and let it sit for 3 minutes.
7. Heat the same oil at 400°F and deep fry until the exterior is medium brown

Salmon can be replaced for chiken thigh for Chiken Tatsuta.

Serve hot with lemon, everyone would love it :)

Itadakimasu!