White waterfall (konnyaku noodles, shirataki)

糸こんにゃく (itokonnyaku) or しらたき(shirataki). They are noddles made of konnyaku. Shirataki means white waterfall as that’s what they look like. And who doesn’t want to eat a fresh mountain torrent in this season ?

Myoga, a veggie related to ginger. Delicious raw.

The noodles are sold in bundles that can unfold or not if you want to cook them in a hot pot. I simply rinsed them in cold water.

That’s a food without calories and it’s popular in the West some diet extremists. I don’t eat konnyaku in order to stuff my face without getting the calories. The food is appreciated in Japan for its texture and the lack of flavor that allows you to match to any flavorful food. A perk is konnyaku fiber favors smooth digestion.
These noddles, served chilled are very refreshing.

The tsuyu (dip sauce : dashi broth + soy sauce + mirin) with grated daikon radish. All the flavor comes from it so the tsuyu has to be coarse. I added green yuzu slices and the myoga.

Natto with mustard.

A small gaspacho.

Bought black gomadofu (black sesame tofu). You can make yours (recipe). This one is sweet. I served as dessert it with a yamamomo berry.

A fresh lunch tray

Today’s lunch. No fuss.
Hot days are arriving… and going back… and back. Chaotic weather, so the food looks random too.

Spring roll du jour : lots of raw veggies and herbs.

Sesame, natto…

Rolled !

Dessert waffles : batter is flour, baking powder, sugar and vanilla. Garnished with grated apple, almond slices, cocoa chips.

Cooked !

Chicken liver, onion, paprika and balsamico sauce leftover (from here).

Leaves and buds, plant powered early Spring meal

The big lunch. A veggie orgy.
You have seen already 3 dishes, here is the final installment.

I cooked this with all the veggies leftovers I had. Spring cabbage and maitake mushrooms that you see here. Also onion, kintoki red carrot and I’ve added potatoes. At the end, more greens of shungiku.

The veggies are cooked without oil, steamed in the pan. Just salt. They bring enough complementary flavors.

The dish : jardinière de légumes (vegetable garden lady). That looks dry, but it’s very mushy, soft and juicy.

Garlic and yuzu sautéed tsubomina. That you are detailed here.

The main dish maybe is the tofu on wasabi leaves, from this post.

The last slice of this delicious black sesame azuki bean terrine that I had frozen, a while ago (here). I had 2 huge bean terrines that fed me for a while. Now I need to bake the next ones.

Kurogoma purin. Silver flan. (made from seeds)

Don’t let the metallic aspect deter you, it’s very cream, sweet and the taste is naturally nutty.
黒ゴマプリン, kurogoma purin, literally “black sesame pudding” is now a classic Japanese sweet with countless version.Here is mine.

That’s the occasion to talk about “goma cream“. This kind of spread is so addictive that I avoid buying it.

The basic ingredient is black sesame, kuro goma. They usually sell it roasted.

This my quick home-made neri goma (paste).I put some in my electric mill, and paste it. The mill heats a lot, so I do it in 5 or 6 time, letting it cool in between, while I do something else.
It is not as smooth as the “pro version”. I can tell you how theirs is done : just after the sesame is toasted, it is pounded in a mortar, then passed through a thieve. You can do that. Just not every morning in 5 minutes…

Making goma cream :
Then with the neri goma the paste, I make the silky spread. I add 1/2 ts of neutral oil and 1 ts of syrup or honey, and I mill a little more.

Both the paste and the cream can be stored a while in a jar, pour a small layer of oil on top, keep at room temperature.

Recipe for 2 servings :

A.Take 1/2 cup of sesame seeds. Paste them. With half of the paste, make goma cream.
B.In a bowl, whisk the rest of paste, with 1/2 cup of water, 1 ts of potato starch, 1 ts of sugar.
C.In a pan, mix 1/2 cup of water and 1/3 ts of agar, bring to a boil. Add the B mixture while whisking, and 2 tbs of coconut cream (from a can), reheat on low heat, stir till it starts taking texture.
D. Pour in molds. Let cool at least 1 hour.

Serve chilled, with a generous goma cream on top.

Wagashi Saga : Japanese sweet posts and tutorials.

Mellow. A black tahini bean terrine.

Terrine du jour. It has the nuttiness of pasted black sesame (nerigoma).

The main ingredient : azuki beans from Hokkaido.

About 5 cups of boiled azuki beans half mashed, 1 cup of black sesame pasted into tahini, more sesame seeds, 2 tbs of Chinese black miso, 1 ts of wuxi (Chinese 5 spice mix), one minced onion, a handful of raisins soaked in brandy, a few tbs of flour to dry the mix. Baked. Cooled.