Dashi

Dashi is sorta like a japanese stock

Katsuo (Bonito) Dashi

8 cups ( 2 litres) water

50 g katsuo bushi (dried bonito) shavings

 For the first stock bring 4 cups of water to boil and add the shavings. Wen they shavings float to the surface, remove from the heat.

Drain the dashi into a pot and keep the shavings for the second stock. 2 make the second dashi, use leftover shavings and repeat.

Kombu Dashi (Kelp)

50 g kombu

4 cups (1 litre) water

Wipe the kombu with a dry kitchen towel. Combine the kombu and water and bring to a boil. When the water boils, remove the pan from the heat and remove the kombu from the stock.

Shiitake Mushroom Dashi

12 dried Shiitake mushrooms

4 cups cold water

Place shiitake mushrooms and cold water in a saucepan. Soak for 30 minutes, and then bring to a boil. When the water boils remove pan from heat and strain. Liquid is the dashi and mushrooms can be used for something else. 

Pasta in Celery-Basil-Lime leaf sauce

Ingredients:

Leeks

Celery

Basil

Kaffir Lime Leaves

Pasta

Fresh Cream

Butter

Fresh crushed black/green pepper

Carrot Greens

Garlic

Coarse Sea Salt

Extra virgin olive oil

Method:

In a big pot, cook the pasta to just below al dente in salted water.

Chop the garlic, cut the leeks and celery into juliennes, chiffonade the carrot greens or cut into small bunches.

In a saucepan, heat oil and butter, add the chopped garlic and saute lightly till the smell is rich wid garlic n butter, but not browned. quickly add the cream and water, stir. add the celery and leeks, you can go heavy on the celery for a nice celery base taste. let it cook, dilute/thicken as needed.

Add in the torn basil and kaffir lime leaves, more of basil, a little less of lime leaves since they have a stronger taste. Season lightly wid salt, wen the sauce seems ready, add in some more white butter and add in the pasta and then the carrot greens. stir and cook till the pasta seems ready. adjust the seasoning, add in the pepper. Add in some butter and mix in. Finish with a dash of the extra virgin olive oil and stir it in. Serve hot. Enjoy

Cinnamon-Mint Apple Sauce

Ingredients:

Apples

Cinnamon powder

Fresh peppermint leaves

Sugar

Apple Cider Vinegar/White Wine

Method

Chop and puree the apples, preferably without the peel.

In a non stick sauce pot , heat a little butter, add in the apple puree. and let it cook. add in some fine sugar and mix. add cinnamon powder, and keep cooking till it starts browning. then add in the peppermint leaves and and a dash of cider vinegar/white wine. Keep cooking till it turns a nice reddish brown. keep tasting regularly and season according to your taste. Once cooked properly n properly seasoned, take off the heat and chill. this is an excellent dip for nachos, or just a plain old late night snack/the munchies. And if you use sweeter apples, u can always reduce the sugar. it shouldnt be too sweet.

Citrus Braised Pork

Ingredients:

Pork cut into 1" cubes

Coarse sea salt

Pepper

Green Pepper

Kaffir Lime Leaves

Allspice Leaves/powder

Cheap Port Wine

Garlic

Sugar
sliced mushrooms

Method

Cut the pork into about 1" cubes.

Rub a baking/roasting tray with butter. spread the pork in there, rub down wid coarse salt, pepper, little sesame oil and butter. add some rough chunks of garlic in there

Roast at 400-450 degrees for about 20 mins or so, till most of the fat starts melting and the meat is partly cooked,again, just kinda wing it.

In a kadhai or saucepot or something,on a low-medium flame, heat butter n oil mixture. add some finely chopped garlic to it. add the pork to the kadhai, scrape the roasting pan properly. deglaze it with some water and a little port wine and add to the kadhai. add more water as needed till the pork is about 1/2 or 2/3rd covered. add a little salt, lime leaf and all spice to the pot. This helps build the base of the dish. add a few green peppers if u have em too. let it cook for a while, about an hour or so at least, till it starts getting really, really tender. add in the mushrooms. taste the gravy and add a little flour to thicken. some sugar will help counteract the saltiness of the pork. when it starts getting tender, add more of the lime leaves, a little bit of the all spice and let it cook further. keep tasting and season as needed. add more herbs if u need to. and make sure that the level of the liquid is maintained. port wine is to be used only in small amounts. when you feel the taste is ok, keep it on low flame, let it cook till the desired tenderness is achieved and serve hot.

Note: it can get really, really tender if u cook it properly n long enough.

Mushroom Salad with Yuzu dressing

Ingredients:

White fungus

Shiitake mushrooms (fresh/rehydrated, without stalks)

Milke Mushrooms

Button Mushrooms

Butter

Salt

Sugar

Black pepper

Boil all the mushrooms and white fungus together till cooked. Strain the water out.

Toss the boiled fungi in butter, salt, a little sugar, and little black pepper.

When serving, mix the mushrooms with the yuzu dressing given before and serve

Yuzu Dressing

This is a very tasty lemon flavoured salad dressing, used in a mushroom salad that will follow. Also can be used for other things.

Lemon juice: 4 tbs / 1/4th cup

5 tsp soya sauce

1/2tsp black pepper

1/2-1clove grated garlic

6 tsp olive oil

Yaki Tori

boneless chicken and leek pieces, skewered and grilled.

This is a fairly plain dish, the real flavour is in the sauce in which u dip the chicken and leeks, both before grilling and after

Sauce:

1 apple, halved

1 leek

250 gm honey

200 gm sugar

300 ml mirrin

300 ml cooking sake

a few spoons of potato flour

water as needed

1 whole chicken, cleaned

Boil all of this for 8-10 hours till all the meat and everything just kinda falls off into the sauce.

Strain and use the sauce.