Bear Cuisine

A Lighter Kind of Comfort

Fall and winter are prime seasons for the comfort of stews, braises and warming, hearty soups. As wonderful as this food is, it tends to be heavy and towards the end of the season can feel too,too much. Japanese hot pots are a beautiful alternative to heavier western food. Cooked in a donabe and served at the table, a hot pot can make an instant party. A donabe is a traditional Japanese clay pot which is designed to be used over a gas or open flame. They are beautiful cooking vessels and I share Paula Wolfert's conviction that food cooked in clay tastes more alive. If you want to take a look at the variety of styles that are available, pay a visit to The Toiro Kitchen.

I found this recipe in DONABE.Classic and Modern Japanese Clay Pot Cooking. If you enjoy Asian flavors, this book should be on your shelves.

NAPA CABBAGE HOT POT

NAPA CABBAGE HOT POT

1. 4 1/4 cups water
2. 4 medium dried shitake mushrooms, quickly rinsed
3. 1 (2x 4-inch) piece kombu (kelp)
4. 8 ounces boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
5. 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, plus more for serving
6. 1/4 cup sake
7. About 1/3 to 1/2 head napa cabbage (approximately 1 1/2 pounds) cut into 1/3-inch strips crosswise (separate the bottom and leafy parts)
8. 8 ounces thinly sliced pork belly, cut into bite-sized pieces
9. 3 ounces enoki mushrooms, trimmed and pulled apart
10. 1 1/2 ounces bean thread (cellephone noodles)
11. 1/2 to 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
12. Ichimi togarashi (Japanese ground chiles) for serving

Combine the water, dried mushrooms and kombu in a large bowl. Cover and let it infuse for 6 to 24 hours (keep in the refrigerator if infusing overnight) Remove the rehydrated mushrooms, gently squeeze out the liquid into the bowl, and then cut off the mushroom stems and discard. Cut the caps in half and put them back in the bowl.

Season the chicken with salt. Let the chicken marinate for 15 to 30 minutes.

Transfer the infused water with the rehydrated mushroom caps and kombu into the donabe (strain first if there are any gritty particles left from the dried mushrooms); add the sake and the bottom of the napa cabbage. Cover and set over medium heat. Just before the broth comes to a simmer, remove the kombu. If a foam rises, skim lightly once. Turn down the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cover again and simmer gently until the napa cabbage is soft, about 20 minutes.

Add both meats and cover the surface entirely with the remaining napa cabbage. Cover with the lid and turn up the heat to medium-high. As soon as the broth starts to boil, turn down the heat. Simmer gently until the napa cabbage is very soft, about 20 minutes. Add the enoki mushrooms and bean thread. Cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and drizzle with the sesame oil.

To serve at the table, first, put a pinch each of salt and ichimi togarashi into each individual bowl and pour in a small ladleful of the broth, followed by the other ingredients cooked in the broth.

Serves 4.

 

 

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Lightning Strikes Twice at Los Poblanos

When Los Poblanos hosted Nancy Singleton Hachisu , who was then on her book tour for Japanese Farm Food, (click here for the earlier post) I thought it was an extraordinary event that would not be repeated in my lifetime. Some smart student of Zen will point out that no event can be repeated; each moment is unique.Yes ,grasshopper that is true, but what was repeated was a visit from the delightful Nancy Singleton Hachisu. 

This time she was promoting her new book, Preserving the Japanese Way. Traditions of Salting, Fermenting,and Pickling for the Modern Kitchen. It's a clever title, for this book is as much about preserving the traditional methods of preservation as it it is about  recipes and techniques for the English-speaking cook. Like its predecessor, this is a beautiful book with gorgeous pictures and intriguing  stories about the Japanese people who make these traditional foods. This is a book to savor with all of your senses, even if you never use a single recipe from it. I think, however, it would be a shame if one didn't cook from it.

Nancy's energy is amazing. Just watching her prepare the dishes for the lunch we would enjoy left me a bit breathless. It's inspiring to watch someone who so clearly loves her subject and the work that flows from that love.

Miso-Pickled Semi-Hardboiled eggs,Sauteed Shishito flavored with Miso,Quick-boiled wild Arugula with Walnut-Miso dressing,

Shio Koji Grilled Boneless Pork Butt Chops, Fall Greens Salad with Figs and Soy Sauce Vinaigrette

Salt-Massaged Baby Turnips and their greens, Cucumber pickles with Umeboshi and Katsuobushi, Celery pickled in Dashi and Fish Sauce

I hope the pictures give you some idea of the beauty and the pure goodness of this food. Using first-rate ingredients and treating them with respect and impeccable technique made for a truly memorable meal.

If you have any interest at all in things Japanese, you should read this book.

Feeling Boxed In ?

Recently, The Japan Society of New Mexico sponsored a lecture and workshop by Debra Samuels on Bento, "Obento: Japanese Culture in a Box." I first learned of Debra Samuels when I discovered her cookbook, My Japanese Table, (For a review of that book click here.) She has spent many years in Japan and has been an effective advocate for Japanese culture and food ever since her first visit to Japan in the early 1970's.

Debra Samuels

I love My Japanese Table,in part because her authorial personality is so warm and engaging. She is even more so in person.If you ever have the opportunity to hear her speak or take one of her classes you can count yourself a fortunate person.

Bento ,which literally means "a meal packed in a box," captures the heart of Japanese culture because of the principles used in constructing the meal.

Each bento will focus on the elements of color, texture, seasonality, presentation, nutrition, portion control and love. When choosing foods for the box you need to consider

• Five colors: white, black, green, red and yellow.
• Five flavors:hot, sour, bitter, sweet and salty.
• Five cooking methods:stir-fry,simmer, deep fry, steam and roast(grill).

I found the five color idea in meal planning especially interesting. Shoji Morishige developed this for his son who was leaving home and was, apparently, baffled by how to feed himself in a healthy way. Shoji showed him that if every meal contained these five colors he would be eating a balanced diet.

• White: eggplant, rice, onion, radish,bean curd.
• Red:tomato, carrot, meat, fish.
• Green: green pepper, kiwi fruit, cabbage,spinach,broccoli.
• Yellow:natto, grapefruit, orange, sweet potato, lemon.
• Black:wakame seaweed, liver, sesame,seaweed.

Portion size is much smaller than Americans are accustomed to, about 1/3 less food. Clearly, we don't need as much food as we usually eat. If you have ever had the pleasure of a bento meal,you know that you are pleasantly full afterwards, but not stuffed.

Bento boxes are fascinating objects in themselves. Samuels brought some of her own collection for us to peruse .

After her presentation, we were provided the materials to make our own bentos.

It was relatively easy to make a nice-looking bento when we were given such beautiful materials to work with.

Samuels' lecture was fascinating. She gave us more insight into the culture of Japan and  offered me new ideas to consider in any meal planning. I think with practice, many of these principles could become second nature and everyone who shares a meal at our table will benefit.

Here are some links that will help in your explorations of Bento.

www.Lunchinabox.net

www.justbento.com

Finally, here is a bento lunch I had in Japan. Truly, a creation of beauty and the memory of it will be a joy forever or at least as long as I'm around.

Small & Tasty Bites in Santa Fe

Ten Thousand Waves , a Japanese-style Spa just outside of Santa Fe has long been a favorite destination for locals and tourists. This year they have added a restaurant, Izanami, to their establishment. I can't say enough good things about Izanami. It's a Japanese Bistro with small plates that are beautifully prepared and reasonably priced.

On recent visits we enjoyed several seasonal and standard offerings.

Spring Pea Soup

Gyoza

Shichimi Fries

(Kennebec potatoes, shichimi, yuzu aioli)

Fried Avocado

Organic Grilled Chicken Livers

The menu is always changing and whatever we have ordered has been fabulously delicious.

Like the rest of the spa, the restaurant has been built with attention to every detail. The result is a stunningly beautiful space that feeds the eye of the soul as well as the body.

The menu changes with the seasons and so do the interior decorations. Some, like these Godzilla dinosaurs, are whimsical; others more traditional.

This has become one of our favorite restaurants in Santa Fe. When you visit, we will be ever so glad to take you there.

A Mysterious Cuisine

At the end of October and early November, we had a fabulous trip to Japan. The focus was on Japanese ceramics , not food. BUT we had to eat and we enjoyed some amazing meals. Before this trip I thought I knew at least a little about Japanese food. I learned that I know nothing, or next to nothing. Our meals were beautiful to behold and to the untrained western palate bewildering to eat.  One day we enjoyed lunch at a vegetarian restaurant inside of Daitokoku-ji Monastery located in Kyoto.

When we returned home, I did a bit of research and found Elizabeth Andoh's Kansha especially helpful in decipering the vegetarian/vegan tradition of Japanese cooking. From her introduction,

"Kansha means 'appreciation,' an expression evident in many aspects of Japanese society and dailyt living. In a culinary context, the word acknowledges both nature's bounty and the efforts and ingenuituy of people who transform that abundance into marvelous food. In the kitchen and at table, in the supermarket and out in the gardens, fields and waterways, kansha encourages us to prepare nutritioally sound and aesthetically satisfying meals that also avoid waste, conserve energy and sustain our natural resources."

Kansha's historical roots can be found in shojin ryori which is usually translated as "temple cookery" or "Buddhist cuisine." Japan is a country which is short on natural resources and long on ingenuity. Thus, the Japanese have developed the practice of ichi motsu zen shoku--using all the edible parts of plant foods. Things which in a western kitchen might be thrown away are all used--peels, roots, shoots, stems, seeds and flowers. It's the vegetarian version of nose to tail eating.

Even if you aren't a vegetarian,  the concept of Kansha (also translated as "gratitude") is one that we should all cultivate and practice. Not taking our planet and its abundance for granted has always been important,but never more so than in our time of shrinking resources.