Feb 22 2010
February Recipes
Leading on from my last post, here are 3 recipes for seasonal Japanese food in February. The end of winter, before new vegetables are ready to harvest, is not traditionally the high point of the food calendar. However, the following three are tasty and full of variety in these dark evenings under the kotatsu.
Kinpira Gobo
| Ingredients | Japanese Name | Price in Feb |
| 2-3 Large ‘Greater Burdocks’ | ゴボウ | ¥210 |
| 6 Medium Carrots | ニンジン | ¥137 |
| 1 Dried Chilli | トウガラシ | <¥30 |
| Soy Sauce | しょうゆ | <¥20 |
| Mirin | みりん | <¥20 |
| 1 tbsp Sesame Oil | ごま油 | <¥20 |
| 1 tbsp Caster Sugar | 砂糖 |
Method
1) Cut carrots and burdock into thin strips 4cm long
2) Remove Chili seeds and cut into tiny strips
3) Heat cooking oil, then add chili and sizzle for a minute
4) Add burdock and carrot and stir fry for 3-4 minutes until softened
5) Add soy sauce and mirin on a ratio of 2:1, to a strength of your taste
6) Mix in 1tsp each of seasame oil and caster sugar and serve.
Komatsuna Salad
| Ingredients | Japanese Name | Price in Feb |
| 1 Large bunch of Komatsuna | 小松菜 | ¥126 |
| 200g Firm Tofu | 木綿豆腐 | ¥150 |
| 5 Desert spoons of white sesame seeds and a pestle and mortar (or 5 desert spoons of pre-ground white sesame seeds) |
白ごま | <¥40 |
| Soy Sauce | しょうゆ | <¥20 |
| Salt & Pepper | 塩こしょう |
Method
1 ) Wrap tofu in a kitchen towel or kitchen paper to remove excess water, cut into 3 squares..
2 ) If using whole white sesame, grind seeds with a pestle and mortar until at least about half has turned to powder, a little lumpy is fine.
3 ) Mix tofu into ground sesame and stir until it forms a paste.
4 ) Wash and then ease the whole bunch of Komatsuna into a pot of heated water and bring to the boil.
5 ) Drain Komatsuna and run through cold water.
6 ) Hold the Komatsuna from the root and squeeze down with your hand to drain out the greater part of the water. Komatsuna should bunch so that you can cut it in to 5cm chunks. Start at the root and when you get to the ends of the leaf, once again drain by holding it in your fist.
7 ) Add soy sauce and salt & pepper
8 ) Spoon in Tofu paste, mix and serve.
Squid and Bamboo Shoot Stir Fry
| Ingredients | Japanese Name | Price in Feb |
| 4 Shiitake Mushrooms, roughly cut | シイタケ | ¥104 for 2/3 pack |
| 2 Squids (Japanese Common Squid – Todarodes Pacificus) | するめいか | ¥198 (¥99 each) |
| Bamboo Shoot, boiled and roughly cut, (sold pre-boiled in a lot of shops in Japan) |
たけのこ（水煮） | ¥158 |
| Soy Sauce | しょうゆ | <¥20 |
| Mirin | みりん | <¥20 |
| 4 Green Perilla Leaves | 青じそ | ¥48 for pack |
Method
Preparing the squid (Click through images)
Cooking
1) Heat oil in a pan
2) Fry squid for 2-3 mins until translucency disappears
3) Add the mushrooms and bamboo shoot and stir fry for a few minutes
4) Season with soy sauce and mirin to taste
5) serve with torn green perilla leaves sprinkled on top.
