I love shiso. Shiso is a leafy herb that is used in Japanese cooking to add flavor, aroma and color. It is also known as perilla or beefsteak plant. The green type or aojiso (green shiso) is used in plating sashimi along with daikon. The flower of the shiso is also used with wasabi and shoyu to dip your sashimi in. Shiso is also used in salads, goes well with sliced tomatoes and onions, pasta and meat dishes. The purple type or akajiso (red shiso) is used in the flavoring and coloring of umeboshi (pickled plum). If someone asked me to explain what it’s like I would have to say that it is similar to the mint or basil. But it really has a flavor and aroma of its own.
In my past article I talked about a fried chicken dish that uses shiso. I have another chicken and shiso dish that I would like to share with you. My husband does some work with the Tokyo American Club, currently in Shinagawa, and picked up this very simple pupu recipe using shiso leaves, grilled chicken, cream cheese and tonkatsu sauce. It is very easy to make. I have not seen it personally nor have I tasted Tokyo American Club’s version so the tonkatsu sauce could be oyster sauce for all I know. But when he came home from his business trip and created the dish for us, the tonkatsu sauce went so well with the pupu that in our home, we use tonkatsu sauce. So here goes:
Shiso, chicken and cream cheese pupu
Ingredients (pupu for two-four persons, to be served at room temperature):
Two packs of shiso leaves (they usually sell with about 8-10 leaves in each pack) One large chicken breast Small cubes of cream cheese Tonkatsu sauce
The shiso is cleaned and dried and layed out on a platter. The chicken breast can be fried in a pan or grilled. I prefer grilled with salt and pepper. Then dice the chicken into bite size cubes. Place one piece of chicken on one leaf of shiso, then place a cube of cream cheese and then a dab of tonkatsu sauce. So easy and so oishii! And that shiso flavor…perfect!
Everyone is into eating healthy these days...I am one of them. I have always enjoyed raw vegetables even as a child but carrots were not one of the veggies that I ate. I used to think Bugs Bunny made them look so tasty but it just wasn't my favorite. My husband loves raw carrots and now so do I. We are lucky that nowadays they sell those baby carrots-no peeling and no cutting.
The very first recipe that I made of Harumi's a few years ago was her Carrot and Tuna Salad. It is so easy to make and it is very delicious.
Ingredients: (for 4)
3 medium carrots, peeled 1/4 cup finely chopped onion 1 TSP chopped garlic 1 TBSP sunflower or vegetable oil 3 ounces canned tuna, drained (good-quality tuna, such as imported Italian brands, recommended but I used regular ones on sale and it was quite good)
Dressing: 1 TBSP white wine vinegar 1 TBSP mustard (preferably French whole-grain mustard) Salt and pepper to taste Shoyu to taste (makes the salad Japanese!)
Slice carrots thinly lengthwise, then crosswise to form 2-inch long julienne cuts. Place them in medium-size, microwave-safe bowl and add onion, garlic and oil. Cover and microwave at 50% power for 1 1/2 minutes. (I don't think my microwave can nuke at 50% power so I just microwaved at regular power.) Once the carrots are lightly cooked, add the drained tuna and then dressing and mix well. (The can of tuna may be more than 3 ounces so I suggest that you use the whole can.)
Serve hot, at room temperature or cold. (I prefer it chilled.)
This salad is very refreshing and healthy. Please enjoy!
In the Honolulu Advertiser on April 26, 2006 featuring Harumi Kurihara, there was a recipe for her Leaf-Wrapped Fried Chicken. It is basically bite-size chicken thighs (skin on) marinated, deep fried and then served with a selection of herbs, lettuce leaves and sweet chili sauce. Well, my husband loves fried chicken "Japanese"style, aka "karaage." He picked up this other recipe on one of JAL's in-flight magazine. It is Shiso-Wrapped Chicken Tenders. In this recipe I had to wrap the sliced chicken breasts on a skewer, then wrap the shiso around it and then deep fry it. This is actually a tedious thing to do. So I came up with my own version that combines the best of Harumi's and JAL's recipes. It is called Arly's Shiso-Wrapped Chicken Karaage.
Ingredients:
Two of us can finish this off as a pupu
2 chicken breasts (skinless) 10 or more shiso leaves 3 TBSP cornstarch 2 TBSP all-purpose flour oil for deep frying
Marinade (from Harumi): 1 TBSP shoyu, 1/2 TBSP shokoshu (Chinese sake) I substituted Japanese sake, 1/2 tsp crushed garlic, salt to taste
Harumi's Recipe: In a flat baking dish mix together the ingredients for the marinade. Here is the keyand this is what I like about Harumi's recipe, pierce the chicken in several places before cutting into smaller bite size pieces. Place in marinade for 30 minutes, turning several times.
Drain chicken on paper towels. In a bowl, lightly mix the cornstarch and flour together. My recipe: Wrap a shiso leave around the chicken and roll the chicken pieces in the mixture so that they're generously dusted.
In a heavy, deep frying pan, heat oil to 340 degrees. Deep-fry shiso-wrapped chicken pieces, without crowding, for 4-5 minutes, until crisp, golden and cooked through. Work in batches. Drain cooked chicken on paper towels and keep warm.
JAL's recipe: Dipping sauce for the chicken (I increased it because my husband loves his sauces): 2 TBSP shoyu, 1 TBSP rice vinegar and a generous dab of ume paste(if you don't have ume paste you can crush a few umeboshi, the salty kind, and use that instead)
JAL's recipe ends with, "Serve with a chilled premium Japanese lager." Okay, I'll go for an Asahi. Totemo oishii desu yo!
I first heard of Harumi in 2004 when I was consulting for a hotel in Kyushu. A popular Japanese food celebrity with her own line of cookware, television shows, magazines and restaurants, we thought it would be a great marketing ploy to have her come to our hotel for some programs. I was so busy working that I didn’t understand her popularity at that time. Her business empire and restaurants are called “Yutori no Kukan” (a space to relax). I recall seeing one of the restaurants at Canal City in Fukuoka. There were Japanese ladies in line, waiting to partake at Harumi’s buffet…lots of fresh vegetables and seasonal items. Healthy and tasty.
There was an article about her in the Honolulu Advertiser in 2006. Titled the “Martha Stewart of Japan,” Harumi denied that she was anything like Martha, an entrepreneur, but a regular Japanese homemaker with a husband and two children who enjoyed cooking for them. Having grown up in a very traditional Japanese family in Shimoda where her mother cooked all the family’s meals from scratch and still lives, she adopted her mother’s habits and did the same for her own family.
My husband started bringing back her quarterly magazine in 2007. He would buy it at Narita Airport at the end of his business trip. I could barely read her recipes at first. It was just too much of a hassle to read the Japanese much less change the grams to ounces, etc. You know what I mean. But the magazines are so well done, so classy and elegant. The pictures are beautiful and the themes are so heartwarming. Her recipes combine Japanese and western cooking and are very easy to understand. Her ideas are innovative, functional and practical. I like the concurrent topics in each magazine...something about her family, cooking with her mom at her Shimoda home, gourmet trips in Japan and abroad, gardening (flowers/plants/herbs), home decorating, dishes and cookware. The articles about her family are very personal and sometimes make me cry. Her recent article about her dad who passed away a few years ago really touched my heart. Her lifestyle magazine haru_mi celebrates the regular life of a typical homemaker in Japan. “Futsuu no kurashi ga tanoshii.” A regular lifestyle is enjoyable. I think that she motivates housewives to have fun and take pride in cooking and taking care of their families. She has elevated domesticity to an art form. Her concept of “yutori no kukan” or “a space to relax” is not a physical place but a state of mind, an attitude. I am at that point in my life where I can understand and appreciate that concept completely. Maybe that’s why I have connected with Harumi. I feel like I know her.
Traditional Japanese cooking and then...
PIZZA!
Her family's favorite yakisoba (fried noodle dish) with komatsuna, shiitake and pork.
Harumi's mom at her traditional Japanese style home in Shimoda making saba no oborozushi (mackerel sushi).
I will be blogging some of her recipes as well as some of her recipes that I have altered to adapt to my liking in the future. She has cookbooks out in English too. I believe she visited Hawaii in the fall of 2007 which included a luncheon event at the Halekulani. I hope that she comes back soon.
The floral bouquet clearly depicts the beautiful colors of autumn in Japan.
Harumi's cookware
Simple and yet beautiful presentations
Harumi's potato salad, a part of her teishoku (complete meal) including pork ginger, sashimi, pickles, soup and rice.
Harumi's potato salad made by yours truly!
Harumi’s Potato Salad This goes well with pork ginger. Her husband loves the blend of flavors when combining the two dishes. (These comments about her family...that's what makes the articles vivid.)
Ingredients (for 4) 4 potatoes (about 420 grams or 1 pound) 2 cucumbers ¼ round onion 2 slices of roast ham powder bouillon, salt, pepper ¼ cup mayonnaise
1) Peel potatoes, cut in quarters. Soak in water, drain. Place a sheet of paper towel in bowl and put potatoes on top. Put plastic wrap. Nuke for 5 ½ minutes. (I had to nuke mine twice that time. Best to test.) Take towel out of bowl, mash up and sprinkle instant bouillon. Chill. 2) Slice cucumbers 5 mm (real thin). Put in bowl, sprinkle salt and let sit till tender. Drain. Slice onion in half and in thin slices. Soak in water and drain. Slice ham in small bite size. 3) Mix in bowl: potatoes, cucumber, onions, ham. Salt and pepper to taste.
It's so easy to make and has a "Japanese" taste to it. Itadakimasu!
Posts
