The Japan Leg: Sushi and Miso Soup

Konnichiha friends!

Just finished watching the episode and visiting Japan is definitely on my bucket list!!!

As for dinner tonight, I decided to make some quick sushi and some miso soup, a little different than the traditional kind.

Ingredients for miso soup

5 cups organic chicken broth

1.5 tbsp soy sauce

10 fresh mushrooms (whatever you have in the fridge)

6 ouces firm tofu, I used silken

3 tbsp cider vinegar

1 tbsp minced ginger

1.5 tsp sesame oil

3/4 ground black pepper

1 cup cilantro & spinach

To make

Bring the broth to a boil. Add the mushrooms and boil for a minute, stirring occasionally. Add the tofu, soy sauce, cider vinegar, ginger, sesame oil, cilantro and spinach. Wait until the soup bubbles and thickens, about 30 seconds. Done!

Ingredients for sushi

1 avocado

1 tbsp organic veganaise  (no egg mayo)

1-2 sheets of nori (seaweed)

4-5 shrimp (grilled or tempura)/any type of fish

sliced carrot & cucumber

rice (buy the sticky rice, I didn’t and my sushi kind of fell apart)

1 tsp rice vinegar

tender ginger

toasted sesame seeds

To make

*I used whatever rice I had in my pantry, but buy proper sticky rice for ideal sushi…next time I guess.
I thought I’d share this video of how to make sushi, this is what I followed. It’s so easy!                     ***make sure to plastic wrap your sushi mat!

mmm!

Sayonara friends!

*click on the photo to enlarge :)

Risotto & Scallops

Another one of my favourite shows is Top Chef [drool]. This season, it’s Top Chef all stars! Many of these Chefs are owners of renowned restaurants in NYC and some work or have worked for the most popular restaurants in the U.S.  (so rad!)

Photo Credit: eater.com

I mean these Chefs are the crème de la crème, but they just can’t seem to make risotto the right way. Many chefs have been eliminated because their risotto…turned out to be a big fat FAIL. One of my favourite’s Trey “the Black Italian” got eliminated because of his risotto…really?!

So I decided to give this dish a try. I had to run to Jamie Oliver for some help, since I’m a newbie.

This dish is a tricky one…

Ingredients

risotto

1 cup arborio rice

3.5 cup organic chicken/veggie broth

1/4 cup white wine

1/4 cup diced tomatoes

1/4 cup aged white cheddar cheese (shredded)

1/4 cup onions (minced)

2 cloves of garlic (minced)

lemon zest and squeeze

*Add: any fresh herbs that you have. I added literally every herb I had.

pan-seared scallops

5 scallops

salt & pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

To make risotto
(I followed Jamie Oliver but tweeked it just a bit)

stage 1

Heat the stock. In a separate pot heat the olive oil, add the onions and garlic, fry very slowly for about 7 minutes without coloring. When the vegetables have softened, add the rice and turn up the heat to medium.

stage 2

The rice will now begin to lightly fry, so keep stirring! After a minute it will look slightly translucent. Add the wine and keep stirring!

stage 3

Once the wine has cooked into the rice, add your first ladle of hot stock. Turn down the heat to a simmer so the rice doesn’t cook too quickly on the outside. Keep adding ladlefuls of stock ( about 1/2 cup), stirring the creamy starch out of the rice, allowing each ladleful to be absorbed before adding the next.

This will take around 17-20 minutes. Taste the rice — is it cooked?  Carry on adding stock until the rice is soft but with a slight bite.

stage 4

Remove from the heat and add cheese and tomato. Stir well. Place a lid on the pan and allow to sit for 2 minutes. This is the most important part of making the perfect risotto!

Eat it as soon as possible!

To make pan-seared scallops

Thaw scallops and add some salt and pepper. Drop 2 tbsp of olive oil in a medium size pan, add scallops. Cook till they are golden on each side.

Nom!

With the wind throwing the wet snow/rain against my windows this evening, this warm risotto, lemony with a touch of fresh herbs and pan seared scallops is the perfect dish! mmm!