Suki Yaki

This is one of my all time favorite meals, hands down. I'm not sure if it's because it's nostalgic, or because it's so darn good, probably both. The whole family loves this meal. One of the nice things about this Japanese dish is that all the ingredients you can get at normal stores, which makes it a little less intimidating for someone who wants to try a Japanese dish for the first time. I hope you love it as much as we did.

Here are some helpful side notes about some of the ingredients. If your store has a good quality beef roast on sale for a great price, I'll usually buy that. Take your meat to the meat department in your grocery store and ask them to slice it thinly for you, this will save you A LOT of time and hassle and most store will do it for free, so why not!?! The bean threads, I think I was able to find at Walmart with the other Asian foods, they are dried, white/clear noodles. You can also check your local grocery stores, but mine didn't carry them. Follow the directions on the back of the package on softening them, which consists of covering them with boiling water and letting them sit. Mine came in a three pack tray of noodles, which is way more than we need for our family of 5. This last time I just cut one of the dry bundles of noodles and used that, and it worked and I stored the rest of the dry noodles in a ziplock for another use. Some of us in our house like the noodles more than others, so for us I think next time I'll use one of the three bundles instead of a half, so I can get my noodle fix. Also this is more of a technique than a recipe, the only recipe is really for the sauce that the ingredients are cooked in, you are more than welcome to try your own mix of veggies or other things that you like.

Suki Yaki
1 1/2 lbs beef tenderloin - thinly sliced
green onions
sliced fresh mushrooms
carrots, sliced
broccoli, cut into bite size chunks
onion, thinly sliced
napa cabbage, sliced into stripes
tofu, medium firm, cut into 1 inch cubes
bean threads

Sauce:
1 c. Soy Sauce
2 c. Water
6 TBS. Brown Sugar (you can use white sugar, but I like the flavor better with brown)

In a large deep pan, combine ingredients for the sauce and bring to a simmer and make sure the sugar is melted. Add the other ingredients in based on cooking time, making sure the sauce comes back to a boil. I like to add the meat, noodles (so they can soak up the flavor of the sauce), carrot and other firm veggies first. Once they have cooked for a couple minutes I'll add the rest and let them cook until the meat is done and cooked through. It shouldn't take the meat too long to cook since it is cut so thin. Stir the ingredients occasionally so they all get cooked evenly. I like to throw the green onions in close to the end so they don't loose their color and get limp.
Used a slotted spoon or something to get out your cooked ingredients so you don't get too much sauce and serve over rice, you can always use a spoon to get a little more sauce to put with your rice.

Sushi (California Roll)

I'm sure there are a lot of you out there that are not fans of sea food. If this is you but you're up for a little adventure this recipe is for you. It doesn't really have any seafood in it. There is Nori, but that is anything from real seafood. It is also the hardest thing for anyone to get past. I love these and wish we had them more often. Good luck and you might as well give it a try, what do you have to lose?


Sushi Rice

1/3 c. vinegar
5 Tbs. sugar
1 Tbs. salt
4 c. Japanese rice
4 c. water

Heat vinegar, sugar, and salt in a pot on the stove over medium heat until everything has dissolved. Let cool.

Rinse rice several times. Then let drain 30 minutes in a strainer. Put rice and water in rice cooker and let sit (not cooking) for 15 minutes. Cook the rice. If you don't have a rice cooker use this link to help walk you through cooking it on the stove, but make sure you use the same amount of water and rice as called for on in this recipe. (I have not tried this method since I have always used a rice cooker, so I hope it works.)

Put cooked rice and vinegar solution in a big wooden bowl (I don't have one so I always use a cookie sheet and it turns out fine). Use a rice paddle or some similar device like a spatula or large spoon to carefully use a cutting motion and stir rice and vinegar. Continuously stop and fan it to help cool. Or if you are lucky to have someone help you, you can have someone fan while you cut and stir. Once rice has cooled to room temperature it is ready.

Scrambled Eggs
2 eggs
1 tsp. sugar

In a bowl beat eggs with sugar. Heat a small frying pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray over medium heat. When hot pour eggs in it. Let it cook without stirring. If air bubbles form you may break them, but make sure some of the raw eggs fill the hole. Once the egg is set, use a spatula and flip it to the other side to cook all the way through. After it is cooked and cooled, cut the eggs into strips the same size as your carrots and cucumbers.

California Roll

Nori (seaweed sheets)
Sushi rice
Cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into long strips
Steamed Carrots, cut into strips (you want it to still have some bit to it)
Scrambled eggs

Lay out a sheet of nori shiny side down, horizontally, on a bamboo mat (I'm sure you can just do it on the counter if you don't have one, but the mat does help roll it). Spread out a thin layer of sushi rice on the nori. In the middle lay the cucumber, carrots, and eggs so you have some all the way across. Take the edge closest to you, bring it up and roll it over the eggs, cucumber, and carrots and continue to roll tightly until it is all rolled up. If you aren't eating it right away wrap it in plastic wrap, or you can cut it and put it in tubberware and put it in the fridge.