For me, traveling (KYOTO: ONSEN BARENESS) is about discovering recipes and adding my own touch to create easy meals at home. During my trips to Japan (HOKKAIDO WINTERLUST), I learned that Japanese cuisine includes many vegetarian dishes. However, replicating them exactly proved challenging, as I didn’t want to buy specific Japanese ingredients. Over the course of three months, I successfully prepared four vegetarian dishes using whatever ingredients were available at home and those I could buy without breaking the budget (OSAKA: SACRED DEER TO SKY-HIGH SUNSETS).
Ingredients
1 cup breadcrumbs
2 sprigs spring onion, shredded
Salt and pepper to taste
For the dipping sauce
2-3 tbsp Japanese soy sauce
1/2 tbsp roasted sesame seeds
A pinch of sugar
Method
In a bowl, mix breadcrumbs with shredded spring
onion, salt, and pepper.
Roll each tofu piece in the breadcrumb mixture
until coated evenly.
Heat oil in a deep fryer or skillet and fry the
tofu until golden brown.
In a separate bowl, combine Japanese soy sauce,
roasted sesame seeds, and a pinch of sugar to make the dipping sauce.
Serve the crispy tofu katsu with the dipping sauce
on the side.
Ingredients
1 small leek, sliced
200g dried black mushrooms, soaked to soften and sliced
1 piece white tofu, cubed into medium-sized pieces
Spring onion for garnishing
For the soup base
1/2 litre water
2 tbsp dashi paste (or as needed)
2 tbsp mirin
Salt and white pepper to taste
Method
Simmer lotus root in water until softened.
Add the remaining ingredients except tofu and
leeks.
Stir and heat through.
Add tofu and leeks, gently stirring to avoid
breaking the tofu.
After 2-3 minutes, remove from heat.
Garnish with spring onion before serving.
Ingredients
250g (1 medium size) radish, peeled, thickly sliced, and scored in between
1 tsp dashi paste, dissolved in 4 cups of water
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp Japanese soy sauce
3 tbsp mirin
Spring onions for garnishing
Method
Place radish in a saucepan with dashi paste,
sugar, soy sauce, and sake.
Bring to a boil for 10 minutes and remove any
impurities from the surface.
Reduce heat and simmer covered over very low heat
for 1 hour until radish is tender and lightly browned.
Stir in mirin, then remove from heat.
Let it sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Garnish with spring onion.
Ingredients
1/2 liter vegetable stock
3 - 4 shiitake mushrooms, soaked to soften and sliced
1/2 inch ginger, sliced
10 garlic cloves, lightly smashed
Method
In a heated pot, sauté ginger and garlic in oil.
Pour in vegetable stock.
Add radish and mushrooms, simmer until both are
soft and tender.
Stir in soy sauce, then remove from heat.
Garnish with spring onion before serving.
Ingredients
1 small yellow capsicum, seeds removed and sliced into medium-sized pieces
2 medium-sized eggplants, peeled with alternating strips of skin removed, then sliced into rounds
4 tbsp oil
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 inch ginger, chopped
1-2 tbsp roasted white sesame seeds
Spring onion for garnishing
For the sauce
1-2 tbsp chili sauce
2 tsp mirin
1 tbsp Japanese soy sauce
Sugar to taste
1-2 red chilies, thinly sliced
Salt to taste (taste before adding)
Method
Soak eggplant and capsicum in cold water for 10
minutes, then drain and pat dry.
Heat oil in a pan, add garlic and ginger, then
stir-fry until fragrant.
Add eggplant and capsicum, stir-fry for 5 minutes,
adding a bit of water to soften the veggies.
(Note: It may take a while to soften unless you
stir-fry over high heat.)
Add chili sauce, mirin, chilies, soy sauce, sugar,
and salt. Stir-fry for 1 minute.
Remove from heat and sprinkle sesame seeds over the
dish.
Garnish with spring onion before serving.
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