Going Japanese
I have finally some time to sit down to my stash of cookbooks which I have mentioned in my previous post. So here's my review of the first two books to start the ball rolling.
The previous night, I picked up this pretty pink book entitled "The Japanese Women Don't Get Old Or Fat". For some reason, instead of reading from cover to cover, I scanned through the contents page and I was drawn to the last chapter "The Samurai Diet". It was certainly an interesting read. It tells abit of the history of Japan and how it shaped the way the Japanese eats and at the end of the chapter, the author invites the reader to try The Japanese Power Breakfast (consist of cooked brown rice, miso soup, eggs and vegetables) as an introduction to eating The Japanese Way.
Maybe I am a simpleton, or maybe I am a prey of this author cum marketing counsultant. Whichever it is, I decided to give it a try since Hubby has been complaining that he is a borderline obese case and he loves Japanese food, it seems like this might just be the answer to help him shed some extra flab.
And this was how it led me to my second book - The Japanese Kitchen.
This deceptively simple looking book is packed with many recipes of dishes which are found in most Japanese eateries and restaurants located here. I had expected that the Japanese cookbooks to have instructions that are so voluminous in directions and precise in techinques that rocket science looks kindergarden level. Think how merticulous the Japs are in making tea. But this book was none of all that. It was written in a simple instructional way and easy to understand, at least to this newbie of Japanese cooking. Many of the dishes are easy to prepare and it would be easier if pre-mixes and ready sauces are used. Well, I guess that in Japanese cooking, it is not how many ingredients that goes into the pot to make a dish taste good, it is the quality of the ingredients used that matters.
So armed with some recipes from the book, I made dashi stock from scratch and thereafter assorted mushroom miso soup, white rice and also an omelette this morning. Here's a snap shot of it:
Hopefully, this is a harbinger of more healthful meals to come.
The previous night, I picked up this pretty pink book entitled "The Japanese Women Don't Get Old Or Fat". For some reason, instead of reading from cover to cover, I scanned through the contents page and I was drawn to the last chapter "The Samurai Diet". It was certainly an interesting read. It tells abit of the history of Japan and how it shaped the way the Japanese eats and at the end of the chapter, the author invites the reader to try The Japanese Power Breakfast (consist of cooked brown rice, miso soup, eggs and vegetables) as an introduction to eating The Japanese Way.
Maybe I am a simpleton, or maybe I am a prey of this author cum marketing counsultant. Whichever it is, I decided to give it a try since Hubby has been complaining that he is a borderline obese case and he loves Japanese food, it seems like this might just be the answer to help him shed some extra flab.
And this was how it led me to my second book - The Japanese Kitchen.
This deceptively simple looking book is packed with many recipes of dishes which are found in most Japanese eateries and restaurants located here. I had expected that the Japanese cookbooks to have instructions that are so voluminous in directions and precise in techinques that rocket science looks kindergarden level. Think how merticulous the Japs are in making tea. But this book was none of all that. It was written in a simple instructional way and easy to understand, at least to this newbie of Japanese cooking. Many of the dishes are easy to prepare and it would be easier if pre-mixes and ready sauces are used. Well, I guess that in Japanese cooking, it is not how many ingredients that goes into the pot to make a dish taste good, it is the quality of the ingredients used that matters.
So armed with some recipes from the book, I made dashi stock from scratch and thereafter assorted mushroom miso soup, white rice and also an omelette this morning. Here's a snap shot of it:
Hopefully, this is a harbinger of more healthful meals to come.
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