Putting Sushi in the Rotation

But the real star of the week was the squash

This was a bit of a chaotic week, but the extra day off work on Monday (MLK Day) gave me the chance to spend a little more time playing in the kitchen. We kicked things off with a make-your-own temaki dinner. I picked up bluefin otoro, yellowtail, and ikura from our local Japanese grocer, and I finally got to properly test using a hangiri to cool and season sushi rice.

Yes, you can use a wide bowl, but this simple tool really does make a difference. The wood has a subtle cedar aroma and helps pull excess moisture from the rice, allowing it to cool quickly without turning mushy. Here’s the spread. We also added some inari and I made a quick miso soup.

This week I worked through four more recipes from The Wok. We started with Pad Kra Pao (pg. 112). I’ve made this dish using a number of recipes (my favorite is from Hot Thai Kitchen), and I’d say Kenji’s version is solid. I especially liked the addition of green beans. I substituted ground chicken for the beef, and unfortunately my egg stuck to the pan a bit, so I lost some of those crispy edges. I also made the Prik Nam Pla to season everything at the table.

Next up was the Japanese Mapo Tofu (pg. 600). This is really quite good, but very mild and slightly sweet. Mapo tofu is easily in my top ten favorite dishes, but specifically the Sichuan version. While I enjoyed this, I don’t see it becoming a regular in the rotation. That said, I’ve probably made it three times since owning this cookbook, so maybe I like it more than I’m willing to admit.

That same evening I made the Kabocha Squash with Miso and Sake (pg. 199). This one is absolutely going into the rotation. It’s delicious, a bit salty, and packed with umami. I had no idea you could cook kabocha squash with the skin on, but it works beautifully, adding texture while saving a ton of prep time. I started eating it alongside the mapo tofu, but quickly found myself stirring it directly into the meat and tofu to give the dish more punch. This is a fantastic side dish.

Finally, Crispy Fried Tofu with Broccoli and Garlic Sauce (pg. 506). Full disclosure: I didn’t follow this recipe exactly. We weren’t in the mood to stink up the house by deep frying, and earlier in the day I’d seen a video of someone crisping tofu in a waffle maker. I really wish I’d taken photos of this step. While it’s obviously not the same as wet-battered, deep-fried tofu, it still delivers a great crispy texture and absorbs sauce beautifully. Even better, the waffle maker creates little pockets that collect sauce.

I used Costco frozen broccoli, so there was no need to pre-boil—just a quick microwave in the bag—and the whole dish came together fast. I did make my own fermented black bean sauce, which I highly recommend if you can find fermented black soybeans. They last forever in the freezer.

Overall, a very productive week. It’s holding true that I can manage about four recipes per week, which officially puts me at 6.70% completed.

Kenji López-Alt, the author of The Wok, recently released a wok that he spent over a year developing with Our Place. It’s expensive, but given how much time I’ll be spending with a wok in my hands this year, I treated myself. Hopefully it arrives before next weekend. I’ll share a proper review in a few weeks after I’ve really put it through its paces.