All prepared food plated on a large platter and ready to cook on a large cast-iron pan placed on a table-top gas stove. Let’s party with sukiyaki!
Sukiyaki and Geisha were probably the most commonly known Japanese words to many people in the west in those days. Sukiyaki, in particular, has been known as one of the best Japanese songs to the world in those days and maybe still is today.
As you may know that Sukiyaki song has nothing to do with sukiyaki, one of the most popular Japanese meals. Good old Sukiyaki song was sung by Kyu Sakamto and touched the heart of millions of people around the world before. Sukiyaki song cheers you up when you are down. On YouTube, Sukiyaki song has been sung once again by many people around the world this month.
For those who missed our lesson 1 and 2, please read the recipes of kuwayaki BBQ sauce and boiled rice. Boiled rice goes well with sukiyaki. You will need to have cooked rice by the time we sit at a dining table to cook and enjoy sukiyaki with sake, beer and wine on Monday 4 May.
I invite you, my friends, around the world to join me cook together Sukiyaki and enjoy dinner together and cheer us up!
Ingredients: Serves 4
4 eggs and more if needed
800 g chicken thigh fillets with skin on (cut into bite-size)
8 large green onions (cut into 5 cm long both green and white part)
12 fresh shiitake mushrooms (substitute is oyster mushrooms, brown mushrooms, or any mushrooms that you like to try using in your sukiyaki)
1 bunch nabana or rape flower (substitute is white and green asparagus, broccoli)
100 g Japanese pumpkin (cut into 5 mm thick)
100 g boiled bamboo shoots (optional, cut into bite-size)
1 yaki-tofu (if available)
1 packet kakufu (kakufu is gluten curd as shown in this picture. Only if available.)
packet of kakufu
vegetable oil as needed
Kuwayaki BBQ sauce as needed (You can find kuwayaki recipe in Cook with Shuji, Lesson 1 and 2 on Shuji’s website recipe blog page.
sugar as needed
sake, or 2nd dashi stock, or water as needed
Method:
1. Cut green onions diagonally into 5cm long.
2. Cut to remove stems of shiitake mushrooms. If your shiitake are thick and large, cut into bite-size.
3. Cut off the hard bottom ends about an inch of nabana.
4. Cut yaki-tofu into an inch cube.
5. Cut kakufu into half lengthwise and slice diagonally into 5 mm thick. Boil for one minute and dunk into cold running water and drain.
6. Cut carrot into 5 mm thick medallions.
7. Arrange all ingredients except for chicken meat on a large platter.
8. Set up the dining table with a table-top stove (if you own on), plated all ingredients, eggs in a bowl, kuwayaki BBQ sauce, a bottle of sake, second dashi stock or water, v and a pair of long cooking chopsticks or a tong.
9. If you do not own a table-top stove, you can begin cooking in your kitchen when your family is all home and hungry.
10. Heat up the cast-iron sukiyaki hotpot or normal saucepan with preferably heavy bottom. And put into pinch salt and cook chicken thigh meat skin side down to sear and render. Salt helps render better. Put into green onions and brown lightly and set aside. As the fat comes out, take the chicken meat out and cut into bite-size and back into the pan and cook on high heat. You do not want to overcook the meat as they will eventually be braised in BBQ sauce and sake (or second dashi stock or water) and become tender. Add into it some, but not all the ingredients plated on a large platter. And stir fry a bit on high heat and pour into kuwayaki BBQ sauce and 1 tablespoon sugar (or raw sugar if you prefer) and cook on simmer until chicken and vegetables are cooked. Taste the broth and, if needed, add more sugar, kuwayakaki sauce, sake, (stock or water) to your taste.
11. Crack an egg into a serving bowl and beat well with chopsticks. Enjoy your own creation of chicken sukiyaki with beer, wine and sake!