Notes about Recipes in this book

• Chicken and celery salad

  • Stephenn31 on August 16, 2023

    Excellent on a hot day. I used left over rotisserie chicken instead of frying up a breast. Great as a side dish with something else. Nice tangy dressing

• Deep-fried chicken with a leek sauce

  • Rinshin on February 13, 2014

    I have my own version of this recipe that is based on Harumi's recipe from her Japanese language cookbook. That version is better and more vibrant. I tried the English language version and I thought the recipe is good, maybe 4 to 4.25 out of 5. It is a taste that is very familiar to many Japanese. Used skinless and boneless chicken thighs. Cooks very quickly - maybe within 6-7 minutes. The use of leeks is mis-translation and I believe any green onion works perfectly and is better. Perfect for weekday menu.

• Karaage chicken

  • itseloise on January 22, 2012

    no joke about the short marination time - i left it longer and it was way too salty. I'd do more ginger next time too. the cornstarch-heavy crust was not my favorite texture - will try again with panko or something i think. that said, my husband thought it was amazing and called it "crack" so it will definitely be in the rotation.

• Japanese tsukune with teriyaki sauce

  • Rinshin on May 28, 2015

    I cook many of Harumi's recipes from her Japanese web site as well as her Japanese language books and magazines. This is the recipe to use for Japanese style tsukune using either ground chicken or pork. Great tasting in bento because these keep and tasty even room temperature. Favorite among Japanese.

• Ginger pork

  • TrishaCP on November 28, 2022

    This was really easy and pretty tasty. The pork was very tender. (I used a tenderloin.)

  • Stephenn31 on December 17, 2022

    Quick and easy. Do take the time to slice as thinly as possible

• Green beans with minced pork

  • erin g on January 02, 2011

    You can use sugar snap peas with this as well.

  • jenmmcd on October 11, 2020

    I love this recipe. It's very simple yet somehow very flavorful. I also add sliced baby portobello mushrooms.

• Prawns in crispy breadcrumbs

  • itseloise on January 24, 2013

    nice texture on the cooked breading, though a bit bland and kind of hard to work with (very thick). i'd add some spice or something to it next time.

• Rice with soy-flavoured pork and carrots

  • erin g on January 02, 2011

    Excellent for bento.

  • TrishaCP on April 05, 2023

    This was a really enjoyable meal. Not sure the extra flavoring given to the rice was all that necessary, because the pork/carrot mixture was pretty assertive. I was heavy-handed with the pepper at the end, and that was a really good decision.

• Fried rice with crabmeat

  • meggan on September 13, 2017

    This is simple and just ok - I put too much of the garlic soy in as the recipe makes enough for the year.

• Udon noodles with a minced meat miso sauce

  • meggan on March 27, 2020

    A delicious ragu - I had to sub onions for leeks.

• Pumpkin with a sweet sesame glaze

  • erin g on January 02, 2011

    Also excellent for bento.

  • itseloise on January 22, 2012

    turned to mush with the full amt of water indicated (1 1/2 c) so I'll try with less next time. the sesame seeds make the dish I think. an easy side, but nothing terribly amazing. in general i find squash plenty sweet without sugar added, though maybe with less water and more of a glazed-individual pieces effect i'd think differently.

• Watercress with a light peanut dressing

  • abrownb1 on December 29, 2023

    This recipe is a bit different from that the usual preparation with sesame seeds so I was excited to try it but the amount of peanut butter is way too much. It looked like a lot after mixing so I took out half before adding the watercress and it was still too much. I wonder if it was supposed to be 4 tsp instead of tbsp? Regardless 1/4 of the recipe is more than enough to dress the watercress and it's nice with rice.

• Asparagus shiraae

  • lorloff on June 12, 2016

    A Very good dish. Enhanced reg flavor of the tofu sauce by using 3X the miso (1 T white/shiro 1T red and 1T garlic miso also used smoked soy sauce. Used double the asparagus for the amount of sauce. Will definately make again. Super healthy. The Guardian was right to put this in its top 10.

• New potatoes with prawns and chicken Japanese-style

  • pengdonna on January 20, 2024

    The prawns don't add much to the sauce

• Hot lightly pickled cauliflower

  • erin g on January 02, 2011

    Excellent recipe! I keep a bottle in the fridge always.

• Japanese coleslaw salad

  • Stephenn31 on February 19, 2023

    Easy with a lot of flavour and balance.

• Kavey Eats

  ...it reflects the reality of how many Japanese now cook at home, eagerly incorporating ingredients and influences from around the world...

  Full review