• Rinshin on September 07, 2017

  I feel badly for this book. Clearly this book needed to be translated or interpreted by someone both bilingul and proficient in cooking. And, edited better. Her recipes and intentions seem to be mangled in some recipes like pan fried noodles with pork and pak choy. She is a very careful and proficient cook and her Japanese language cookbook recipes are most often very good but this book needs better translating, explaining, and editing.

• erin g on September 11, 2010

  If I make something from this book for friends, I have to have the recipes already written up on cards to give out - no way do they let me escape without giving them the recipes! One crowd-pleaser in particular is the steamed chicken salad with sesame sauce.

• MelMM on August 04, 2010

  This is a great book of modern Japanese home cooking. Some recipes have an international twist, bringing in some American or European ingredients you might not expect, and using them in a Japanese way.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Beef on rice (Gyudon)

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    Excellent weeknight dinner.

  • Foodycat on July 09, 2014

    So simple and extremely delicious!

• Carrot and tuna salad

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    Not bad. I add sugar to the dressing.

  • TippyCanoe on March 11, 2013

    I love this crazy simple salad. The only time I ever wish I had a microwave because Kurihara has you zap the carrots for a crunchy but very slightly cooked perfection. I just steam them for about a 30 seconds.

  • stepharama1 on February 17, 2023

    Each bite I took of this made me feel healthier! I added Shichimi Togarashi (Japanese spice mix) to the dressing to spice it up a bit. This is a definite make again recipe for a quick, nutritious and delicious lunch.

• Chicken and French beans with basil rice (Tori adobo fu)

  • katieate on June 13, 2011

    was quite salty so next time will put less soy sauce

• Chicken sauté kari kari style

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    Better than it looks! Don't skimp on the green onions; they really add flavour to the chicken. Serve it with the Garlic rice.

• Garlic fried rice

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    A good side with chicken.

• Green beans with black sesame sauce

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    Visually striking. A good starter; summer salad, or for packed lunches.

• Japanese somen noodle salad

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    This is really great for lunch boxes or summer potlucks. Make sure to soak your onions in cold water if they're too strong.

• Mixed mushrooms dressing

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    A nice way to make white rice more interesting. You can substitute whatever mushrooms you have on hand.

• Pan fried noodles with pork and pak choy

  • Rinshin on September 07, 2017

    Best to make sauce first because panfried noodle will soften when it sits. Best to use ramen noodle without any seasoning cooked very al dente and rinsed in cold water. Drained well. When the sauce is cooked, pan fry the noodles without stir frying to get some crust on one side and flip over to get the crust on other side. The soup paste is hard to come by unless you shop at Japanese markets or online (it's called weipa) so best to replace the water used in this recipe with chicken stock and skip on 1 tsp soup paste. Added 1 T rehydrated small shrimp and this dish needs to be finished off with at least 1 T vinegar or more to taste. The taste of the sauce is reminiscent of hot and sour soup. Too bad it shows yakisoba in small writing because this is not yakisoba. Instead, it's what is called Chinese style Ankake soba in Japan. The taste is good and I would repeat this recipe with the changes. Uploaded a recipe photo.

  • Rinshin on September 07, 2017

    The soup paste Harumi used is called weipa in Japan. It's normally in a can and it's a thick somewhat dry paste and can be bought via Amazon. Works great in many soups, fried rice, stir-fries giving Japanese version of Chinese tastes. https://www.amazon.com/U-eipa-Ajiha-cans-500g/dp/B001TCXHY4/ref=pd_sbs_325_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=VCK5ZPXYBSKKV9HCA3M4

• Salmon burgers

  • Rinshin on January 13, 2014

    I used one regular can of salmon (6 1/2 oz) instead of fresh salmon. Instead of adding a small amount of egg, I added about 1 1/2 T mayo and about 1 T of soy sauce/lemon juice/tobandjan/sugar tare in the mixture too. This sauce is great to drizzle over the pan grilled salmon cakes. Makes for 12 small salmon cakes perfect with salad. I love the idea of using ground pork together to make salmon cakes. Next time, I plan to use ground chicken or ground turkey instead and I know they will taste just fine. It is a simple recipe with satisfying taste perfect for quick meal ready in 20 minutes with salad.

• Scallop sauté with miso sauce (Hotate no sauté miso sauce)

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    An excellent use for miso other than soup. It would make a very elegant starter.

• Steamed chicken salad with sesame sauce (Mushi dori no gomadare salad)

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    The best recipe in the book. Double the recipe or you won't have enough if you're serving a crowd. A good weeknight supper with a simple green salad on the side

• Steamed cream cheese muffins

  • stepharama1 on February 14, 2023

    These were perfect for a quick Valentine's Day treat. I added about one tablespoon of matcha to the cream cheese mixture. The muffins were very subtly sweet. If you like a sweeter muffin, you should add more sugar.

• Tofu steak

  • erin g on February 09, 2011

    A good way to convert tofu haters.

• Warm aubergine salad (Nasu no salad)

  • PickyPalateMom on March 19, 2026

    Delicious dressing can be used for many other purposes. I love the fact that the eggplant is steamed, not fried.

  • PickyPalateMom on March 19, 2026

    Terrific sesame dressing. I cut the sugar by half. Grated some ginger into the sauce, and sprinkled some nanami togarashi (mixed chili peppers) on top. Love the fact that the eggplant is steamed not fried. I added two baby bok Choi in for the last 2 minutes of steaming. Served on soba noodles.