I love canned fish. When I was little, I would eat canned sardines in miso sauce by the spoonful. Like ice cream! Haha. During my year living in Italy, I learned how to make this dish: pasta with canned tuna, onions and tomatos. So easy! In Italy I also discovered the increased quality and flavor of Mediterranean tuna, since it is prominently canned in olive oil.

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Ladies and gentlemen, meet Keisuke aka Kid Skwid, my beloved brother. He has recently been promoted to sous chef at the famed Spago restaurant in Beverly Hills. Congrats, K! And lucky for us, he will grace the pages of Umami Mart regularly, with simple yet fancypants recipes taken from his impressive home-cooked breakfasts on his Instagram feed (@kidskwid5). Make sure to follow him, like and comment on his photos — the more popular photos will be featured here and he’ll show us exactly how to prepare the dishes.

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Remember when Yoko posted that pornlicious article about how to make ikura-don (salmon roe over rice), topped with a raw egg? Well, one night, she invited me over for dinner and she made ikura spaghetti!!!

What a gluttonous noodle feast in a bowl. The al dente pasta had been lightly sauteed with garlic and tossed with an egg yolk. Then, she topped the noodles with a generous spoonful of her house-cured ikura.

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Spaghetti alla Chitarra prepared by chef Dan Kluger at The Core Club. He is now the chef at ABC Kitchen in NYC.

Photo by Erin Gleeson.

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Spaghetti with asari (clams), shirauo (little white fish) and arugula at Pizzeria Matsuhisa in Denenchofu, Tokyo. Someday, I will open a wafu (Japanese-style) pasta shop in Oakland.

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I can’t believe I just spent another weekend in a kolonihus (colony house). But that’s how the Scandinavians roll and who can say no to a pumpkin ravioli punch?

My Icelandic friend’s friend has a cute little cottage in Copenhagen which she visits regularly on weekends and slowly tries to repair and build into a fabulous little summer home with an attached vegetable garden.

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When I say Liguria, I’m talking about the Ligurian coast in the Italian Riviera. Topographically different from the rest of Italy, the coastline is scattered with mountainous cliffs that drop straight down into the ocean, and hidden beaches are nestled away in unspoiled coves. Idyllic Santa Margherita and Portofino were the two stops for us in the region. Cinque Terre was also on the list but our attempt to visit the popular cluster of fishing towns embedded into the cliffside was thwarted by a train strike and no ferry service.

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I try not to buy many kitchen gadgets, especially since the mandolin was such a big mistake. Not only did I almost lose my finger, but there’s not much use for it. I have a stand mixer that I use all the time, and the meat grinder attachment is awesome, especially in the summertime for homemade burgers.

I tried to make homemade pasta a couple of weeks ago, and completely failed.

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Dear De Cecco, Barilla, and all other major pasta producers of the world: you should be ashamed of yourself, letting Japan come up with the smartest packaging for pasta EVER.

This one is “Mama” brand that my own mama Hideko picked up at the Japanese grocery store. Kinda ironic that she would even consider buying pasta from Japan. What can I say, though– if it makes her feel closer to her homeland by buying Western products written in Japanese typography, so be it.

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Remember when I made kimchi fried rice? It has become my staple meal when I feel ultra lazy. Read: ALL THE TIME.

So how panicked was I when I went to the kitchen yesterday to take out all the precious ingredients out of the fridge, but then realize that I was missing RICE.

Epic FAIL. As @Jerkey pointed out, “What self-respecting Japanese person does not have rice at hand at all times??”

Apparently, this Japanese person.

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