Umami Mart Gift Guide

Lazyass Cookin': Ebi Chili

Cooking time: 5 minutes.The Japanese have perfected the art of lazy cooking. Instant ramen, instant white rice, instant consomme, instant miso soup complete with tofu and green onions. Where do you think I get it from?So the other...

Chinatown, Bangkok Pt. 2: T & K Seafood

In the first post of this series Chinatown, Bangkok, I covered a little family run cockle and mussel stand. I mentioned, “Two stalls hawking some of the finest seafood around,” and promised to follow up with an additional post. While it’s been nearly a year, I’d like to post...

Casa de Kei

Casa de Kei: Kampachi Kama Soup

INGREDIENTS 1 kampachi kama (or any other desired fish collar like yellowtail, red snapper, or salmon) make sure to clean it thoroughly for scales and grit, it is not pleasant to eat 1 bunch komatsuna (or spinich) 5 small matsutake mushrooms (or any other mushroom...

Skankynavia

Skankynavia: Swedish Birthday

Two gay men got married in the early 00's (yes, that's right USA, listen and learn from the Danes), spent eight years together, got divorced, and became good friends again after some time. Straight people could also earn learn a thing or two from the...

Casa de Kei

Casa de Kei: Asari Garlic Butter

INGREDIENTS 1 pound Manila clams (I used fresh ones from the Farmer's Market) 1/4 yellow onion, diced small 2 Santa Fe peppers or jalepenos, de-seeded, diced small 2 stalks of lemongrass, cut bottom part off, diced small 1 cup white wine...

The Swedish Chef

The Swedish Chef: Saffron Mussels

Mytilus edulis, also known as the common mussel, is a medium-sized edible “marine bivalve mollusc” in the family Mytilidae, or simply, mussels. I sure most of you have had Moules-frites when in France, but the dish is actually from Belgium, and dates back as far as...

Japanify

Japanify: Egg-On-Egg Pasta

One of my favorite things to find at the fish counter is sujiko (fish roe). Its appearance is fleeting so I end up getting pounds of it to take advantage of the situation. I swear I could never get bored of ikura....

Japanify

Japanify: Chopped Shiitake + Clam Pasta

I am really into pulverizing food lately. In addition to my daily dose of fruit smoothie in the morning, I've also been experimenting with finely chopped foods. Chopping things can only be a pleasure if you have a really sharp knife, which is why I've been...

Japanify

Japanify: Ebi Chili

Ebi Chili is the best example of a dish that has been Japanified. It was originally created in the 1950s by a Chinese immigrant in Japan, taking cues from Sichuan-style cooking. It's a shrimp dish that has a little spice and a little sweetness, perfect...

Japanify

Japanify: Mentaiko Rice Redux

Forgive me, I am going to cheat a little here... like that "100 Episodes of Seinfeld" episode. I think Umami Mart has been around long enough for something like that. So this is a re-post/interpretation of another post I wrote in Tokyo 4...