Tokyo Style Zoni (Mochi Soup)

Zoni is mochi (rice cake) soup commonly eaten on New Year holidays.
Ingredients and cooking method of zoni differ from region to region.
This time, I show you Tokyo style zoni.
We place toasted mochi in small bowls and pour soy sauce tasted clear hot soup.

Ingredients ( for 4 )
-----for making dashi (soup stock)-----
5 cups ( 1 liter) water
10 g kombu (kelp) , wiped with damped kitchen towel
20 g katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
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4 blocks mochi
150 g boneless chicken thighs , cut into bite size and blanched in boiling water
150 g komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach) , washed
(you can cook spinach instead)
8 slices kamaboko (steamed fish paste)
a tablespoon soy sauce
a tablespoon sake

Direction
-----(making dashi soup stock)-----
Bring the kombu and water to a saucepan.
Heat them at medium heat.
Remove kombu just before the water comes to a boil.
When the water comes to a boil , stop heating.
Add the katsuobushi to the water and restart heating.
When the water returns to a boil, stop heating.
Wait until katsuobushi start to sink.
Strain contents of the pan with kitchen paper , and reserve the liquid.
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Boil the komatsuna in boiling water with a pinch of salt.
Put the komatsuna in cold water too cool.
Squeeze out excess water from the komatsuna and cut into 4 cm length.
Heat the dashi at medium heat in a saucepan.
Add the chicken thighs to the dashi.
When the dashi comes to a boil, turn the heat to low.
Add the soy sauce and sake to the dashi.
Simmer them until the chicken thighs are cooked.
Toast the mochi with a oven toaster(or pan-fry with a non-stick pan without cooking oil) until the mochi puff up.
Place the mochi,chicken,komatsuna,kamaboko on each small bowls, and pour the soup on them.

Oyakodon

Oyakodon is a bowl of rice topped with simmered chicken and egg.
Japanese word, "Oyako,親子" means parents and child.
In the name of the dish, chicken is compared to parents, and egg is compared to child.

We usually simmer bite-size cut chicken and sliced onion in mildly sweet soy sauce based broth.
Add beaten egg to them, and simmer until egg start to harden.
Put them on hot rice in a bowl.
Finally, put nori or mitsuba-leaf on it.

Hina arare

Hina arare is a traditional sweet for Japanese Girl's day (March 3rd).
On that day, families who have girl set dolls in their house and prepare special food to celebrate in hope of growth of girl in healthy.

Hina arare is popped rice coated with sugar.
Those colours, pink, white, and green are compared to peach blossom, remaining snow, and young grass ( fresh leaf) each.

Nabeyaki Udon

Udon is a Japanese noodle made from wheat flour.
Nabeyaki udon is a hot type udon dish made by simmering udon noodles with other ingredients in soy sauce taste broth.
Usually those are simmered in an earthen pot, and served.
Popular ingredients are shrimp tempura, kamaboko, egg, spinach, shiitake-mushroom, carrot, green onion(Japanese leek), etc.
Nabeyaki udon is popular in cold winter.

Horenso no Gomaae

Horenso means spinach.
I have already introduced you "Horenso no shiraae" as a dressed food.

In this time, I introduce you other dressed dish of spinach.
This is boiled spinach dressed with sesame sauce.

We usually boil spinach in hot water.
Put it cold water.
Squeeze it, and mix it with sesame sauce which is made by mixing grounded sesame seeds, soy sauce, and sugar.

Hiyamugi

Hiyamugi is a Japanese thin noodle made of wheat flour.
Hiyamugi noodle is similar to "Somen noodle".
But hiyamugi noodle is slightly thicker than somen noodle in size.

HIyamugi is usually served in cold water with ice and some vegetables.
We take a bite full of noodles and dip in the dipping sauce, and eat.
Hiyamugi is nice in summer.

Yomogi Mochi

Yomogi mochi is a traditional Japanese sweet which is also called "Kusa Mochi".

It is a mochi (glutinous rice cake) flavored with Japanese mugwort.

Usually it is stuffed with sweet red bean paste.

Yomogi is a Japanese herb.

It has a nice fresh fragrance.