by : Reiko Beans/Lentils, Potato/Squash, Soup, Tofu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Kabocha Tofu Chili
南瓜と豆腐のチリスープ

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Chili is one of my favorite dishes to make.

Especially since we stopped eating a lot of meat, I’ve become more creative and started experimenting with various ingredients.

What I’ve found is that you can’t really go wrong with chili, whatever ingredients you use!

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This is no-meat Kabocha Tofu Chili.

In this chili along with Kabocha squash and mashed extra firm tofu, you’ll find black beans and onions (I was planning to add green peppers and I forgot).

This was so tasty!

I really liked the sweetness from the Kabocha balancing the spices.

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Chili is such a great one-bowl meal.

Packed with nutrients and makes me stay full for a long time.

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Kabocha Tofu Chili

canola oil
3~4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 cups cubed Kabocha
1 package extra firm tofu, microwaved for about one minute and excess water was removed
2 cups water
2 bay leaves
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 6-oz can tomato paste
cumin
chili powder
sugar
2~3 teaspoons chipotle sauce from a jar
salt and pepper
hot sauce
japapeno peppers from a jar, chopped
chopped cilantro

1. Sautee garlic and onion in oil.
2. Add Kabocha and continue to cook.
3. Add tofu and continue to cook. Salt and pepper.
4. Add water and bay leaves. Boil and then turn down to a low heat. Continue to cook until Kabocha is cooked through.
5. Add beans, tomato paste, cumin, chili powder, sugar, chipotle paste, salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Mix well.
6. Serve with chopped jalapeno peppers and cilantro.

by : Reiko Beans/Lentils, Egg, Tofu

Stinky but Tasty Tofu Bowl
納豆キムチ豆腐

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One of the mysterious things in the culinary world is that some stinky food tastes so good.

A good example would be blue cheese.

Don’t you agree?

Well, in Japan there are a lot of stinky food that are so tasty like the ones you see in this bowl, Natto beans and kimchi.

Kimchi, a spicy pickled Napa cabbage, is technically a Korean food, but it has been loved by many in Japan the past several decades and it has become increasingly popular in the U.S. the past few years.

Natto, fermented soy beans, is, however, a different story.

It has been around in Japan for many many years, however, it has never been introduced to other countries, and it will probably stay that way, mostly because of its very strong and unique (stinky!) smell.

This is one of those “love or hate” food, and I’m definitely a Natto lover.

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In this beautiful bowl, you’ll find tofu slices, kimchi, Natto beans, a boiled egg, radish, and Shiso (Japanese basil).

It’s packed with protein and is an ultimate power meal for me!

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Terry: I can’t believe you ate Natto and kimchi.

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Terry: I told you they are banned in our house.

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Reiko: But they are so good…

*This is a fictional conversation. We were at a local baseball stadium and Terry was focused on the game.

by : Reiko Breakfast, Potato/Squash, Tofu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Tofu Scramble Breakfast
豆腐スクランブルな朝食風景

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I love our rustic dining table.

We bought it when we moved into our condo in the city.

When we lived in the suburbs we had a glass-top table.

Although it was pretty, I never liked that I had to be very careful whenever I had to put anything on the table.

So when we moved and decided to replace most of the furniture, I knew I wanted something durable as well as cool-looking.

And this was perfect!

We usually don’t eat at the dining table.

We eat typically at the kitchen island or on the couch in the living room, but I do like it when the table is set for a meal at the dining table, and I try to do it at least once a weekend.

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The tofu scramble is one of my favorite breakfast dishes.

This is so good!

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The tofu scramble was served with sauteed green peppers, roasted tomato, and Japanese sweet Satsuma hash.

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This is my husband, commenting on the placemat.

Oh, I think he was asking me if I made these.

Well, I didn’t make them, but these are certainly something I would love to make myself.

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In case you’ve never tried Japanese Satsuma potatoes, I wanted to show you what it looks like.

The skin is dark red, and the inside is white.

It tastes sweet, and you can cook it in many ways, roasting, braising, boiling, steaming, etc.

I like Satsuma potato because of its sweetness and “not so wet” texture.

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Happy Tuesday everyone.

by : Reiko Leaf Vegetabes, Soup, Tofu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Ginger White Soup
真っ白生姜スープ

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I can certainly feel that spring is just around the corner, but we still have cold days when I crave for soup.

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When I make soup, I usually make a big batch because it often seems to taste better the next day.

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For some reason I wanted to make all white soup.

I think it turned out very pretty.

I usually chop napa cabbage into bite sized pieces, but when we had a hot pot at a local Chinese restaurant they served whole leaves.

I liked the look of them in the soup, and for this soup I decided to do the same.

This is a mild tasting kind of soup where I can really appreciate the true taste of each ingredient.

I usually like to use firm tofu for a lot of my cooking, but for this soup I definitely prefer the soft one.

I love it when the tofu feels so soft and it melts in my mouth.

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Ginger White Soup

canola oil
2~4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
1 onion, sliced
2 cups cauliflower
water
2~4 cups soy milk
1/2 can corn
1/2 package soft tofu, cut into bite-sized pieces
5~10 napa cabbage leaves
sugar
salt and pepper
sesame oil
chopped chive

1. Cook garlic, ginger, and onion in oil.
2. Add cauliflower and continue to cook for a few minutes.
3. Add water to cover the cauliflower. Boil and then turn down to low-medium heat.
4. Add soy milk. Continue to cook.
5. Add corn, tofu, napa cabbage, sugar, salt, and pepper.
6. Serve with sesame oil and chive.

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A walk by the Mississippi River. One of my favorite walking/jogging courses. I keep thinking about putting this winter coat away, but it seems like I need to wait for a few more weeks…

by : Reiko Bento/Lunch Box, Leaf Vegetabes, Root vegetable, Tofu, Vegan, Vegetarian

Tofu Patty Bento
紫蘇豆腐ハンバーグ弁当

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I continue to make bento for lunch on the weekend.

The star of this bento was shiso (Japanese basil) tofu patties.

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It’s not that hard to make these, but they taste so good!

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You can certainly use these to make tofu burgers too, if you want.

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But this time they were served in this bento along with other great dishes, yuzu sesame carrots, balsamic roasted portabella mushrooms, and curried cabbage.

Shiso Tofu Patties

1 package extra firm tofu, microwaved for about one minute, roughly mashed with a masher
corn starch
1/2 cup cooked edamame, roughly chopped
3~4 tablespoons chopped Shiso (Japanese basil)
sugar
salt and pepper
canola oil
teriyaki sauce (optional): cook 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of cane sugar over medium heat until thickens.

1. Mix tofu, corn starch, edamame, shiso, sugar, salt, and pepper well. Make patties.
2. Cook both sides, for a few minutes each, in oil.
3. Coat the patties with sauce (optional).

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I always enjoy making bento, but it’s so exciting when I get to use a new box.

This one came from Kyoto Japan and is a new addition to my small bento box collection.

Love the traditional Japanese look.

And the size is just perfect for me.

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Terry’s was of course served in his own bento box.

Although he gets the exact same dishes, it looks different in this metal box, which I think is pretty cool.

If you are interested in these and other Japanese bento boxes, check out Bento & Co.

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by : Reiko Leaf Vegetabes, Pasta/Noodle/Rice, Root vegetable, Seafood, Tofu

NABE Hot Pot
アメリカだって鍋

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Yes, it’s the time of the year for NABE, or Japanese hot pot.

When we moved to the condo in the city from the house in the suburbs a few years ago, one of the thing we did was downsizing.

A big one.

Well, we had over 3500 square feet in the house and we shrank our home to less than a half of it.

We got rid of a lot of things, and we actually enjoyed the whole experience.

When you go through a process like thins you realize how much unnecessary stuff you accumulate over years.

Since we moved to the condo, I’ve been careful in terms of what to buy, and I pay attention not only to the price but also to how much space it would take and how often we would use it.

I bought this NABE pot after we moved here.

It was rather an impulsive buy, but overall I’m happy with this purchase.

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I was happy to find the dried shiitake mushrooms and dried Kombu seaweed at the local grocery store.

I used these as the base of the NABE soup in which I cooked the fish and vegetables.

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NABE is probably one of the easiest things to prepare.

Basically you cut ingredients into bite-sized pieces, and that’s pretty much it.

Of course if you have extra time, you can always make your carrots look pretty (lol).

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Add all the ingredients into the boiled soup.

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Turn the heat down, cover, and then wait.

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You can basically use any vegetables, meat, and seafood.

This time I used cod, napa cabbage, scallion, carrots, tofu, and clear noodle, and served with a mixture of soy sauce, white vinegar, and sesame oil as a dipping sauce.

A great thing about NABE, other than that it’s tasty, is that it brings people to the dining table.

Well, in our household “people” would be me and my husband, but it did bring us to the dining table, and had us sit across from each other and a have a great conversation while taking time enjoying the dinner.

We always eat together if both of us are home, but we don’t always sit at the dining table and we often sit next to each other on the couch and eat while watching TV.

We don’t have to do this all the time but it was a great way to enjoy each other’s company, and I wouldn’t mind doing it again soon.

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