Japanese Week

David, enjoying his tempura and cold noodles.

It all started with a trip during lunch up to the oldest Japanese grocery in New York city, Katagiri 224 East 59th Street. Opened at this exact spot in 1907, Katagiri carries everything from fresh shiso leaves to frozen broiled eel to natto that even more fermented soybean Japanese "delicacy" (ew!). I have tried it, I will try anything, but this is truly an aquired taste. It may not be the cheapest grocery but there are deals to be had. This time I got a bottle of somen tsuyu for cold soba noodels that was a reasonable $4.50 and a package of fuereu wakame dried seaweed for $1.69. The seaweed rehydrates to big delicious leaves of seaweed perfect on the soba noodles drizzled with a little sesame oil.

David supplied the delicious shrimp tempura and we had a wonderful light post work meal. These ingredients carried over into a pre-practice meal as well!




In Chinatown, there are plenty of open air fish and produce markets. Who knows the names of any of these places but I have found some of the freshest and best deals on seafood at the one on the South corner of Grand St at Chrystie and also the one across the street. This week I picked up a little over a pound of fresh salmon to make Honey Miso Glazed Salmon for Kelly and I before we had rehearsal. It was only $7 and enough for four servings of fish! I served it with the cold soba and seaweed tossed with a little sesame oil, a couple of tablespoons of somen tsuyu and topped it with some salomn furakake from this weeks earlier shopping excursion.

Honey Miso Glazed Salmon

2 tablespoons miso paste
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 teaspoons powdered ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 lb salmon
Lemon wedges to serve

Line the broiler pan with tin foil. Pre-heat the broiler by turning it high. Then lower the heat to 325 degrees.

Combine miso and water over low heat until the miso is fully dissolved. Add honey, ginger powder and soy sauce, simmer stirring stirring constantly until reduced to a thick sauce.

Cut the fish into four portions and place on the pre-heated broiler pan and cover with the glaze. Put in the broiler and bake at 325 for about 10 minutes, glazing about five minutes in. Once the fish is almost cooked, add more glaze then turn up the broil to full and cook for 5 more minutes until the glazed caramelizes on the top of the fish. Do not over cook. Rare salmon is better than over cooked salmon.

I find that this method of baking/broiling lets me get a nice top to the fish with out over cooking it. The pre-heating of the broiler pan helps to cook it through from the bottom up too.


Kelly, digging in!