Adventures in Mika's Kitchen
Now that Christmas is over, many of us have leftover prime rib sitting in the refrigerator. What to do with the leftover meat slices is easy… you can make french dip sandwiches, or just reheat and serve another meal of prime rib. But what about the rib bones and meat in-between (the rib plate that [...]
Now that it’s winter time, Japanese Fuyu Persimmons (a.k.a. “Fuyu Kaki“) are in season! (Fuyu persimmons are the non-astringent [sweet] short/flattened ones that you eat when semi-firm… not the astringent acorn/sphere shaped ones that can only be eaten when soft and squishy.) I found three of the largest Fuyu kaki that I’ve ever seen… put [...]
Stollen is a German/Austrian winter holiday tradition – a sweet yeast bread containing dried and candied fruits and nuts, coated thickly with a powdered sugar shell. Typically, this bread is usually served during Christmas, when it is called “Weihnachtsstollen“, “Christstollen“, or “Dresden Christstollen“. This holiday staple originated about 500 years ago in the Christmas markets [...]
“Hambāgu“ (ハンバーグ) is a Japanese style Salisbury Steak. It is a ground meat patty made with onions, egg, panko breadcrumbs – pan fried and served with a gravy, typically over rice. (In Hawaii, add a fried egg and this dish becomes loco moco!) My favorite way to make Japanese Hamburger Steak is with Asian style fried [...]
With Thanksgiving over (even after giving away a ton of leftovers)… I still have quite a bit of turkey meat and stock in the refrigerator. (I make turkey stock every year from the leftover turkey carcass). We’ve now reached the point where we can no longer eat Thanksgiving leftovers without feeling bored… time to change [...]
In Italy, “piccata” is a method of preparing meat (typically veal) – the meat is sliced thinly or butterflied, tenderized, dredged in flour and cooked, then served in a sauce made from deglazed pan drippings. Here in the USA, the most well known version of this Italian dish is made with chicken and is served [...]
I love pickles…. especially the salty and sour kind! Kosher dill pickles, cornichons, giardineira, Japanese umeboshi… they’re all good. If you like pickles too, they are quite easy to make – simple refrigerator pickles can be made to taste (you can make them with all kinds of flavors and spices… whatever you like), and are [...]
Happy Halloween everyone! Halloween has always been my favorite holiday… why? I think it had something to do with all the candy! I also like the fun surrounding it – being creative with pumpkins, and coming up with new treats to use up the leftovers. Pumpkin is food, and I don’t like to waste it! [...]
Here’s a hearty fall soup recipe to warm you up… Potato Leek Soup! It’s quite simple to make because there are only 2 main ingredients: potatoes and leeks (plus stuff you probably already have in the pantry). From start to finish, this soup is usually done in less than 30 minutes, so it makes a [...]
Now that Halloween is approaching, store shelves are filled with all kinds of sugary candies and chocolates. (There is a reason why this is my favorite time of year…) I love chocolate… but right now I’m trying to be a little bit more healthy and not indulge in candy/chocolate ALL of the time. (Moderation!) I [...]
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