Saturday Dinner

Sometimes I crave for a grilled eel bowl. But when I buy prepackaged grilled eel at a grocery store and reheat it, I just cannot make it soft and fluffy like they make it at a restaurant. A lot of times, the skin gets rubbery and tough, which just ruins the whole experience for me. I'm glad I decided to have that instead of my usual plate of sushi on our Saturday night out. Mmm, so good!

Grilled eel on a bed of rice
That's Nori seaweed, not hair growing on eel....

My hubby is slurping kitsune udon.

We love weekend.

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Mayo Salmon Masago Bowl

I only used leftovers in my fridge to make this bowl. Surprisingly delicious! I love reviving leftovers. I might just make extra grilled salmon next time just so I can have more leftover! 

Mayo Salmon Masago Bowl

1 cup cooked rice
1 oz. cooked salmon
1 tsp mayonnaise
1 tsp masago fish row
1/2 tsp sushi vinegar
1/4 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp fresh dill, chopped
1/4 sheet Nori seaweed

Leftover salmon.

Masago

Mix salmon, masago, dill, soy sauce and mayo.

Nori on rice

In a small bowl, combine salmon, mayonnaise, soy sauce, masago and dill and mix well. Add sushi vinegar to cooked rice and mix. In a rice bowl, lay a bed of cooked rice and top if with torn Nori. Place the salmon mixture on top of the Nori. Garnish with a sprig of fresh dill.

Dill adds a nice touch. Use it fresh if you can.

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Crock-Pot Sweet Black Soy Beans Revisited

So my first attempt to make the sweet black soy beans ended with a so-so result. After cooking for hours, the beans were still a little harder than I'd hoped. I did some research after that to somehow revive the beans and make them softer, just how I remember eating them in Japan. And I did find a good way to make them right. Here is how.

Turned out great this time. What a save!

The sugar content of the cooking liquid hardens the beans. It has to do with osmotic pressure, I've come to learn. If your beans were cooked harder than you'd like, do the following.

1. Drain and reserve the cooking liquid.
2. Rinse the beans gently with water.
3. Cook the beans in just plain water. Bring it to a boil first, and turn the heat to medium low. About 30 minutes or until they are soft enough. Drain.
4. Cook the beans in reserved liquid. About 15-20 minutes.
5. Serve at room temperature.

Drain the beans and reserve the liquid.

Cook the beans in water. Drain.

Cook the beans again this time in reserved liquid.

My beans turned softer after this process. If your black soy beans seemed too tough after cooking, don't be dismayed. It's not too late. You might still be able to have delicious black soy beans!

Good luck!

• Check out my attempt to make Crock-Pot sweet black soy beans here.

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Today's Snack Attack!

Chocolate iced sour cream old fashion donut

Well, it's more like a week long craving of sugar.... I actually went to this local donut shop, Dough in The Box, a week ago, but they were closed for the holidays. I didn't go yesterday because I wanted to make sure they were back to their normal operation where everything was in tip-top shape. No missing sugar or donut cutters or that sort of thing. After giving so much thought into visiting this place, the very first bite was just amazingly good. It was so worth the wait. And don't worry, I am sharing these.

Chocolate iced donut, blueberry cake donut and Boston cream donut.

Glazed donut, chocolate iced sour cream donut and apple fritter donut

My choice of drink was organic jasmine green tea from Twinings. It cuts through the sweetness of the donuts. Very easy to sip, not bitter, not too flowery, just right. I go back and forth between regular green tea and this lately. I prefer this just before bed.

My latest fave. 

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