re-creating

Remember this yaki-onigiri (grilled rice ball) that I had in Hokkaido?

Well, I tried to re-create it.

I bought a yaki-onigiri (grilled rice ball) from a yakitori (grilled chicken) shop in our shopping arcade.

I then combined 3 ladles of konbu/katsuo (kelp/bonito) stock with some 2 ladles of homemade soba tsuyu (buckwheat noodle sauce) (recipe to follow).

When it came to a boil I added some slurry to thicken the soup.

Then in a non-stick pan I heated some sliced enringi, red bell pepper and gobo.

Then I added the yaki-onigiri, ladled the soup and garnished with the veggies and some green onions.

The smokiness from the grilled rice ball matched with the soup and veggies. (I actually filled the bowl up with the rest of the soup after taking the photo.) The grilled rice ball was chewy but stayed together in the soup.

Soba/Udon Tsuyu
(soup for buckwheat noodles or wheat noodles) : serves 2

4 tablespoons mirin (sweet rice wine)
4 tablespoons sake (rice wine)
600 cc. (about 3 cups) dashi (I use a konbu/katsuo (kelp/bonito) blend)
40 cc. (about 1/4 cup) shoyu (soy sauce)
5 grams katsuo bushi (shaved bonito)

Put all ingredients except katsuo bushi into a pot and bring to a boil to let alchohol burn off.

Boil for about 5 minutes, lower heat and add katsuo bushi. Turn off heat.

Serve immediately over noodles or cool and keep in airtight container for several days.

NOTES: I am not too sure where I got the recipe for this soup, but it is really easy to make and better than buying the bottled stuff. I hope you like it. I can't believe it is almost a month ago that we were in Hokkaido!

Hope you have a good week!