shoyu chicken

This past Tuesday, I was craving "home" for dinner.

As I was looking through "Wisteria Delights", I found a recipe for shoyu chicken.

It came out delicious. The chicken was tender and the sauce was..."not too sweet, not too salty...jus' right." (local joke!)

Of course, I had to pour some of the sauce onto my rice. I served this with some steamed green beans.

Shoyu Chicken adapted from "Wisteria Delights" : 12 pieces

Sauce: 1/2 cup shoyu (soy sauce)
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup brown sugar
1.5 cup water
1 2-inch piece sliced ginger
1 star anise
1 clove garlic, grated
about 1 pound chicken thighs, deboned
*************************************
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup green onions, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Combine shoyu, honey, sugar, water, ginger, star anise and garlic in a large pot.
Bring to a boil.
Add the chicken, cover and simmer for 45 minutes.
After 45 minutes, remove chicken from pot and strain sauce.
Return sauce to pot and bring to a boil.
Add slurry, stirring it well.
Add green onions and pour the sauce over the chicken.
Serve with lots of rice.

NOTES: This was my first time trying this recipe and it was delicious. Reminded me of my mom's shoyu chicken. The chicken thighs I buy are deboned and cut into square pieces which is why I noted the amount of pieces rather than servings. Feel free to use the chicken thighs you normally buy.

p.s. we're away, will confirm your comments when we get back.

bws cafeteria

My blog friend, Nate, had posted about the BWS Cafeteria awhile back. (BWS stands for Board of Water Supply, by the way.)

Since he's back in the Islands now, we met up there for lunch yesterday.

Just park in the back of the office--the building with the fountain out front on Beretania Street. (Parking is FREE) and check in at the desk. You'll need to show ID, so don't forget something with a photo on it. They'll give you a badge and then you're on your way.

Take the retro looking elevator to the 4th floor and you'll be in the Employee cafeteria.

This cafeteria has many tables and chairs, there is no air conditioning, but you don't need it.

Two guys run the place (whom I understand are brothers). Check out the menu on the wall and be prepared to order, when someone comes out of the kitchen, that's your chance to order. Don't expect to rush in and rush out with your food, they cook mostly everything after you order it.

When your order comes out, pay for it. I loved watching the guy ring it up on the old fashioned cash register, he actually had to punch in the numbers then turn a crank to "ring" it up.

Nate and I tried the ox tail soup (US $7.50). This was the most expensive item on the menu. (They also have breakfast and sandwich items starting from US $2.) It came with rice and tsukemono (pickled veggies). A hearty, rich broth scented with star anise. Chunks of ox tail that are so tender it falls off the bone. I hadn't had this in ages! and was happy with this choice. Nate says he prefers his own version with daikon and mushrooms.

When you're done eating, bring your plates and trays back to the kitchen.

Not many know about this place, it isn't fancy, the water comes out of the water fountain next to the register, but if you want a good meal, at a nice price, this is the perfect hideaway!

BWS Cafeteria
630 S. Beretania Street 4th Floor
Honolulu, Hawaii
Phone:808.748.5977
Open M-F 8:00-14:00 (except State and Federal holidays)

UPDATE: Nate passed away so his posts are no longer accessible.

buta no kakuni

Awhile back I made rafute, the Okinawan version of braised pork belly, what the Japanese call buta no kakuni. For last night's dinner I made the Japanese version. This dish takes some time to prepare, but at least it isn't humid and you don't have to stand near the stove the whole time while it is cooking.

I thought this recipe that I found on the internet was interesting because it said it was purely Japanese but uses cinnamon.

Here's the recipe if you'd like to try it: Serves 4
translated from doron.allabout.co.jp

500g pork belly (about a pound)
1 leek (only the green part)
1 teaspoon grated ginger
5 tablespoons kurosu (dark vinegar)
4 tablespoons sake (rice wine)
700cc water (about 3.5 cups)
6.5 tablespoons shoyu (soy sauce)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 star anise
1/2 stick cinnamon
1 tablespoon honey
neri karashi (Japanese mustard)

1. Cut the pork into 1.5 inch wide pieces making sure to have some fat on top of each piece.
2. In a pot, put the water, ginger, vinegar, leek and sake. Add the pork and heat on medium heat for 20-30 minutes scraping off the scum that forms on the top.
3. Take out the leek and add the shoyu, sugar, star anise and cinnamon stick. Simmer for an hour or until the liquid evaporates to half.
4. Add the honey and turn heat to high, let caramelize.
5. Take out star anise and cinnamon stick. Serve with neri karashi and some steamed green veggies, like spinach and lots of rice (be sure to put some of the gravy onto your rice too).

NOTES: After adding the shoyu and other ingredients, I simmered the pork for about an hour and a half. This was really tender and delicious. Satoshi liked it also.

Monday morning when I opened the curtains this is what I saw. Doesn't it look like a whirlpool?

kyongdong herbal market

One of my students, Kazumi, just came back from Seoul. She stopped at the Kyongdong Herbal Market, which is known for their Chinese and Korean medicinal herbs. (The Koreans apparently call this market GYEONGDONG.)

She was kind enough to bring back some star anise and dried figs for me. (Thank you!) The star anise will come in handy when making chai or roast pork or chicken. The figs are quite sweet, but I wonder what I can make using them....any ideas?

foodie kind of weekend

It has been raining and windy the past couple of days. Yesterday Satoshi had to work, since he was out of the house, I asked him to bring us home some dessert. Here's what he brought home from a shop that specializes in seasonal fruits, Shinjuku Takano.

A tart with a custard cream-like filling and fig, chestnut, asian pear and persimmon on top.

Mont Blanc, a yellow cake bottom with chestnut cream piping and nuts all around.

A pannecotta with Australian mango diced up top.

And a whole persimmon filled with a custard cream.


Today's breakfast was masala chai, scones and an omlette with sage, basil and parsley in it.

I had seen this post on Jasmine's blog, Confessions of a Cardamom Addict, earlier this year for Masala Chai. Her recipe calls for the spices to be whole then lightly crushed. I only had these spices in the ground form, so I had to ad-lib a bit...

Masala Chai adapted from Jasmine's recipe : serves 2
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 star anise
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
2 grinds fresh black pepper
2 scoops of Darjeeling tea
3 g sugar (1 sugar cube)

Lightly crush star anise and put all the spices and tea into a disposable tea bag.
Add 1 cup of water and bring to a boil, add the tea bag and allow to steep to desired strength.
Add milk and sugar.
Strain through a fine sieve.

Enjoy!

NOTES: I really enjoyed this chai! Not sweet like the ones served at Starbucks and LOTS of flavor! Gosh, I wonder how it would be if I actually crushed my own spices...


Tonight's dinner was pizza. I had wanted to make a better crust since the last time--it was quite bready. I used the recipe on the yeast packet box, and found a recipe for the topping in a book my brother gave me called "The Essential Baking Cookbook". The topping is a potato, onion, capers and cheese pizza, no sauce, just olive oil.

NOTES: I pricked and pre-baked the crust, and it still poofed up a bit, I put the topping on and baked it for 20 minutes. The recipe called for goat cheese, but I couldn't find any, so I used camembert. It was still a bit bready, so I'll have to figure out if I should cut the amount of dough used for the pizza. Other than that, it was delicious!

Hope you have a great week!

totally addicting!

I love boiled peanuts.

They also bring back childhood memories of days/evenings spent at the old Honolulu Stadium on King Street. We used to go to watch baseball and football games there (although I'm pretty sure my main intentions were to have some kind of stadium treat and of course to eat the boiled peanuts!)

Once you've tried them, you will be hooked!

In Hawaii, there are two kinds boiled peanuts (that's the only kinds I know of anyway), ones that are "wet" and the kind that are dried. The dried version is apparently just the wet version dried out (sorry no recipe for the dry one). When you bite into the shell to get to the peanuts the sweet salty juices ooze out making it kind of messy but oh so addicting! Perfect to take to any athletic event.

I got these from the "Taste of Hongwanji" and they were only a dollar for a sandwich bag filled to the brim!

I also found this recipe for the wet version on the internet on a site called Recipe Goldmine.

Boiled Peanuts
2 pounds raw peanuts
2 tablespoons Hawaiian rock salt
1 whole bhat gok (star anise)

Soak peanuts in water overnight, weighing down the peanuts with a dish and a weight, like a large can of pork and beans.

The next day, wash and rub peanuts until the water is clear. Put peanuts in a pot with water about 1 1/2 inches above the peanuts. (Hold peanuts down with your hand.)
Add salt and bhat gok. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Taste for doneness. Peanut should be medium to soft, depending on the taster. Cook 30 minutes longer for a softer peanut. Let peanuts stand in water for 1 hour.
Pour off excess water. Package and refrigerate. Boiled peanuts may be frozen until ready to use or eaten right away.

Enjoy!