Korean Spicy BBQ Pork

Gaaaah!  Today is my last day of vacation.  Talk about a real bummer.  I guess my total house cleaning will need to wait until my next break.  Oops...I won't be around for the next big break, so we can put off house cleaning until winter vacation.

I spent a good chunk of the summer working, but I really cannot grumble about that because I have a bunch of trips planned, and the extra $ will come in handy.

The Ds made it safely back from Russia and Japan; it was always in the back of my mind that they would be detained in Russia so I'm very relieved.  D1 also made it safely back to AZ.  She seems to be settled into her new digs, although she was splitting her time between both places so she could help clean the kitchen.  I was proud to hear that she was doing her part and sharing in the move-out cleaning duties, but then it hit me...how come she never offered to clean the kitchen here?

I did manage to take a trip to Oahu during my vacation for my cousin's wedding.  KikukatDad came along, and we were lucky enough to stay with UMiles in his new home.  When I grow up, that's the kind of place I want to have....huge kitchen, lots of storage, and tons of bathrooms!  It would have been nice to play with my youngest relative, Cody, but he was attending a wedding in Long Beach that weekend.  Cody isn't even eating solid food yet, but the kiddo has logged in more traveling miles than many adults I know!  UMiles deserves a huge shout out.  Not only did he chauffeur us around, but he took the hit from KikukatDad for all kinds of stuff.  He did it all with a smile (and sometimes a head shake).

My cousin's wedding was absolutely gorgeous.  The ceremony was at her picturesque home on the windward side.  They were married at the poolside gazebo which had been decorated with tulle and fresh flowers.  She must've been a good girl because the weather held up just long enough for Judge Sakamoto to marry them.  We toasted the newlyweds with flutes of Prosecco and sparkling cider.  Then the sky opened up.

Thankfully, the reception was at Ruth's Chris Steak House on the other side of the island, so we were able to escape from the rain.  I enjoyed the reception immensely, as we were given the luxury of selecting our entree.  I could not pass up the rib eye.  Of course, it was just too large for me to finish.  KikukatDad could not finish his rib eye either.  UMiles chose the fish option, as he had just regaled KikukatDad and me with tales of how beef/anything from the cow is bad for the health.

So with summer vacation over, I plan to mope a bit over the next few days/weeks.  It's just something I do every year.  My classroom is still not set up, and I have no desire to rush in to get everything set.  I'm hoping that the kind folks who took down my room at the ending of the school year kept everything in good order.

I will definitely miss the warm days, hanging out on the patio, the smell of food on a hibachi, and not having to worry about lesson plans and meetings.  In spite of my battle with GERD at the beginning of summer, I did do a lot of good eating (I just couldn't eat much).  The Help and I visited Shiono a few times.  They make a great salmon skin salad.  I was fortunate enough to be invited over to dinner by a coworker.  She and her husband made us (me and The Keeper) okonomiyaki.  Their version was much better than what I had in Japan.  They used a generous amount of bacon and poured some really good sake alongside.  Thanks to The Keeper, I got my bon dance andagi fix, and along with Nakaz and DHS we even managed to squeeze in an MKB brunch.

I did some pretty good cooking too.  We enjoyed Caprese salad several times, thanks to the thriving basil in the whiskey barrel garden.  The Help and KikukatDad enjoyed some grilled spicy pork.  Because the pork is marinated, it can be prepared in advance.  The pork I purchase for this is sliced "teriyaki" style, so somewhere between 1/8"-1/4". 

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Korean Spicy BBQ Pork

     1 1/2 lb thin sliced pork (not paper thin!)

     1 tbsp grated ginger

     2 tbsp sugar

     1 tbsp sesame seeds, ground

     1 tbsp sesame seed oil

     4 tbsp kochujang

     2 tbsp green onions, chopped

     4 cloves garlic, minced

     1 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients except sliced pork.  Coat pork slices well and marinate at least 2 hours (overnight is best).  Grill pork slices.  Slice in strips to serve. 

Easy Inarizushi

The Ds are still gone.  They have been gone nearly 2 weeks.  I am at the point where I've nearly forgotten their bickering, messiness(D2)/OCD(D1), and eye-rolling, and missing them a lot.  I'm hoping the weather will be settled by the time they get to Osaka.  Right now, they have probably crossed back into Japan waters.

And speaking of water. . .we have been seeing a lot of it (for this time of year)!  It's been so rainy.  Actually, no, the weather has just been fickle.  One minute it's sunny, then, in the blink of an eye, it's pouring.  There were even some violent thunderstorms and monsoon-like rains about 25 miles away in the area of the active lava.  According to the news, the thunderstorms are indeed related to the lava flow. 

Where was I?  Oh yeah...missing the Ds.  The animals here have also noticed the Ds are gone.  The cats make daily morning trip into their area of the house; even Rain seems to know D2 is not here.  Usually, Rain tries to breach the barstool barricade which D2 uses to prevent Rain from going into her bedroom.  Since she has been gone, Rain doesn't even go near the area.  The cats are both sleeping in my room at night, and that makes for some interesting jousting over bed real estate.  I'm glad Rain isn't part of the jousting.

I haven't received many texts from the Ds, but I'm attributing that to the limited availability of free WiFi in the area where they are traveling.  In a few days they will be back in the city, so I'm expecting to hear from them then.  I'm curious to know what they ate in Russia. 

Since they've been away, I have been able to plan meals better since I know the exact # of dinner eaters.  I also took the opportunity to make things I know they would not care to eat.  Neither D would touch inarizushi (cone sushi).  Neither TheHelp nor I have an explanation for this.  They both eat sushi (as in Genki Sushi or any other sushi place), so it cannot be the seasoned rice.  They also eat tofu/fried tofu.  I just don't get it.

Last week, on one of the scorching hot days (we had both hot days and cool, late-autumn-like days), I broiled some salmon belly strips to go with inarizushi.  While filling the sushi, I remembered how I would see the older ladies cooking the aburage (fried tofu) to prepare for sushi.  It was an elaborate process. . .taking hours to make, as it involved not just preparing the cones, but the filling required preparation as well.  I felt almost guilty, just ripping open a package of seasoned cones and, gasp, using an ice cream scoop to help portion the rice into the cones.

Inarizushi is an okazuya staple here.  No self-respecting lunch shop would dare NOT offer cone sushi!  And with the ease of preparation today, there is no excuse for not having it in the food case.  Most of the inarizushi served at okazuyas here are in the traditional cone shape.  You can find the pre-seasoned cone-shaped pouches in some of the supermarket here, but the oblong variety is easier to locate.  Some are shelf-stable, while other supermarkets keep their cones in the refrigerated area.

The picture on the left is the brand I usually buy at the local supermarket.  It contains 16 pouches.  Another brand has fewer pouches, but the 16 pouches can accommodate 2 cups of cooked rice, so it's convenient to make.  So far, all the brands of inari pouches I've tried have been tasty.  I have also tried the canned pouches, and they were very good too.  The pouches, no matter how they are sold, have instructions for making the rice.  At right are the directions from the back of the Misuzu brand package.  I have only a faint clue as to what it says to do (guessing from looking at the pictures), as I cannot read Japanese. 

After playing with a few different proportions, and taking KikukatDad's constructive criticism into consideration, I think I've come up with an easy way to make the rice filling.  The carrots are for color (KikukatDad once commented that HIS MOTHER would never have stuffed the cones with plain sushi rice),  especially if you are accustomed to a grandma making inarizushi.  It tastes perfectly fine without the carrots. The rice can also be cooked without the dashi konbu, but using it gives it a flavor profile which I find reminiscent of old-fashioned, grandma-type cooking. . .it just adds something. 

And if you are fortunate enough to find dashi konbu and add it, you might actually be able to hear your grandma scolding you for using the #16 disher to load the rice into the pouches!

clcck on recipe title for printable recipe

Easy Inarizushi

     1 pkg. pre-seasoned inarizushi pouches (Misuzu brand is 9.5 oz. and comes with 16 squares, divided into
          packs of 4).

     2 c raw white rice (rice cooker cups, not regular cups)

     water
     2-3 tbsp finely grated carrot

     1" square piece of dashi konbu (optional)

     3 tbsp rice vinegar

     2 tbsp sugar

     1/2 tsp salt

Wash rice and place in automatic rice cooker.  Fill water up to the 2 cup line.  Place carrots and dashi konbu on rice.  Cook rice.  Meanwhile, stir sugar and salt into rice vinegar until both are dissolved.  Set aside.  When rice is done cooking, remove dashi konbu.  Place rice in bowl and pour vinegar mixture over hot rice.  Stir gently to coat rice with vinegar mixture.  Stuff inarizushi pouches with about 1/4 c of seasoned rice.