HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Here we are—2010 is here, with our Winter Olympics right around the corner. Living in Richmond for over 53 years, we are proud to have the beautiful Speed Skating Oval. Excitement is mounting!

January 1st is a important day in Japan. My mother said they celebrated for the first three days. While she was living, she insisted on cleaning the house from top to bottom from a week before and started making yokan and anything else she could start preparing ahead of time.She made konnyyaku too with lye. No cooking, no cleaning was the order of the day. Although she did make the ozoni, makisushi and ageh sushi that morning.

Thinking of Japanese dishes for the January column, I love this recipe from Vancouver Japanese Canadian Seniors Cookbook Home away from Home.

YAKIBUTA
4 lbs. (approx) pork tenderloin
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Sauce: 1 cup soy sauce
4 pieces garlic, grated
2 medium onions, diced
2 bay leaves
3 cloves, crushed
2 tsp. ginger, grated
3 Tbsp. sugar
2/3 cup wine
1 cup water

Preheat oven to 180 degree Celsius (350 F)
Cut pork lenthwise so that each piece is about 5-7 cm. thick. Fry with vegetable oil over medium heat until all sides are browned.
Combine sauce ingredients together and mix well.
Place fried tenderloin and sauce in a baking dish and simmer in oven for about 1 hour, turning meat every 15 – 20 minutes so that meat absorbs sauce.
Slice, spoon sauce over meat and serve.

Halve the recipe for a smaller serving size. The left-overs can be frozen and used in fried rice or ramen.

NIKU JAGA
2-1/2 cups water
1 cup shoyu
1/4 cup mirin
1/8 to 1/4 cup sugar
3 potatoes, cut in bite size pieces
1 oinion, sliced
2 pkgs. deep fried tofu
Itokonnyakku (300 g. pkg.) can use sliced konnyaku
1 lb. sukiyaki beef (thinly sliced beef)

Bring first 4 ingredients to a boil, then add potaoes, onions, konnyaku and deep fried tofu. Cook on medium heat for 45 minutes.
Then add sukiyaki beef and cook until browned (about 5-10 minutes).

MANGO PUDDING
1 box gelatin (4 pouches totalling 28 g.)
3/4 cup sugar
1 can mango pulp (750 ml)
500 ml whipping cream

Dissolve gelatin in 1/2 cup water. Add 1 cup of hot water. Mix well.
Add sugar to 2 – 1/2 cups hot water.
Mix mango pulp and whipping cream. Add gelatin mixture and sugar water.
Mix until well combined.
Pour into a 9 x 13 inch pan or into individual glasses and leave in refrigerator for about 3 hours before serving.

JAPANESE CABBAGE SALAD
Sally Hama brought this salad to our pot luck Ikebana Christmas party and many people wanted the recipe so here it is.

4 cups Korean cabbage (Savoy or regular cabbage can be substituted) sliced thinly
Kamaboko – thinly sliced (elongated)
Chicken breast – shredded
Chopped almond or ground goma
Green onion chopped
Celery chopped
1/2 cup ramen – broken up (add just before serving)

Basic Dressing:
1-1/2 Tbsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. black pepper
3/8 cup salad oil
1-1/2 tsp sesame oil
3/8 cup Japanese vinegar
Grated ginger

Sally mixes this up and leaves it in the fridge. She used only half the dressing for this recipe.
Pour the dressing and the ramen just before serving.

Wishing you the Best for the New Year!