#507 Kari Kari Fried Kabocha

My notes: Don’t fry it until it’s burnt. Oops. 

400 g kabocha pumpkin

200 g thinly sliced pork

1 clove garlic

1 green onion

A

Soy sauce, ½ T sake, 1T. cornstarch

1 slice fresh ginger

B

2T clam juice (I used fish sauce), 1T sake, ⅓ t. soup base

Oil for frying

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Remove seeds and stem from kabocha and thinly slice. Fry in 170 degree oil. 

2. Cut pork into 5 cm pieces and mix with A ingredients

3. Crush garlic and mix with onion cut into 4cm strips. 

4. Dice the ginger.

5. Mix the B ingredients.

6. Heat 1T oil and add ingredients from steps above in this order: 4, 2, 3, 1. Add salt and pepper to taste and finally add ingredients from step 5. Stir-fry until heated through and serve. 

#509 Simmered Kabocha

400 g kabocha pumpkin

2.5 cups dashi broth

3 T sugar

2 T soy sauce

1 T mirin

1. Cut and clean the kabocha. Cut into 4-5 cm squares leaving the skin attached. Cut a thin slice off the backs of the hard skin to allow the cooking juices to reach the flesh.

2. Place the pumpkin skin-side down in a pot. Add dashi broth and bring to a simmer. Turn the heat to low and continue simmering for about 10 minutes. 

3. Add the sugar to the pot and simmer for another 4-5 minutes. Add the soy sauce and mirin and simmer for another 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow it to cool in the pan. 

#511 Simmered Kabocha with Miso and Bell Pepper

I made this recipe just like #509, meaning I put all the ingredients in a pot and simmered them instead of stir-frying. It was delicious and the texture of the kabocha was divine. 

300g kabocha pumpkin

2 bell peppers

½ green onion

A

Miso, 2T sake, 3T sugar, 1T soy sauce

1.5 T oil

1. Remove stem and seeds from kabocha. Thinly slice. 

2. Remove seeds and stems from bell peppers and thinly slice.

3. Cut onion into small rounds. 

4. Mix A ingredients and set aside. I used about one tablespoon of miso paste).

5. In a frying pan, heat oil and stir-fry kabocha. Add onion and bell pepper in turns and continue cooking. 

6. Add the ingredients from step 4. 

7. Quickly stir-fry. 

#512 Curried Beef and Kabocha Stir-fry

400 g kabocha pumpkin

150 g thinly sliced beef (yakiniku style). I used ground beef. 

A

⅓ t salt

1 t sake

Dash of pepper

½ round onion

2 T salad oil

1 t salt

1 T sake

2 t curry powder

Dash of pepper

1. Cut pumpkin into 1 cm thin wedges. Microwave until tender. 

2. Cut beef into bite size pieces and marinate with A ingredients. 

3. Thinly slice the onion.

4. Heat oil in frying pan and saute onion. Add meat and continue cooking. Add the pumpkin and continue cooking. Add salt and pepper, curry powder. When the pumpkin is cooked, turn off the heat. Serve hot. 

#518 Apple Kabocha Salad

¼ kabocha pumpkin (about 400 g)

½ apple

2 T raisins

2 T mayo

1 T yogurt

2 t lemon juice

Salt and pepper

1. Wrap the pumpkin and microwave 5-6 minutes or until easily poked with a toothpick. Cut into 2 cm pieces.

2. Chop the apple and sprinkle with salt to stop from changing color. Press out excess water. 

3. Soak raisins for 10 minutes and drain. 

4. Mix mayo, yogurt, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to make a sauce. 

5. Mix all in a bowl and serve.