Tonkatsu 豚カツ

Tonkatsu is another dish introduced from the occidental kitchen (supposedly by the English) during the Meiji period. Over time though the dish has become completely Japanese and is eaten together with rice and soup. An integral part of any tonkatsu dish is the accompanying, finely graded cabbage (whether this is from western influence or of Japanese origin we don't know).

Similar to sukiyaki, tonkatsu is a good dish with which to introduce foreigners to Japanese cuisine. When Axel's parents got somewhat tired of the Japanese food in Kyoto we brought them to a tonkatsu restaurant and they took an immediate liking to it.

The recipe below is almost completely taken from RunnyRunny999 who made an excellent video on how to make tonkatsu.


Tonkatsu

• Pork cutlet
• Wheat flour
• Beaten eggs
• Panko (bread crumbs)
• Salt and black pepper
• Cooking oil

First the preparation of the cutlet. If the cutlet has a rim of fat this need to be cut into sections to prevent shrinkage during cooking. Then tenderise the meat with a meat hammer (if available) or pierce it all over with a fork. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides.

The easiest way to handle the coating/breading of the cutlet is to have three separate plates, one for the flour, one for the beaten egg and one for bread crumbs. Coat the cutlet in flour and then dip into the eggs and finally cover the cutlet in bread crumbs. We use bread crumbs as we have not been able to find panko (which is somewhat larger bread flakes) in Sweden.

Instead of deep frying, which can be laberous, messy not to mention smelly to do at home we simply stir fry the prepared cutlet in a large amount of oil (we use cold pressed rapeseed oil). For an even more low fat version the cutlet can be baked in the oven according to RunnyRunny999's video.

Serve with fine shreds of cabbage, rice, miso soup and tonkatsu sauce (such as Bull dog sauce).

Semla

Semla is a Scandinavian pastry with old traditions. It is closely connected to "fastlagen" which can be translated to "the eve before (Easter) fasting". The Easter fasting is a Christian commemoration of the temptation of Christ, but before the fasting commences there is traditionally a three day period of festivities. As a part of this comes the bun with cream and almond paste we know as semla or fastlagsbulle depending on where in Sweden one asks. This pastry is also eaten in Norway, Finland and the Baltic states with minor variations.


Semlor (30-40)

• 150 g butter
• 5 dl milk
• 50 g yeast (sweet)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 dl Ssugar
• 2-3 tsp cardamom
• 1.6 dl wheat flour

Start by melting the butter in a pot. When melted, take the pot off the stove and pour the milk and mix. Make sure the temperature is about 37°C.

Put the yeast in crumbs in a big bowl and pour the milk and butter mix over it. Add salt, sugar, cardamom and the mixed egg and stir. Add about 2/3 of the flour and work with the dough until its smooth. Add flour until the dough lets go from the edges. Leave it to rise (until double size) for about 45 minutes with a towel over the bowl.

Work the dough down a little after the fermentation and add some more flour if the dough is sticky. Put some flour on the baking table divide the dough into four parts. Work with one part a time and put the rest under the towel. Divide each part into bun-sized bits and roll them into balls. Put the buns on baking paper on a baking plate and let them rest for about thirty minutes under a towel. Spread some mixed egg on top of the buns before put into the oven. Bake in 225°C for 9-12 minutes (depending on size). Let the buns cool somewhat before eating.

These buns can be eaten in numerous ways but to make them into semla just cut them in half and add a small chunk of almond paste in the middle and fill up with whipped cream. Sprinkle some flour sugar on top of the lid. Axel doesn't like almond paste so he skips that part and in Finland semla is eaten with whipped cream and jam. We are also rather modest with the amount of cream, in a bakery you would get two to three times more =).

The cup in the background is made by Naoko's cousin Takashi who is an illustrator. You can find more of his cool stuff at his site.

Hamburger ハンバーガー

Hamburgers have always been one of Axel's favourite dishes, though most certainly not the Mc Donalds or First Kitchen kind, only home made is good enough. Mostly called "junk food" hamburgers have a really undeserved bad reputation. Made from good meat, served with fresh vegetables and nice bread the American national dish is really quite nutritious, varied and tasty!

Through the years we have tried many different hamburger recipes, but with inspiration from the Swedish food magazine Buffé this one is one of the more interesting.

Hamburger (4 port.)
Burger

• 400-500 g minced beef
• 1 egg
• bread crumbs
• salt & pepper (black & white)

Sauce/Glazing

• 1 dl ketchup
• 3 tbs dark sugar
• 1 tbs apple cider vinegar
• paprika powder

Vegetables & Bread

• 8 buns
• 4 stir fried eggs
• 120 g bacon
• green salad
• tomato
• green peppers (ピーマン)
• red onion
• cucumber

 Start by make the glazing (it can simmer while making the burgers). Warm up a small pot on medium heat and pour the ketchup and vinegar. Melt the sugar in the mix when the pot is warm and spice with paprika powder to your liking.

Mix the minced beef with one egg and salt, white pepper and black pepper. If the mix has too much liquid, add some bread crumbs to give the burgers more solidity. Heat up the frying pan (should be quite warm) and stir fry the bacon first. Take out the bacon and let dry on household paper. If you feel the bacon is too much you can simply skip it and use a little butter instead. Spread glaze (a cooking brush is handy here) on one side of the burgers and put it towards the pan and then add glaze on the other side as well. Stir fry the burgers in batches so that the pan never too crowded. Stir fry the eggs (Axel likes "over easy" as Val and Geoff might know;) last.

Serve with fresh vegetables and bread. The glazing can also be used for extra sauce in the hamburger. How tall a burger can YOU build?