Embedded Files
Sayuri’s note
We can never expect the garden to produce the same crops during the same season every year. Last year, we had a lot of winter squash, but because of the dry weather, deer, groundhog issues, and timing of planting this year, we only harvested a few. Luckily the Napa cabbage and Florida broad mustard greens grew well this year. We eat a lot of Napa cabbage in the fall and winter in Japan. One of my favorite hot pots is called Yosenabe, which uses a big hotpot with a lot of napa cabbage and other ingredients, so I was inspired to use Napa cabbage and add our garden’s Florida mustard greens to the soup tonight.
Hot pot called yosenabe
Florida broad mustard greens
I also grew cold tolerant vegetables like mizuna mustard greens, shungiku (chrysanthemum greens), spinach, daikon, napa cabbage, lettuce, carrots, beets, hakurei turnips, and some herbs under the row covers. Kale, collard, and mustard greens are growing in the garden now. The salad tonight is made with our kale, lettuce, mizuna, and cilantro, and parsley. We were also lucky to have many apples in the garden this year. I used them for tonight’s dessert. We planted rye grass (grain) as a cover crop and “green manure" for parts of the garden. We will soon harvest persimmons to dry-preserve.
Japanese-style Hamburg steak is so popular in Japan that almost all western-style restaurants serve it. It is usually made with a mixture of beef and pork, but I made tonight's recipe using half plant-based meat and half tofu. When I was little, our family went shopping at the department store and we had lunch on the top floor. There are so many different types of restaurants there but I always wanted the western style restaurant and have an “okosama lunch,” the kids special. There was a Hamburg and ketchup-flavored fried rice shaped like a cup upside down with a Japanese flag and some vegetables.
According to my research, in the early 1860's in Japan, there are records of similar Hamburg dishes using ground meat called "German meatballs," "mince balls," or "mince bo" with tomato sauce in restaurants and cooking books. After 1950 in Japan, Hamburg became very popular at home. When I was in kindergarten my mom made obento many times using “Marushin Hamburg," which is a quick pre-made Hamburg package sold since 1962. I still remember the advertisement song on TV. We also made Hamburg for dinner a lot at home and I learned how to make it when I helped with my mom. It’s one of our comfort foods. Please enjoy!
Menu
Soup
Soup
Napa cabbage and glass noodles (made from potato starch) soup with chives
(Napa cabbage, Florida broad mustard greens, onion, glass noodles)
Main
Main
Japanese style Hamburg steak with brown vegetable sauce along brown rice, and sweet corn (plant-based meat, tofu, garlic, onion, egg, panko)
garden fresh salad with tahini miso dressing (garden kale, lettuce, mizuna mustard greens, cilantro, parsley, and roasted pumpkin seed)
Dessert
Dessert
Apple cinnamon-cardamom cake with butter pecan ice cream (garden apple, flour, pecan flour, butter, yogurt, eggs, sugar)
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse