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When people hear tofu, I don’t think they think flavorful. Tofu on its own does have flavor, but it’s pretty subtle. As a kid, I don’t remember craving it and it’s something I’ve come to appreciate as I’ve gotten older. On a hot day, eating plain tofu with a sprinkle of scallions and a dash of soy sauce is quite refreshing. Then there’s agedashi tofu, oh so delicous. Agedashi tofu is fried tofu served in tsuyu (hot broth) and garnished with scallions and bonito flakes. There’s tons of other tofu dishes, but today I’m going to focus on mapo tofu or mabo tofu or mapo doufu. There’s a few different ways to spell it.

If you know what it is, you might be thinking – that’s a Chinese dish, which is true. But like many other popular dishes in Japan, the origins of the dish came from China, but over time it has evolved to fit the Japanese palate. The Japanese version uses miso for flavoring and although it can be spicy, it’s generally not as spicy as you would get a Chinese restaurant.

Mapo tofu is a great go-to easy dish. There’s not much prep involved and once you start cooking it doesn’t take too long. I start by cutting up the tofu into smaller pieces. I tend to like it in bigger chunks, so I go with the medium firmness, which prevents it from breaking into smaller pieces when I’m cooking it. So, the only way I know how to cut tofu is what my mom did, which I have no idea if it’s correct or not. I put the rectangular tofu on the palm of my hand, then cut the tofu while it rests on it. I am being careful and slow, but there’s got to be a safer way. Any thoughts?

I then brown the minced garlic and ginger in the pan before adding the ground pork, which I also brown. My favorite part is the amazing aroma that will fill your house as you brown the garlic and ginger. It smells so good! Once the garlic, ginger, and ground pork have browned, I add the miso flavoring, which I bring to a boil, then add the tofu. One thing I forgot to mention is that prior to adding the miso flavoring I season the ground pork, garlic, and ginger with cayenne. Normally, you would use Japanese dried red pepper, but since it’s not readily available in Cleveland I go with cayenne.

After the tofu is cooked, the only thing left is to add sesame oil and some scallions, then you’re done! Now, you can eat it just on it’s own, but it’s really amazing when you pour it over a bed of rice. But like I mentioned in a previous post, don’t skimp on the rice! Get a rice maker and make some good sticky rice, don’t use the stuff from a box.

For tofu skeptics, mapo tofu is a great dish. My husband doesn’t go out of his way to eat tofu, but he will get seconds and thirds of mapo tofu. There is one thing to keep in mind when eating this dish. Tofu does get super hot, so don’t go chowing down right away even though you want to. I have made this mistake several times. I’ve made it even worse by swallowing it when it’s piping hot and I’ve had that not so nice burning sensation going down my throat. Hot, hot, hot!

This week I opted for an easier dish – sata andagi. It’s been a rather long week and I needed a combination of something comforting and easy. With only requiring a handful of ingredients, sata andagi was the perfect dish. And who doesn’t like a little fried food when feeling a bit stressed.

So, what is sata andagi? It’s an Okinawan doughnut. In Okinawan, sata = sugar and andagi = deep fried (anda = oil). Doesn’t that sound delicious? I mean who doesn’t like fried, sugary goodness? I don’t know much about Okinawan cuisine, but from what I know it’s a combination of Chinese and Japanese techniques, as well as some American influences.

This fried, sugary goodness requires combining cake flour, sugar, egg, baking powder, and oil. You’ll not only need oil for frying the dough, but you’ll also need to add oil to the batter and to rub some on your hands as your form it into a ball. Once the oil is at the right temp and the batter is ready, rub some oil on your hands. Then, use a spoon to scoop some batter and roll it into a ball before dropping it in the oil.

My favorite part is frying the dough. The trademark for sata andagi are the cracks that form on the outside. The cracks are supposed to resemble a smile. Interestingly, I seem to get a smile on my face when the cracks start to form. I don’t know if that happens because I can’t wait to eat them or if I’m just a bit strange. My other favorite part is watching them flip on their own in the oil. I’m like a little kid, watching and trying to figure out which one is going to flip on their own first. Yea, I’m a bit of a dork. Once they’re done, put them on a plate with a paper towel to absorb the extra oil and wait for them to cool down a bit. I highly recommend eating them on that day or when their a bit warm. Fried, sugary goodness. I can’t repeat that enough.

So, my last batch was yummy, but it was a bit dry. I don’t know if I over mixed it or if I over cooked them. Thoughts from those who have made this before? Was it a combination of both over mixing and over cooking or just over cooking? Any advice?

In the fall of 2011, my husband began having some intestinal issues, don’t worry I won’t get into the details. Like every other man, he waited till the last minute to see a doctor. Around the same time, we were getting ready for his first ever trip to Japan. Now, I was seriously pissed that he waited for so long to see the doctor, but I do have to give him credit in that he pushed his way through and made it to Japan. I’m sure the first few days for him was a blur, between battling jet lag, not understanding the language and his intestinal issues.

Everything changed when we stopped at a chinese-style restaurant called Gyoza No Ohsho on our way to Naritasan Shinjoji Temple. That’s when we introduced him to gyoza and it was love at first bite! He went from barely eating, to wanting a second order of gyoza. He was cured!

So, what’s gyoza? Well, it’s like a potsticker. It is quite similar to the dumplings you can get at a Chinese restaurant, but there are some definite differences. The most obvious is the wrapper. The gyoza wrappers are much thinner than the Chinese dumpling. Also, there is a difference in the amount of meat and garlic. Gyoza is less meaty, but there is far more garlic than a dumpling.

So in the recipe that I follow, it calls for ground pork, cabbage, scallions, lots of garlic, soy sauce, cornstarch, and sesame oil. All you have to do is thoroughly combine those ingredients then wrap it with a gyoza wrapper. I use the Dynasty gyoza/potsticker wrappers. I think it’s been around for quite some time. My mom may have even used them when they lived in the US. You can find this brand and others in the frozen section of most Asian grocery stores. One thing to keep in mind about Asian grocery stores – always check the expiration date and there’s a high probability that the stuff in the freezer section is freezer burnt. I hate to say anything bad about “my people”, but the reality is that there’s a lot of expired food in Asian grocery stores.

Wrapping gyoza is my favorite part. I actually find it therapeutic. I hate to brag about myself, but I have to say I’m pretty awesome at making the pleats when wrapping gyoza. Some people just wet half of the wrapper, but I wet it all around before I meet the two ends and put in the pleats. Now even though wrapping is my favorite part, it’s also the most time consuming part of the process. I usually spend about 20 minutes wrapping 30 gyoza. And now due to the sheer quantity that’s consumed by my husband and son, I have to make a double batch. There may be quicker ways to consider. I have seen the dumpling press, but I’ve never used them so I have no idea if it makes any difference.

After wrapping them, all that’s left is to cook them! They need to be in a tightly packed line in the frying pan when cooking. Once the bottom is nicely browned, I add  water, put the lid on the pan, and wait for the steam to cook the rest of it. After all the water evaporates, it’s time to chow down!

A couple of things to keep in mind about gyoza. Just like Lays potato chips, you’ll never be able to eat just one. My soon to be four year old son can eat about 10 gyoza in one sitting (that’s why I’ve started making a double batch). You’ll also have “gyoza breath” for the rest of the day, be prepared for that. Your hands/fingers will have the scallions and garlic stank. Yes, I said stank. Washing your hands with a lemon helps with that though. But with all of that,  I promise, you will not regret it one bit.