Japan

I chose this pan fried Gyoza recipe because it’s well known as a Japanese food, (although originally it came from China). It is often served with ramen noodle soup. Instead of the traditional pork, gyoza can be filled with a variety of vegetarian ingredients (for example, chickpeas or tofu). They can be also filled with shrimps, or other seafood, or vegetables. They can be steamed, or pan fried, or deep fried. We can also cook soup with Gyoza. Gyoza is a very common dish in Japan, eaten usually for dinner at home. Sometimes I make unusual fillings for gyoza for my kids, when I fill them with chocolate, banana or cheese. Kids love that. And making gyoza together as a family or with your friends is great fun.

Takoyaki is one of my favourite foods and I eat it every time I go back to Japan. It has simple ingredients, that you can change to suit your taste, and is easy and really quick to cook. Takoyaki is a famous, easy, casual finger snack that’s very popular in Japan. It’s crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and depending on where you live in Japan, it’s either a kind of street snack or eaten with rice for dinner (for example, in Osaka).
In Japan, people eat takoyaki from stalls at festivals, but often it’s just something easy to eat while you’re out shopping. You can often find takoyaki stalls on the streets, and most department stores have a takoyaki stall in them. You can even find special takoyaki shops.
Sometimes, when people get together, they cook takoyaki, with a takoyaki pan on the table and making them with whatever ingredients they want. That’s what a ‘tako-pa’ is – everyone sitting around, making takoyaki, eating them and having fun…

I choose this recipe because every one thinks it is too complicated to make and has to be deep fried, but actually not - it is easy and can be made it in a frying pan. 

I am glad everyone enjoyed my dish.

If you have a question it is feel free to contact me on my email.

Ginger pork is one of the most popular and common pork dishes in Japan. In Japan it’s cooked at home and can be found on a menu at casual dinners. I chose ginger pork for the community kitchen because it’s one of my husband’s most favorite dish and easy to cook with all the simple ingredients we can find at local grocery store here.

Ginger marinade that is used for this dish, can be used for a variety of cooking, like ginger chicken, tofu stake, stir fries, ginger dressings and more. If you put your favorite meat (or drained tofu or soy curls) in this ginger marinade when you have time, it can be a quick cooking option for your dinner.

Ginger pork is commonly served with shredded cabbage on the side and a bowl of steamed rice and miso soup in Japan. 

Spinach Gomaae

Goma-ae means “Sesame dressed”. Goma means sesame in Japanese, so its dressing is not peanut sauce although peanut is used alternatively sometimes. There are variety of gomaae recipes, such as green bean gomaae, kale gomaae, carrot gomaae, broccolini gomaae. Slightly boiled or steamed vegetables are commonly used for gomaae.

I chose gomaae for the community kitchen as it’s very popular and healthy. Spinach gomaae is a great menu that adds good amount of minerals (calcium, iron, zinc etc.), vitamins (E, A and K, etc.) and fiber in a small amount of serving. Gomaae is usually served as a side dish and my children love to eat them with cooked rice.

Okonomiyaki is a savory Japanese-style pancake made from egg, flour and water mixing lots of toppings. In Japanese, Okonomi means "whatever you like". You can put whatever you like on it.

There are various theories as to its origin, but it dates back to the Edo period, when the practice of pouring dissolved wheat flour into an iron plate or cast-iron pot and baking it became widespread among common people.

It is a familiar taste for Japanese people, but some people find it too salty. It is also safe for children to eat.