Dining with the Chef!

Today, "Kushi-age" - food that is skewered, breaded in panko and deep-fried to perfection.

You can make "kushi-age" with all kinds of fresh seasonal ingredients.

Enjoy them piping hot!

Bite-size skewers are popular with kids of all ages.

They make for great snacks, too.

Today's menu, "kushi-age" skewers, Japan's ultimate finger food!

Tokyo, an Asian city with the largest metropolitan population in the world,

the boundaries between old Japan and futuristic Japan are blurred in this metropolis.

The food here is a fusion of cuisine, not just from around Asia, but around the globe.

Our program host is culinary expert Rika Yukimasa.

And our co-host is Patrick Harlan, aka Pakkun.

Rika's Tokyo Cuisine.

Today, it's party time with Kushi-age skewers!

Hello, everyone, and nice to see you again.

- So today we're going to be making "Kushi-age."
- Yes.

"Kushi" means bamboo skewer like this.

And "Age" means fried.

So "Kushi-age" just things stuck on a skewer and fried in oil.

That's right. "Kushi-age" is a really versatile dish you can fry just about everything,

including seafood, vegetables and meat and whatever you like.

So today I'm going to use some of the ingredients that's very easy for you to get access to it.

Great. So grab whatever in your refrigerator and let's get started.

Today, Rika has assembled a selection of vegetables, eggs, meat, and seafood.

These will be threaded onto skewers and breaded with panko.

The key to "kushi-age" lies in cutting each ingredient appropriately.

"Kushi-age" is all about enjoying the natural flavor of each ingredient, coated in crispy panko.

So let's see how Rika does it.

When you do the onion, you actually first skewer.

- Oh, so that it doesn't fall apart.
- Exactly.

- This is a cool trick.
- Yes, it's kind of fun.

So what I do is, I cut in between.

Sticking with your onion first with a skewer or even a toothpick is also a good trick if you're barbecuing.

I find that your onions keep falling through the grill.

Yeah. Yeah.

- So now you have full-skewered onions.
- Perfect.

Rika is using, 15 centimetre long, heat-resistant bamboo skewers.

The bite-size pieces of food are fried and eaten right off the skewer.

So, metal skewers would be too hot to handle.

Now for the next ingredient.

- Potatoes take a little time to cook. So I imagine you want them very small.
- Yes.

Okay.

- Thin.
- Thinner, right?

If you cut them into thick pieces, then it won't cook.

Bigger pieces can be used if you take an extra step.

And if you want to make sure, you can actually microwave this.

Ah, that's smart, too.

Prep the ingredients, so that each can be fried to a cirspy golden texture in a short time.

Because all the ingredients get cooked at the different durations.

So we don't want to kind of complicate everything. We just want to go simply.

Okay.

Let's move on to zucchini, we cut this into the half a maybe three.

And this one, let's go by skewing two pieces at a time.

Two at a time. Okay.

If you thread the ingredients in different ways, you can enjoy "kushi-age" in different shapes.

When I cook with my friends, I sort of like pair with wines.

So I start with like a little cheeseball "kushi-age," together with champagne or sparkling wine,

then move on to Soave classico with a kind of like, refreshing zucchini or asparagus.

Then move on to, like Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio.

Having this onion, or we'll have this with Riesling, this with Cabernet Sauvignon.

- Wow.
- It's fun.

- So it ends up being a lot of wine.
- Yeah.

For me, I do this with beer, beer, beer.

Beer, beer, beer, beer, and beer.

With "shiitake," you only need to trim the hard ends.

Aside from that, they can be left in their natural shape.

Thread the cherry tomatoes through where the stem was attached.

Cut the ingredients into different sizes and shapes depending on whether they can be eaten raw or need to be cooked through.

So let's move on to our proteins.

We have pork belly, salmon, squid, quail eggs, avocado, and shrimp.

Okay. What do we do?

Although squid should be cooked through, be careful not to overcook it.

Squid. I think in order to make squid, softly cooked, you make incisions.

This is a neat trick.

It just makes it taste better.

Sure. It cooks a little faster.

- Absorbs more flavor.
- Exactly.

Make criss-cross incisions on the squid, so that it can cook through quickly.

This will also keep it from curling up.

- When you make the little trick like this, you can change the characteristics of ingredients.
- Right.

By the way, it's kind of hard to see what she's doing, but she's going in and out like this.

Yes. It's almost like sewing.

Exactly.

With salmon, the trick is to slice at an angle.

This increases the surface area so that it cooks through quickly.

As with the squid, thread the salmon in and out, to keep it from falling off.

Now for the most popular "kushi-age" ingredient, pork.

Today, Rika is using pork belly.

You can use various different cuts.

You can use pork loin, pork belly, whatever, shoulder.

But pork belly, this fat gives you the sweet taste.

That's my favorite cut.

Nice.

You don't have to eat a lot, you know, like people so worried about eating too much of fat.

But the thing is, if you remember this Japanese saying, "Hara Hachibunme."

It's like you should be satisfied when you eat 80% full. Then stop.

Then you feel wonderful next morning.

That's right.

Just eat the right amount of it.

- Not the wrong amount.
- Yeah.

When threading pork belly, run the skewer at a right angle to the grain.

This will stop it from losing its shape when fried.

You can use whatever kind of meat you like for "kushi-age."

Everything tastes great.

Quail eggs are a classic ingredient, and a favorite with kids.

Boil and peel the eggs and thread them carefully as they crack easily.

Quail eggs are sold in the canned.

So you can just get easily access to it.

You can also thread different ingredients on one skewer to make a combo.

So let's skewer avocado and shrimps together.

It's very important that you choose the hard avocado.

Not the ripe one.

- It needs to stay on the skewer.
- Yes.

- You want a firmer avocado.
- Yes.

Okay.

And this one, cut into half.

- Now I have these...
- Oh, you're doing them together?

Yes. Aren't they cute?

That is cute.

What a great idea.

And the color combination is beautiful.

Great. So this is ready.

- How much fun is that?
- Yes.

Okay, so we're all skewered and ready to go.

Season all the ingredients with salt and pepper.

You can also make "kushi-age" with asparagus, corn, and cheese - just about anything!

Have fun trying different ingredients.

So is it time to fry?

No, we're going to make a sauce first because we want to have piping hot "kushi-age."

Right.

You want to make the sauce first so you can fry and dip and go.

Okay.

So, when we're making a sauce, a lot of sauces in Japan use what we call "Worcester sauce," which sounds like Worcestershire sauce, right?

- But they're a little bit different.
- Different.

Japanese Worcester sauce contains more fruit and vegetables, than in the west, and is full of umami flavor.

Today, we're going to make something close to store-bought Japanese sauce.

Just mix ketchup, lemon juice, and sugar with regular Worcestershire sauce.

When I was an exchange student in America, I missed the "Okonomiyaki" so much.

So I told everyone that I'm going to make a "Okonomiyaki."

But to get this Japanese version of Worcestershire sauce was very difficult.

Right.

So I made this one.

This ingredient.

- And it was pretty close?
- Yeah.

That's great.

The sweet and tangy sauce is a must.

It really boosts the flavor.

Next, Rika's original "Karashi" Soy Sauce.

This is "Karashi," this is Japanese mustard.

And then next sauce, I'm mixing the soy sauce.

"Karashi" is very hot, so use with caution!

And sugar again so that it would act as a umami flavor.

Right.

The "karashi" cuts through the oil and refreshes the palate.

Finally, a Japanese tartar sauce that packs a punch.

It's one of Rika's favorites.

- You have this mustard.
- Right.

Western grainy mustard is not as spicy as Japanese "karashi," right?

Yes. Grainy mustard with sushi vinegar.

Okay.

A bit of sugar.

And this is the egg yolk, and mayonnaise.

And if you like spicy food, you can add this chili pepper.

- There we go.
- Yeah.

And then, you can eat as is.

But if you want to have a little kind of originality, you can add the bit of the vegetables.

Okay.

Finely mince the cucumber to incorporate with the sauce.

Also, some "myoga," ginger bude, a zesty Japanese herb.

You can substitute with ginger or you can put a little bit of garlic. That would be good.

But this adds extra spiciness.

- A little zing.
- Yes.

It's nice to combine something creamy like mayonnaise with something sharp.

- Yes.
- Like "myoga" or wasabi.

Oh, yeah.

Okay. Put "myoga."

You have a very special tartar sauce.

It's beautiful.

Alright.

The three dipping sauces are ready, so let's prepare the "kushi-age."

It's vital to get a light and crispy crunch, and for that, you need panko.

So for the next step, we have panko bread crumbs and of course, all-purpose flour, potato starch, baking powder and water.

I understand there's several different varieties and new varieties even coming online.

- Yes.
- Now. For Panko.

Yes. There are very small particle, to really big one.

Right. Right.

So it's depending on the purpose of frying.

You can change the panko sizes.

Coarse panko, will give you a thick crust, that works for substantial foods like "tonkatsu" or "ebi-fry" or breaded fried shrimp.

But with "kushi-age," you want a thin crust, so that you can eat a lot of different foods, so it's best to go with a fine panko.

Oh, actually, there's also, I understand, nonflour-Panko.

Yes.

For those of who are allergic to gluten, you can use this rice flour panko.

Wow.

For anyone who wants gluten-free, definitely try the rice-based panko.

For the batter; mix flour, potato starch and baking powder, then water.

Dip the skewers in the batter and coat with panko, and you're ready to fry.

- Let's fry everything.
- Okay.

Is there a specific order that we should fry in?

I think it it'll be better if we start with vegetables because seafood or pork, they will give, you know, like a flavor to the oil.

That's right.

Dip the skewers in batter, coat with panko and fry in oil heated to 170 degrees Celsius.

Using a deep pot with plenty of oil will make frying easier.

And you also want to cook a few skewers at a time, right? You don't want to put everything in.

Exactly. Then the temperature drops right away.

Fry the vegetable skewers for a minute or two until golden brown.

Drain on a rack or tray, lined with paper towels.

This stops it from being too oily.

And then one of the trick is, instead of covering everything, you can just partially cover.

Oh okay.

You see the bright green color.

Sure.

- And you know that it's not potato.
- Yes.

Ingredients like tomatoes, that can be eaten raw, only need to be fried for 1 minute.

When you're doing this with friends, like you said, you can have them start eating the ones that are done, right?

Dip them in different sauces, stand around the counter eating and talking.

Telling jokes, sipping wine.

Yes.

Now for the meat and seafood.

- So let's move on to squid.
- Squid.

There aren't very many meals where you eat both squid and pork and salmon and shrimp and quail eggs.

You get all these different ingredients almost in their natural form in one meal.

- It's unusual and fun.
- Right.

Exactly, that's what makes "kushi-age" so much fun.

- Wow, that was really fast.
- Yes.

The squid takes no time at all.

And then for the pork, you should take your time.

Right.

It takes about 4 minutes for pork this size to cook through, so that it's crisp on the outside and juicy inside.

The salmon will take about 3 minutes to cook through.

The quail eggs are already boiled, so you only need to fry them for 1 minute, until golden brown.

Fry all the skewers, adjusting the cooking time for each ingredient.

- Let's plate the "kushi-age."
- Okay.

Quick! We want to eat the "kushi-age" when they are piping hot!

Plate the vegetables and protein separately, to make it easier for everyone to choose what they want.

Next one.

So vegetables and proteins and sometimes you want to have this cabbage.

"Kushi-age" is usually served with crunchy cabbage, cut into chunks.

Cabbage promotes digestion and refreshes the palate.

Okay, so this is the "kushi-age." It looks perfect.

Ready to go.

We're all set to dig in.

Yum.

Before we go though, I'd like to recommend something.

After an evening out, it's customary for people in Japan to finish with what we call a "shime,"

something that's yummy but not too heavy to close out the meal.

And today I have a favorite "shime."

It's called "Dashi Chazuke."

This is hot "Dashi" soup broth over a bowl of rice.

Give it a shot.

Today, we're going to make "chazuke" with "yaki-onigiri," a grilled rice ball, coated with soy sauce.

And to keep things simple, we're going to use a store-bought, frozen "yaki-onigiri."

Microwave the "yaki-onigiri," according to the directions on the package.

In the meantime, prepare the dashi.

Just dissolve granulated "dashi" in hot water.

It's instant, but it's rich in kombu and katsuobushi flavor.

All you have to do now is pour the "dashi" over the heated "onigiri."

And add a little "oba."

And we're done!

Quick and easy and an amazing "shime."

And now for the final moment of the show.

I get to eat.

- Itadakimasu.
- Itadakimasu.

Look at those zucchini.

I think I'll have this.

With this is the Japanese version of Worcestershire sauce, right?

I think I'll try it with that.

Oh, I just love "kushi-age" how it soaks up the sauce like that.

Itadakimasu.

I'm in heaven.

- Thank you.
- Oh, so good.

You wouldn't think of a fried zucchini is actually really still light fresh.

It's firm and juicy and it explodes with zucchini flavor.

And the sauce.

The sauce is actually really lovely too.

The ketchup flavor really helps sort of keep it sweet, but also umami filled.

- It's great.
- Thank you.

And let's try the pork.

I'm going to try with "karashi," the Japanese mustard and soy sauce.

Itadakimasu.

Did you hear it? The Panko is so crisp.

- Oh, and the pork is so juicy.
- Thank you.

It sounds crispy, right? It's because we add potato starch or corn starch.

If you make the batter only solely with flour, it wouldn't be like this.

Right.

And this "karashi" sauce.

I thought it'd be a little spicer.

It's not that spicy. It's just sort of tangy. It's got a nice zing.

Avocado and shrimp together.

That's a really neat combination.

And I will use the tartar sauce.

Oh, yummy.

It goes really well.

The shrimp is really firm.

And springy.

This tartar sauce, with "myoga?"

- Yeah.
- Isn't that great? It is.

A lot of American tartar sauce is made with like, pickle relish.

So it's kind of sweet, but this has tanginess, but just a little spiciness.

Oh, this is magnificent.

- Thank you.
- What a spectacular meal.

- Oh, thank you. I hope you enjoy making this for your friends and family.
- I definitely make this dish.

Okay. Would you like to try my "chazuke?"

Yes. This looks actually very beautiful.

Itadakimasu.

How was it?

Excellent.

You can feel the soy sauce flavor into your mouth, and it brings out...

it makes you feel like full of umami flavor into the mouth.

That's nice and it's super easy.

This is amazing. I'm going to just trick my daughters tonight without telling them, "Mommy made this."

That's my favorite kind of cooking where no one realizes you kind of cheated, but it's wonderful.

All of this is really easy to make and super fun.

Definitely give it a shot.

What did you think of today's main dish?

"Kushi-age" is a great party dish because you can offer your guests a whole range of bite-size ingredients with different dipping sauces.

So next time you're planning a party, I hope you'll add "kushi-age" to your list.

Thank you for watching.

And I hope you'll join us again soon for more Japanese food on Dining with the Chef.

Bye.

Now for a recap of how to prepare a "kushi-age" party.

First, the three dipping sauces.

Japanese Worcester sauce, a must for "kushi-age," "karashi" soy sauce, and a Japanese tartar sauce with zesty "myoga."

Try different sauces with your "kushi-age."

Cut the ingredients into bite-size pieces and thread onto bamboo skewers.

Secure the salmon and squid by threading in and out.

Season with salt and pepper.

Dip the skewers in batter, coat with panko, and fry in oil, heated to 170 degrees Celsius.

Fry to a golden brown.

Cut the ingredients in different sizes and shapes according to how long they need to be fried.

Don't they look delicious?

And finally, a simple but delicious "dashi-chazuke," full of umami to close out the meal.

You can make a delicious "chazuke," using a store-bought "yaki-onigiri" and granulated "dashi."

A wonderful meal for your friends and family. It is a party just waiting to happen.