A Little Bit of Japan in Munich...
11 August 2009
Only just back in Munich, but I still cook Japanese quite a bit (or well, let’s maybe rather call it my personal interpretation of cooking Japanese…). Of course some of the ingredients are harder to get here, but luckily I live very close to Mrs. Suzuki’s lovely little Japan shop, where I get a pretty good supply of most of the cooking basics, like mirin, rice vinegar, toasted sesame seeds, miso paste, etc. etc.
I really like going to the shop, not only because it is my main source for Japanese condiments, but also because I enjoy being surrounded by people chatting in Japanese for a little while… - yes, I do miss Tokyo sometimes! Also, I discovered that the shop has a little DVD library, so I’ve started regularly renting out cheesy Japanese TV dramas to keep up with my understanding of day-to-day language (for hard-core grammar and the like I’ve just started lessons with a new teacher, who is keeping me pretty busy!).
But back to something more essential now – the food. A weekend visit by my parents-in-law was a welcome opportunity for me to bustle about in the kitchen and cook a nice meal à la Japonaise, with various different little dishes arranged in lots of different little bowls, featurning some pan-fried black octopus rice, a refreshing little ginger-dressed carrot and cucumber salad as well as these tasty oven baked miso aubergines.
Oven Baked Miso Auberbines
| serves 4-8 |
| 4 smallish aubergines (around 5cm in diameter / 12cm long) |
| 8 teaspoons of (red) miso paste |
| 4 teaspoons of Dijon mustard |
| about 6 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds |
| some garlic powder |
| some dark sesame oil |
Pre-heat the oven at 200°C. Take the aubergines and remove the stems, and without any further processing boil them in slightly salted water for about 10 minutes. Drain and cool down with some cold water.
Once the aubergines are cold enough you can handle them, slice them in half (lengthswise), then cautiously carve the flesh in the shape of squares, without damaging the skin. Spread the inside of each half with half a teaspoon of mustard as well as a (smallish) teaspoon of miso paste, and sprinkle with some garlic powder, some toasted sesame seeds and a little dash of dark sesame oil. Place in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes (adjust depending on the size of the aubergines).
The aubergines can be enjoyed both hot and cold (I almost prefer them cold, as this gives them more time to absorb the spread).
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