Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Tonkatsu Onigirazu/Bulgogi Onigirazu Recipes

I know it's been awhile since I've updated the TabiEats blog and I must apologize. As many of you know, I've been having a difficult time trying to keep up with everything that goes along with running a Youtube channel and releasing videos 4 times a week. Plus I had a few health issues along the way that just depleted me of my energy. Still, it's not a good enough excuse and I must update the blog more often.

Now I will say that I have been working on a redesign of the blog so that it will be easier to find the recipes you need and want quickly and easily. So stay tuned for a better blog coming up very soon. I've also been working on a new logo that represents our brand and this is what I've come up with.

If you didn't know already, Tabi means "travel" in Japanese. Eats means well...food. Our Youtube channel focuses on these two passions of mine hence the name. I think I've finally come up with a logo that I like and this is it! It's Japan's iconic mountain called Mt Fuji. As you can see , we've taken a bite out of it because honestly, it looks like an onigiri (Japanese rice ball) doesn't it? That black base is a piece of nori seaweed. I think it represents TabiEats perfectly. What do you guys think?


Today I'd like to share one of our favorite easy recipes, The Onigirazu. Now what is Onigirazu you ask? Well, it's a new type of Onigiri Rice Ball that's become quite popular here in Japan and in some parts of the world. There are many things that really make these unique. For starters, they are easier to make than Onigiri because you don't need any molding skills to make them triangular in shape. You can put a lot more fillings inside, which makes for a more substantial meal. Last but not least, it's convenient and portable, letting you take them to the office, to school or to picnics. How cool is that?

Since many of our YouTube viewers asked us to make Tonkatsu, we thought we'd use that as a filling today's version of the Onigirazu.

INGREDIENTS: (Makes 2 onigirazu)

1 boneless pork chop
1 egg
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
salt and pepper
1 leaf cabbage,washed and dried
2 sheets nori
1 1/2 cups cooked japanese rice
chinese mustard
tonkatsu sauce

DIRECTIONS:

Slice the cabbage into thin strips. Whisk one egg in a bowl. Make slits on the edge of the pork cutlet to prevent shrinkage and curling. Season with salt and pepper. Lightly flour both side with flour. Dip into the beaten egg and cover with lots of panko bread crumbs on both sides. Fry in hot oil and cook until pork is no longer pink on the inside. Drain of excess oil. Cut the pork cutlet in two. Put a sheet of plastic wrap on your work space. Place a sheet of nori on top. Add 1/2 cup of rice onto the center of the nori. Season with salt. Top with some shredded cabbage and some tonkatsu sauce. Put a piece of tonkatsu on top along with some chinese mustard and more tonkatsu sauce. Add some more rice on top and season with salt. Wrap the whole thing up with your nori sheet. Then wrap tightly with the plastic wrap. Repeat with the 2nd onigirazu. Let them rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting in half. Enjoy!



You can purchase these hard-to-find Japanese ingredients online.

Nori sheets http://goo.gl/MgwC6p
Panko bread crumbs http://goo.gl/Q6DgAZ
Tonkatsu sauce http://goo.gl/JONkHm
Chinese mustard http://goo.gl/f1xDsr

We've also collaborated on this video with our good friend Namiko Chen from Just One Cookbook. She's not only a fellow YouTuber who happens to have the BEST channel on Japanese cooking, she has a well-established blog full of authentic Japanese recipes. She also has a great personality and is a wonderful person, which is just icing on the cake. So make sure to check her out as well.

Namiko's Links

Just One Cookbook Blog
http://www.justonecookbook.com/

Bulgogi Onigirazu
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdzM_zovmyo

Just One Cookbook YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvBtKQaoDhsHkrvtLjSAhyw


As always thank you for reading and visiting our blog/youtube channel. I promise to keep this blog updated more often and am working hard on the re-design as well. Have a great week guys and take care!