Grilled Ginger Chicken Yakitori with Leeks - and an old Trip to Japan

In a previous post, I mentioned a tiny Japanese restaurant in the heart of suburban New Jersey that became a firm fave of mine and gave my husband and I a new-founded respect for Japanese cuisine.

Then I actually got to go to Japan and ate McDonalds there for three days straight. More on that disturbing fact at the bottom of this post....

Aside from a delightful rolled beef and spirng onion dish (Beef Negimaki) that we constantly ordered, we would also alternately fluctuate between the chicken yakitori and tonkatsu. The former is chicken grilled in a teriyaki sauce, and the latter is more of a deep fried cutlet.

But in the mad rush that is the home kitchen, I realised I'd never actually attempted making these dishes at home, until Joanne's Regional Recipes came along showcasing Japan, and I thought "Well, now is the time or never!". Or I might have to settle for McD.

I saw a recipe on Food and Wine magazine (my new cooking muse) and I liked how they had incorporated ginger, leeks and bell pepper to this simple grilled dish.

We have the usual cast of characters to make the teriyaki sauce - yes people, we are making our own teriyaki, no store bought here!

Let me introduce you to Mirin, Sake and Soy Sauce - the same ingredients that were used in the Beef Negimaki marinade as well.

Grilled Ginger Chicken Yakitori with Leeks and Bell Peppers
(adapted from Food and Wine magazine)

Ingredients
1/3 cup sake
1/4 cup mirin
3 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp sugar (you can ramp up to 2 Tbsp as per the orig recipe, I just don't like too much sweetness)
2 tsp grated or crushed fresh ginger
~2 lb boneless chicken (thighs or tenderloin)
Optional - yellow miso paste (3 Tbsp) - I did not use this
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cored, cut into squares
1 leek, white and light green part only, washed thoroughly, halved and cut crosswise

1. Soak bamboo skewers in water for ~ 4 hours so that they do not burn while grilling.
2. Mix sake, mirin, soy sauce, sugar and ginger in a small saucepan. Simmer over low heat for about 5 - 10 minutes.

3.Thread chicken, bell pepper and leek pieces alternately on bamboo skewers and place on foil rimmed pan. Brush or pour marinade onto the skewers, refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Do not discard marinade, you will want to re-use it for basting while cooking.

4. Preheat oven broiler or fire up a BBQ grill, grill the skewers while basting with the remaining marinade and turning the skewers over so that all sides of the meat and vegetables get cooked. (It took me about 10 -15 minutes in an oven broiler).

5. I served the yakitori with steamed broccoli, boiled potatoes that had been tossed in butter and red chilli flakes, and some fried carrot and celery rice.

Back in the day (prehistoric - I didn't even have a digital camera!) I got to visit the magnificent country of Japan. However, I was also pregnant, and when we reached (literally) the other side of the world, my olfactory system went into overdrive and I very conveniently developed the most horrific case of nausea, which would then plague me for the rest of the pregnancy.

Nice going Ann, way to kick start your vacation in Japan!

Every restaurant sent me into shudders as the new smells and sights put my over-reactive digestive system into tremors. I sadly moped along the roads looking for something  to placate me, and my eyes fell on those golden yellow arches. Yes, people, I dare to divulge that I ate McDonalds (horrors!) for the next three days. Even though we couldn't quite figure out what we were ordering from the bright, cheery menu boards, fries are fries at the end of the day in any continent. Go on, laugh. I'm already planning a second trip to make up, suckers.

It didn't stop me from taking in the sights and sounds (maybe just not the smells) of Japan. I left in awe of the clockwork efficiency of the country and the homogeneous nature of its people. We never felt unsafe, we learnt their systems and traditions quickly thanks to the help of kind passer-bys and we marveled at their stoic and proud heritage.

At the revered Sensoji Temple in Asakusa district. I've always wonderd in Pier 1 carries that lantern in that size and more importantly, what could have happened if it had fatefully fallen on me.

Attempting to not cross a street at Akihabara - the electronics retail section of Tokyo. Very difficult to do, because you get swept in a sea of mankind and they politely deposit you on the other side of the road. Stores displayed every range of electronics from the latest in computerized toilet seats (heat and water strength monitors) to what looked to us like funny miniature walkmans which would then arrive Stateside as Ipods. They were 5 years ahead of us!

At the entrance of the Meiji Jinju temple in bustling Harajuku. Yes, the same Harajaku neighborhood of Gewn Stefani notoriety with its strange mix of British punk teenagers had this ethereal lush green Yoyogi park. The noise of the city is miraculously silenced here and you are transported into another era. Seriously, I kept thinking "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" characters were going to leap out of the trees.

Walk thorough the park for twenty minutes and you come across the majestic Meiji Jinju temple. And guess what, it was apparently "Perfect Day to Have a Wedding" Day in Japan, we walked into FOUR separate Shinto weddings taking place, and the families let us watch. A completely other world and beautiful experience, though I will give a fashion shout out to that priest, take a look at his Lady Gaga-esque platforms.

This bride was going through several kimono changes with her assistants for a wedding photoshoot and gamely let me capture a shot of her. Check out the elaborate hairdo.

Finally, as we were leaving we bumped into an army of little tots, dressed up in regalia escorted by their grandparents for some sort of children's bendiction. This sweet grandma let me take a picture of her cutie pie, who in turn flashed some sort of gang sign at me.

This very lengthy post goes off to Joanne who is hosting Regional Recipes - Japan this month!

Beef Negimaki

Once upon a time (yes, its been YEARS), when we used to live in New Jersey, my husband and I chanced upon a tiny Japanese restaurant in Little Falls named Sukeroku.

We were smitten on our first visit because everything we illiterately ordered off the menu, helped (or un-helped) by the sweet non-English speaking kimono clad waitresses ("and they're Korean, they're not even REAL Japanese" wryly whispered a co-worker) tasted amazing and we happily joined the ranks of Japanese food lovers.

The restaurant became the de facto place for celebrating anniversaries, birthdays or random significant events like "I didn't get punched in the face by a customer" Day, and my personal fave "Oh My Gaahh, my car just skidded down Montclair Ave. as it iced up and I didn't die" Day.

One dish we routinely would go back for was the Beef Negimaki. It was wafer thin slices of beef stuffed with green scallions and braised in a sweet and salty Teriyaki like sauce. The dish would be served sizzling on a hot iron plate along with tender steamed cubes of potatoes that had been dressed in just a hint of butter.

Now, I hope I haven't committed some act of dishonor in confusing the name of the dish, because I expressly remembered the dish being named Negimayaki in the menu, but most of my Google searches turn up no finds on that name, but plenty on Beef Negimaki. Same difference? Yes/No? If anyone knows the difference, do drop me a line.

By the way, we left New Jersey 3 years later, and I randomly searched the Internet for the restaurant, and could not find any new links but a disheartening note that it had been turned into a bar/lounge. Any Little Fall-ians out there who can back this up?

Beef Negimaki (adapted from Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations)

About 10-12 stalks of green onions
~1 lb steak (I found a thin cut of sirloin tip, cut Milanese style, 1.2 lb had 4 slices)
1/4 cup sake
1/4 cup mirin
1/4 cup Soy sauce
1/2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp shredded ginger
1 tsp chilli oil + 1 tsp sesame oil (available in Asian grocery stores)
Salt to season meat

1. Blanch scallions. Some recipes on the Internet did not advocate doing this as the scallions get limp in the process, but I stuck to it because I wanted to ensure the scallions were "cooked" enough. Submerge scallions in boiling, salted water, remove immediately and plunge into a bowl of cold water and ice cubes. Remove immediately and dry on paper towels.
2. Lay out the steak, either slice it lengthwise to get 1/2" -1" thin thickness (or have your butcher do that for you). Now invoke your annoying neighbor, ex-boyfriend or high-school nemesis, grab that meat hammer and pound that meat . OK, not so much into pulp, but beat it down a little.
3. Season the steak with a little salt. If you think the marinade is salty enough, you can omit, but I found that the meat itself needed some seasoning.
4. Place three to four green onions on each piece of steak (I had a total of 4 steak pieces). Roll up the steak from the longest side until you get a tight cylinder. Tie in three spots with kitchen twine.

4. Repeat for all the meat and green onions. Refrigerate.

5. Prepare the marinade - mix the mirin, sake, soy sauce, sugar and ginger. Stir together and pour over the steak rolls. Let the meat marinate for about 30 minutes. Note the green onions may get more soggy the longer you leave them submerged in marinade.

6. Heat a grill pan or skillet. Add oil ( I used a combination of Asian chilli oil and sesame oil). Add the meat to the pan and cook, turning over occassionaly till all sides are browned. Baste the meat while cooking with remaining marinade and allow the meat to cook in the liquid, it will caramelize and give extra flavor to the dish. The amount of time to cook the meat will depend on how rare you want the final product. I cooked the meat for about 10-12 minutes total and used all the marinade, and the steak was medium-done.

7. Transfer the rolls to a plate and slice into mini rolls. Serve while hot. 

This is going off to Joanne of Eats Well With Others  and Regional Recipes which is spotlighting Japan this month.