Book review
Ume miso- sautéed summer vegetables
If you do not have ume miso, just use the full-flavored miso of your choice (not white miso). And in that case, perhaps lean more heavily on the sesame. Miso is a natural match for egg-
Japan: The Vegetarian Cookbook By Nancy Singleton Hachisu Published by Phaidon, £39.95
This might be the most beautiful cookbook released so far this year. With a cover in salmon and black, minimalist design and page after page of elegant photography, you could buy it as a statement piece for the home. But even without its stunning design, Japan: The Vegetarian Cookbook would be a thing of beauty – the recipes within are works of art in their own right. A layperson might look at this cookbook and
think: “there’s hardly a single recipe in here I can make from supermarket ingredients”, but that’s what makes it a winner for chefs. We’ve all seen how chawanmushi – a savoury egg custard – has appeared on fine dining menus across the country in recent years, and author Nancy Singleton Hachisu provides a plethora of dishes like this to inspire many a chef, all meat-free. Take, for example, her version of chawanmushi – it’s eggless and uses nigari (the liquid left after salt has been precipitated from seawater) to set a soy milk custard. The recipes are split into sections according
to the cooking technique or defining flavour notes, such as dressed, vinagered, pickled and preserved, or deep-fried. Potato shinjo in soy milk dashi appears in the latter – a deep-fried dumpling ball in a hearty broth – and there’s a guide to building the perfect miso soup. At the end there is a small selection of delicate sweet dishes, such as kabocha and edamame squares. There are hints of American sensibilities –
such as soba pound cake or corn rice – as Sin- gleton Hachisu herself is a Californian, married to a Japanese farmer and living in Japan. She previously published Japan: The Cookbook in 2018, and clearly holds a deep respect for the culture, writing in this edition about the his- tory of vegetarianism in the cuisine. There are plenty of innovations to be bor-
rowed. The Shirataki noodle squares see lit- tle bites of familiarity in an unusual gelatinous form, while the yuzu with sesame miso is a novel way with citrus. The only let down per- haps is the potato chip salad – a little out of place among the refined palate of the rest of the book. By Maria Mellor
36 | The Caterer | 28 April 2023
plant (aubergine) and peppers and these miso stir-fries, collo- quially “abura miso,” are served often in the Japanese countryside during the summer. Zucchini (courgette), while not a traditional Japanese vegetable, is now grown commonly across the archipel- ago. When stir-fried, zucchini tends to weep, so best to keep the proportion small compared to the more dominant eggplant.
Serves: 4, generously
3 small Japanese aubergines (250g) ½ medium courgette (125g) 1 large red bell pepper (175g) 1tps flaky sea salt 10 slender green beans (25g) 1½tbs lightly roasted gold sesame oil
½tbs fine slivers fresh ginger 5tbs sake 4tbs ume miso (see below) 1 finely chopped miso-pickled ume (from making ume miso above), optional 1tbs gold sesame seeds, warmed in a dry frying pan until fragrant
Slice off the ends of the auber- gines and courgette and discard. Halve the aubergine and cour- gette lengthwise, then cut cross- wise into 1cm pieces. Soak the aubergine in cold water to keep it from discoloring. Core and seed the pepper and
cut into 2cm irregular pieces. Bring a medium saucepan
three-quarters full of water and the salt to a boil over high heat. Add the green beans and cook until their green colour just brightens, 1-3 minutes, depending on thick- ness. Trim off the stem ends and cut the beans crosswise into 2cm pieces. Set aside. Drain the aubergine and blot
dry. In a large frying pan, warm 1 tablespoon of the oil over low
PHOTOGRAPHY BY AYA BRACKETT
heat Add the ginger, stir once to coat with oil, then add the auber- gine, courgette and bell pepper. Increase the heat to high, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned in spots, 2-3 minutes. Stir in the remaining ½ table-
spoon oil and the sake and toss well. Add the ume miso and miso- pickled ume (if using) and stir-fry to coat evenly. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the veg- etables are fully softened, 2-3 min- utes longer. Fold in the green beans and sesame seeds and serve hot or at room temperature. Keeps well for 2 or 3 days, if refrigerated.
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