This is a blog for people to discuss what they are eating. There is a theory that by journaling eating habits, people will eat healthier. I am trying to cook more at home and feed my family a wider variety of foods. People can just read or join as co-authors. Topics don't have to be recipes with nice photos. You can write about eating habits, special diets, culinary cultural differences, etc.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Soy sauce cream pasta -- with matsutake mushrooms

I have seen soy sauce cream pasta at restaurants but being a tomato sauce gal, never thought of venturing there. But last night, didn't have enough rice in the cooker for myself and had a tupperware of leftover pasta. Wanted to try something different from the pasta I made with the lemon pork loins. (Like cooking for one, it's challenging to figure out different recipes with similar ingredients.) My mom brought over a ton of British Columbia grown matsutake mushrooms, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matsutake, and before she left, she boiled a jar. She makes these jars to enjoy matsutake all year around because the mushrooms are only available in the fall. (Mikey, get your hands on a jar. You will LOVE this recipe!)

Matsutake is a delicacy, kind of like French truffles, very expensive because it is only grown wild. Mom tells the story of how her and three friends went to Whistler, spent the day looking for them and between the four of them, found one!!! Still, they rejoiced and together made a meal of matsutake soup and rice. This particular recipe with matsutake mushrooms is for my family because no one else will probably get their hands on them, and they are frightenfully expensive as well. But soy sauce cream as a pasta sauce is now officially tried and very tasty, according to my entire family. I've seen offered at restaurants with spinach and bacon, chicken and mushrooms, etc. A little on the exotic side, but will not push people's comfort zones.

Prep time: 10 mins. (since my fettucine was already boiled)
Health meter: 7 (matsutakes are rich in all sorts of minerals, according to Wiki)
Tasty test: 9 (everyone liked it!, saving 10 as an out of the world experience)

1) Put butter in skillet to melt.
(If you are using fresh ingredients, put in now and sauteed, salt and pepper to taste, and a dash of soy sauce.)
2) Put in cooked noodles (spaghetti will do just as well as fettucine)
(If you are using Mom's matsutake, put in it after the noodles, before the cream.
3) Put in dash of cream and gently mix everything together. It becomes a nice light brown color.
4) I shaved some Gruyere cheese on top. Parmesan or another hard cheese will do just as well.



Okay, Pam. I'm not asking you to try this at home. Chances are Texan supermarkets won't ever be selling Pacific saury (WTF???) in any form. But just so people will know what a typical Japanese home cooked is like, I'm showing it here. This fella should have been presented nicely on a better plate and I do have grilled fish plates I never use. Fall is sanma season, a fish that is rich in Omega oils and other good stuff, but in season, it's available dirt cheap. On special yesterday, they were 50 cents each, not frozen, fresh enough to eat raw. (Only the freshest fish are eaten raw.) It is served whole and can be tricky to eat. The kids don't like the part next to the guts because it's a bit bitter. Dealing with the bones can be challenging as well. What I usually do is pick out the tasty morsels and mix it into their rice. Other day, I'll show photos of the horse mackerel (aji) that our favorite fisherman specializes in and show various ways of eating mackerel (saba) the other fish he catches.
How to make:
Make a X cut on both sides of the fish (so the thickest part cooks easier). Salt on both sides. Salting the skin makes it crispier. Put on grill. Grilled fish in Japan is usually served with grated raw radish and some lemon.


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6 Comments:

Blogger Some Kinda Wonderful said...

Okay, the soy cream noodles I might try. You are right the thought is not that appetizing to me, as an american. My son would probably love it. I cook alfredo sauce a lot for my guys, this sounds lots easier.

Believe it or not your fish picture made my mouth water. I love fish. Will see if they ever have this type at my most excellent oriental market. They carry lots of frozen and fresh fish/seafood items that my regular grocery store does not. (I'm going there tomorrow)

November 10, 2008 at 4:34 PM

 
Blogger Arsenette said...

I grew up eating fish that was freshly caught (mostly sunnies, bass, trout and the occasional carp that we managed to hook) off of local lakes, etc. so I've seen fish just grilled on a plate. Still have an issues with eyeballs staring at me.. so I'd ask whoever's cooking to lob off the head..

Not into mushrooms so your expensive mushrooms would just be a waste with me.. might change the flavor of the broth (which sounds fantastic) but I'd be busy plucking them out of my plate LMAO

November 10, 2008 at 5:18 PM

 
Blogger Some Kinda Wonderful said...

We ate a lot of fish too, when I was growing up in FL. Fresh water and salt water types. But we usually cut the heads off and gutted them before cooking. I learned how to deal with looking at the eyeballs when I married my first husband. One of his favorite dishes was fish head curry. I'm not kidding. I could eat it, but... I never ate the brains or eyeballs. Just the gravy and veggies and whatever fish flakes off the head, which wasn't much.

November 10, 2008 at 6:16 PM

 
Blogger Chaki said...

Holly, you are an adventurous gourmet so I'm not surprised at your reaction to the fish. I'm just waiting for Pam!! (I'm eeevil!!) Poor gal. Born in Ohio, and pastured in Texas, she has an excuse.

November 10, 2008 at 7:10 PM

 
Blogger pamwax said...

As we all know I will not be looking for the fish but the pasta....I love pasta and this sounds good.

November 10, 2008 at 7:10 PM

 
Blogger Some Kinda Wonderful said...

Thomas doesn't mind that the fish still had it's head on. The first thing he noticed about it was that the skin was broken all over. I explained that you had cut it to help the cooking process. He was totally okay with it. He would eat it, I'm sure. He loves fish too.
He also said the soy cream sauce on noodles sounded yummy. I'm thinking that will be one of our meals in the very near future. Do you think the sause would work well with udon noodles? I have at least 5-6 types of pastas and noodles so I'm sure some of them will do. I'm thinking portabello mushrooms and peas, maybe some bacon or thinly sliced smoked ham. That would be good, don't you think?

November 10, 2008 at 8:34 PM

 

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