Zucchini and Ground Turkey Okazu

The other day my dad brought over a big bag of zucchini.

I still had some a week later.

Since the kids were home this weekend, and they prefer to eat at home rather than go out, I was searching for something to throw together for lunch before Karen headed back to Palo Alto.

Zucchini okazu!

Okazu is basically anything that's eaten with rice.

When I was growing up, my mom made okazu a lot.

If you've been following along, you may remember my Okazu post back in January when I first started blogging.

Today I'm making it with ground turkey and zucchini.

Fast and simple.

You can make this in the time it takes to cook rice.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey

2 slices bacon

about 6 cups of thinly sliced zucchini

1 sweet onion, thinly sliced

1 packet (1 teaspoon) dashi powder

salt and pepper to taste

Start by cutting up 2 slices of bacon, and fry.

The bacon will give it a lot of flavor.

Add a package of ground turkey and sauté until cooked through.

Add the sliced onions and cook until the onions are slightly wilted.

Salt and pepper the meat.

I sliced the rest of the whole bag of zucchini, there was about 6 cups in this batch.

I have another 8 cups in the refrigerator that I'm going to give away, I don't know yet if I'll make something first or not.

My mother-in-law would be happy she doesn't have to cut it up.

 Add the zucchini, cover and let it steam over medium heat for about 8 minutes.

That makes it a little easier to mix when it's wilted and the volume has gone down a little.

Best start with a pan that's big enough!

Add a packet of dashi--japanese powdered flavoring.

This is the katsuo dashi made from fish.

If you're not adding meat and using tofu instead, you could add the konbu dashi that's made from kelp.

A little bit about dashi in my misoshiru post.

Mix well, taste and adjust the seasonings.

Serve with hot rice.

You might also like to serve it with a little bit of Fukujinzuke.

That's the brown clump of seasoned vegetables--tsukemono on the side.

More about that later.

With zucchini season gearin' up, this is our stand-by recipe for a fast and simple meal.

Itadakimasu!

***

Karen was here for a work convention and to attend a wedding on Saturday, what a treat for us!

Rick was here all weekend, too.

It's kimochi-ii (a good feeling) when the kids are home!

If you haven't been following along, that's Rick on the left, then Karen, and her friends Lindsay and Annie.

Lindsay is turning 30 this week.

To commemorate this milestone, we've been working on a slideshow, and Lindsay and her cousin Annie came over on Saturday to view it!

I've heard so much about Lindsay and Annie from Karen, it was fun getting to spend some time with them both.

For lunch, we had mochiko chicken, brown rice with barley and salad.

For dessert, we had manju from Fugetsu-Do.

The last time Lindsay came over, we made Pizza Pot Pies, she tried umeboshi for the first time, and I told her the next time she came over we would have Fugetsu-Do mochigashi.

This is Lindsay's pic of the manju, right when she opened the box.

I also found out that we, as Japanese-Americans, have something else in common.

Fukujinzuke.

I think Annie mentioned it over lunch.

I had some in the pantry!

She remembers her family keeping it in a tupperware container--and I have some of the red one in a tupperware container in my fridge!

The main ingredients are radish and eggplant, in a sweet shoyu (soy sauce) marinade.

Tsukemono is Japanese pickles--Fukujinzuke is a type of tsukemono.

In our family, we serve tsukemono with dishes such as this okazu.

Serving it along side okazu, gives you another flavor with your meal.

I was going to try and upload Lindsay's slideshow here, but remembered that her family isn't going to see it until next weekend.

I wouldn't want to spoil their surprise, so I'll try and add it after they've seen it.

Happy Birthday, Lindsay!

***

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey

2 slices bacon

6 cups thinly sliced zucchini

1 sweet onion, thinly sliced

1 packet (1 teaspoon) dashi powder

salt and pepper to taste

Chop 2 slices of bacon and fry it in a large pan. When the bacon is almost done, add the ground turkey and brown. Salt and pepper the meat to taste.

While the meat is cooking, slice one sweet onion and thinly slice the zucchini. Add the onions to the meat and saute over medium heat until the onions are slightly wilted. Then add the zucchini. Cover and cook until tender, stirring occasionally. Season with 1 small packet (about 1 teaspoon) dashi powder and mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Children's Day

When I was a little girl, Girl's Day was March 3rd and Boy's Day was May 5th in Japanese-American culture.

Now, the two have been combined into one day, Children's Day, celebrated on May 5th.

At Fugetsu-Do, the Japanese sweet shop in LA's Little Tokyo, there's a new manju to commemorate Children's Day.

I happened to discover it on a recent trip there.

This is how it comes packaged.

I love this pancake-like manju, so I was excited to see something new.

It's in the shape of koi!

It has a sweet paste inside made from chestnuts.

Kuri, in Japanese.

It's perfect with a cup of o-cha, Japanese green tea.

Even on a warm day.

Itadakimasu!

***

This is 'koi no bori,' a koi flag. 

It's hanging outside the front door of my brother-in-law's home in celebration of the birth of their son.

In the not-so-far future, this little guy will most likely be participating in Children's Day celebrations just like my kids did when they were little.

When my kids were little, we'd take them to the Children's Day celebration in Little Tokyo.

There, they have games, crafts and food booths for the kids.

Here they are at the finish line for the Chibi-K Fun Run, years ago.

My nephew Wes is in the blue shorts.

He's getting married this summer.

Time goes by fast.

Take a lot of photos.

No printable recipe.

Sekihan

Sekihan means "red rice" in Japanese.

It's made with sweet rice, the sticky rice mochi is made from, and azuki beans.

It's eaten for special occasions.

I bought some the other day in anticipation of a new niece or nephew being born, but no arrival yet.

I bought this from Fugetsu-Do.

I made a quick trip downtown the other day to Fugetsu-Do, and the Sekihan was freshly made, it was still warm.

Had to get a couple of packages.

You can serve it as-is, or you can make little nigiri.

O-nigiri is rice pressed together.

This is the gadget I use to make this type of onigiri.

You can find it at Marukai or Nijiya Markets.

Simply fill with rice.

It's best to fill it loosely, not pack the rice in.

Then you put the top on and press down.

That cuts the top.

Flip the nigiri maker to the other side.

Gently press the rice out using the holes.

It comes garnished with black sesame seeds and a little bit of salt from Fugetsu-Do.

Oishisou!

(Looks delicious!)

Itadakimasu!

***

Sekihan always reminds me of my aunt.

Auntie Kiku.

I love this picture of Auntie Kiku and Uncle Art.

But I am looking for my favorite picture of them, the one I remember gazing at, when I was a little girl.

It's a picture of the two of them, standing in Bachan's driveway, on the day of their engagement party.

I love that picture.

I loved hearing Auntie talk about her 'spindly arms and legs'.

So cute!

Auntie Kiku loves sekihan.

She would bring it to birthday parties or other family celebrations.

I miss Uncle Art.

Uncle Art is the uncle I remember most in the kitchen.

He always made the gravy at Thanksgiving, his gravy was the best.

My cousin Tim has a lot of his dad in him.

It makes me smile when I see it in these photos.

No printable recipe for Sekihan.

Fugetsu-Do Japanese Sweet Shop

Fugetsu-Do is a Japanese sweet shop in LA's Little Tokyo that has been family owned and operated since 1903.

I've eaten Fugetsu-Do mochigashi--the traditional Japanese sweets made from mochi--my whole life.

I wrote about the store when my friends and I made Peanut Butter & Jam Mochi.

I think the mochigashi from Fugetsu-Do is worth taking a closer look at, so I'm going to show you some of the different kinds of manju.

Manju is another name for these Japanese sweets.

I think all Japanese Americans call one piece of manju "The Pink One", at least all Japanese Americans that I know.

This is my Pink One.

I've always thought this one is the prettiest.

It's got a sweet white bean paste on the inside.

When I hold it in my hand just before I take my first bite, I am aware of how soft and smooth the manju is, and take a second or two to savor the anticipation of that first bite.

Seriously!

I kid you not.

The piece in the center is baked, different from the others--they're made of soft mochi.

The baked ones are a little drier, perfect with a cup of ocha--tea.

This is what it looks like on the inside, filled with sweet azuki bean paste.

Here's a few more, the yellow one on the left is really soft.

You can order the mochigashi from Fugetsu-Do online here.

When I was a little girl, and we'd open a box of mochigashi from Fugetsu-Do, it was such a difficult decision--which one to pick?

Especially when your brothers and cousins are scrambling for manju too, and might pick the one you want.

You understand, don't you?

Itadakimasu.

***

These are my cousins and me at Bachan's (my grandmother's) house in the 60's.

That's me in the back row on the left with the headband.

My cousin Brian is in the front row on the right.

Brian also loves dogs.

The Kitos always had smart family dogs. 

I don't know who trained them, but they were always really smart and could do a lot of fun tricks.

I remember when my brother Warren, Brian, and maybe my other cousin Tim, stayed overnight with Bachan when they were a few years older than Brian is in this picture.

They waited until Bachan went to bed and snuck into the kitchen where the phone was and called girls.

Until Bachan came in and caught them.

It makes me laugh to this day!

Brian took over Fugetsu-Do from his dad, Roy Kito, and is now the third generation proprietor of Fugetsu-Do.

Here's a video of Brian showing the process of making the multi-colored manju by hand.

And another making manju with sweet beans on the inside.

Brian is very active in the Little Tokyo community and beyond, with a generous, giving spirit.

But my fondest memories are of when we were little, running around Bachan's driveway, playing Last Tag after a fun family day together.

Fugetsu-Do
315 East First Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

(213) 625-8595

www.fugetsu-do.com

No printable recipe.