Cooking for Yourself
I cook mostly with fresh
vegetables, so I shop every couple of days. My
grocery store is down the street though, so this is easy for me to
do. Its easy
to buy prepackaged and frozen foods, but this is also an easy way to lose
weight in your wallet and add to your bum. Produce is marked down in
the
evenings and with different sauces available can be used to make a variety
of
inexpensive meals. I use a brand called Cook-Do, which is different Chinese
style sauces, all you have to do is add the sauce to stir-fried veggies
and
meat. Japanese curry and stew stocks are also cheap and easy.
Again, just
stir fry the stuff and add the stock with some water, and simmer.
Real
curries are made the same way, curry kits are sold at foreign food stores.
Japanese noodles are healthier
than Italian pasta and can be eaten with
different sauces, in soups or even cold with soy sauce. In the
summer cold
soba is served with Tempura. The different kinds of noodles are:
Soba-
buckwheat noodles, zaru-soba are the common kind that are served in the
summer. Udon - large white flour noodles. Somen - small
delicate noodles
served cold, and Ramen style noodles, which are also a type of Soba
noodles
used in ramen soups or yaki-soba. The noodles should be added to
boiling
water and cooked quickly, just until done, and rinsed with cold water.
Most Japanese kitchens don't have
ovens, and only small electric stoves.
Toaster ovens are extremely convenient and work as well as real
ovens. Some
microwaves have an oven setting that works well. I don't know how
the
microwaves do this, I think its one of the mysteries of the universe, but
it can
be used to bake and everything. A rice cooker is a must have.
You can buy
ones sized for one or two people. All you have to do is wash the
rice, add the
right amount of water, push a button, wait, and viola! Its good
enough to eat.
Its really easy to add chopped vegetables, potatoes, or beans to cook
with
the rice.
Vegetables can be bought in
pre-packaged sets for kim chee or nabe, and
yaki-soba. All you have to do is add a sauce base and cook in a
pot.
Yaki-soba is also sold in kits. Stir fry the noodles , add the
cabbage and
veggies and any meat, then add a little water with the sauce and simmer
for a
little bit.
Fruit is really expensive, but its also sold in sets, with a variety of cut fruits. This usually proves cheaper than buying whole fruits, plus its healthier with a couple servings of different fruits.
If your really interested in learning to cook Japanese food, asked someone about any classes that might be available. Someone may even offer to teach you!