Miso Soup - "Miso-shiru"

Ingredients: 1/2 tofu, 60 grams wakame(sea-tangle), 4 cups soup stock, 60 grams miso paste.

(1)Cut tofu into small cubes (1cm) and wakame into 2cm squares.
(2)Bring soup stock to a boil in a pot. Dissolve miso paste in the stock.
Add tofu cubes and wakame. Heatsoup to a slight boil. Remove from heat and pour into soup bowls.

You could enjoy a variety of miso soups by changing the ingredients(tofu or wakame). Some recommendation: clams, Japanese-radish, or potatoes.

Ingredients: 3 cups rice, 3 and a half cups water.

(1)Wash rice well and allow to stand in water for approximately 1 hour.
(2)Cook and let rice stand in cooker for 15 minutes before serving.

Rice Balls - "Onigiri"

Ingredients: 1/2 bowl of cooked rice, few pickled plums(ume-boshi), 3 seaweed(nori)

(1)Sprinkle salt on wet palms and squeeze cooked rice lightly to form oval shapes.
(2)Make 3 rice balls and put one pickled plum on each ball.

Ingredients: 3 eggs, 3 cups dashi stock, 2 strips of white chicken meat, 4 small shrimps, 4 slices of kamaboko, 4 shiitake mushrooms, a dash of soy sauce
(A)1 and half tsp. each of light colored soy sauce and Japanese sake, 1 tsp. of salt.

(1)Crack eggs and mix with stock and seasonings in (A).
(2)Cut each strip of chicken into four pieces and sprinkle lightly with soy sauce.
Cut off inedible stem ends of mushrooms. Cut kamaboko slices in half.
(3)Prepare shrimp and cook lightly.
(4)Put chicken, kamaboko, mushrooms and shrimp evenly into each chawan-mushi bowl.
Pour in egg mixture. Close lid and steam for 12 to 15 minutes.
First under high heat and later under low heat.

Ingredients: 20 grams sliced pork, 60 grams Japanese radish, 30 grams carrot, 2 small taro,
1/2 fried bean curd, 4 cups dashi stock, 80 grams miso, 1/4 green onion, 1 tbsp. of vegetable oil.

(1)Cut pork into small pieces and radish and carrots into ichoo-giri.
Peel and cut taro into half-rounds(hangetsu-giri). Cut fried bean curd in half and cut into 5 mm strips.
(2)Heat vegetable oil in pan and braise pork in pot, add dashi stock, radish, carrots, taro and fried bean curd,
and bring soup to a bowl. Turn heat to low and dissolve bean paste when ingredients are cooked.
(3)Pour into bowl, and serve with minced green onion.

Ingredients: 1/2 bowls of cooked rice, soy sauce.

(1)Divide rice into two equal parts and form rice balls.
(2)Place on grill over low heat. Do not allow flames to touch rice balls. When one side is golden brown, grill the other side. When done, baste both sides with soy sauce. Grill both sides again until dry.