Japanese Soft Boiled Eggs

I have made these eggs many times.  They are known as the perfect boiled eggs for Japanese ramen.  It seems hard to get the desired texture but as long as you get the right cooking time, you will have these beautiful and delicious eggs on your plate.

Ingredients for marinate:

1 cup	Water
1/2 cup	Sake
1/2 cup	Soy sauce
1/2 cup	Mirin
1 or 2 Tbsp	Sugar

Note:  If you have the sauce from the chashu, the taste is delicious.   For recipe of making the chashu, please click here.

Directions:

1. Cook the marinate ahead of time and let it cool.  You can store this in a jar and put it in the refrigerator.
2. Wash eggs, take a thumb tack and pierce a tiny hole in the round end of each egg (I used an oven thermometer). This prevents the egg from cracking. (pictures 1 and 2)
3. Bring a 2 quart of water to a boil and carefully lower eggs into the boiling water with a stainless steel wire mesh ladle (picture 3) and set the timer to 6 minutes (picture 4).
4. While the eggs are being boiled, fill a bowl with cold water and add ice cubes.
5. Once 6 minutes is up, take out the eggs and run under cold water.  Place eggs into iced water for at least 5 minutes.  (picture 5)
6. Crack the eggs and peel of the shell.  Put eggs into bowl with marinade and refrigerate at least four hours, it is better if you use spoons to weight down the eggs to keep entire eggs submerged under, otherwise turn eggs once or twice.

Thai Dressing for Salad (Green Papaya and Romaine Lettuce)

 

My sister made this for me and my husband whenever she came to visit.  She lives on the other side of the world, so I don’t get to see her often.  Last time I saw her was almost 2 years ago, I really missed her Thai salad (and I miss her too :-o).  We are not Thai, but this salad is so different than other standard salads, it’s spicy!!  The hotter the better!  My husband doesn’t like Asian food too much, but this salad became one of his favorites.

Ingredients for the Dressing:

2 Tbsp	Fresh cilantro (chopped)
1 Tbsp	Fresh minced garlic
1 Tbsp	Fresh minced ginger
1 Tbsp	Minced shallot
1-2	Fresh Thai chili
2 Tbsp	Brown sugar
2 Tbsp	Fish sauce (more or less to taste)
3	Limes
2 Tbsp	Lemon juice

Ingredients for the Salad:

1 small	Green papaya (julienned)
1 head	Romaine Lettuce
¼ cup	Roasted peanuts (chopped)

Directions:

• Prepare all ingredients – chopped cilantro, garlic, ginger, shallot, chili (start with 1 chili first) and squeeze juice out from limes and lemon.  (picture 1)
• Combine all ingredients in a bowl and add brown sugar, then fish sauce.  (pictures 2 and 3)

• Let the dressing sit for a couple of hours in the fridge to let the flavors fully develop.

• Roast peanuts in a toaster oven and chop them.  Set aside.  (Picture A)
• Peel and seed papaya.  (Picture B)
• Julienne papaya.  It is better to use a julienne peeler to get a better texture (I didn’t have one, so I grated it). (Picture C)
• Wash lettuce and chop into bigger pieces.

• Pour dressing over papaya and lettuce, and top with roasted peanuts.