Japanese cookbooks, Shinobi chef’s knife and a Zojirushi griddle with takoyaki plate – giveaway
August 10, 2021 by JennyEnter our US giveaway to win an exciting package of products and cookbooks as set forth below.
Back in June in one of our weekly roundups, I wrote about my love of Japanese cuisine and attraction to the wabi sabi way of life. I have had my Japanese dinner complete with takoyaki and can share the details along with this fantastic giveaway which features a Zojirushi Gourmet Sizzler Electric Griddle with Takoyaki Plate and an 8 inch Shinobi chef’s knife from Cutluxe along with a selection of cookbooks including The Japanese Art of the Cocktail and Otaku Food!: Japanese Soul Food Inspired by Anime and Pop Culture which are being provided by the publishers. To supplement this promotion I have ordered the following titles: Wabi Sabi: Finding Beauty in Imperfection, Asian Ingredients: A Guide to the Foodstuffs of China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam and Ramen Otaku: Mastering Ramen at Home.
A few weekends ago I tackled takoyaki for the first time and it was fun! I started to get knack of how much oil, batter and fillings were needed and also got the timing down of turning of the balls with chopsticks just as my batter was running out. I am confident that my next takoyaki experience will be even better. At one point, I felt like Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory trying to add the filling ingredients to all the cavities while watching the first balls which needed to be turned a quarter of the way around. By the time I had the whole plate turned a quarter of the way, it was time to start all over again. Sometimes I overflipped – sometimes I didn’t flip enough – there is a learning curve but it is enjoyable. My takoyaki is pictured in the upper right corner in the photo collage above.
Takoyaki or “octopus balls” are ball-shaped snacks made of a wheat flour-based batter and cooked in a special molded pan. It is typically filled with minced or diced octopus, tempura scraps, pickled ginger, and green onion. (Note: an aebleskiver pan will work for takoyaki). (Nami one of my favorite vloggers) has a video of her own takoyaki party on YouTube).
My takoyaki were filled with chicken teriyaki, pickled ginger, scallions and crumbled potato chips, which I learned from another vlogger Kimono Mom could be used instead of the tempura scraps. I used a recipe from the Just One Cookbook blog. Nami is the writer of the blog (different Nami than mentioned above) and is also the author of two cookbooks: Just One Cookbook: Essential Japanese Recipes and Just One Cookbook: Essential Japanese Recipes Vol 2 (ironically, Just One Cookbook has published two cookbooks). (Be warned: If you watch one video of Kimono Mom you will fall in love with Sutan, Moe’s little girl, as I have.)
The Zojirushi griddle and takoyaki plate was very easy to use and I cannot wait to make more recipes with it. The possibilities are endless with regard to both savory and sweet fillings regarding the dumplings. It is a great product to have if you are having friends over who can help with the fillings and turning. The griddle itself is fantastic for big jobs such as pancakes and/or having a griddling party with various slices of marinated meat or vegetables with everyone joining in.
While not a part of this promotion, I want to share my love for the Zojirushi rice cooker. I purchased the Zojirushi 5-1/2 Cup Micom Rice Warmer & Cooker for myself and have been using it weekly. Years ago, I donated my small rice cooker (made by another company). The Zojirushi is light years ahead of that sad little cooker. Rice comes out perfectly and stays hot until dinner is ready. I am debating the larger 10 cup size because we are a rice loving family. Reminder: You all know how much I love my Zojirushi bread maker which I use for every dough I make: see these posts December 2018 and August 2019 for more information.
While I was preparing this promotion, Cutluxe reached out to me about their cutlery and I was immediately drawn to their Shinobi knifes. I was, however, not prepared with how beautiful this knife was and what an incredible cutting tool it is. The Shinobi blade is the hardest blade Cutluxe makes and has been forged from 66 layers of high carbon Japanese stainless steel. This process makes it extremely durable and allows it to stay sharp longer than your average chef knife. The weight and feel of the knife in my hand was perfect and I’m looking forward to using it frequently.
The Japanese Art of the Cocktail by Masahiro Urushido and Michael Anstendig is the first book from the award-winning mixologist Masahiro Urushido of Katana Kitten in New York City. Urushido shares his immense knowledge of Japanese cocktails with fifty recipes that best exemplify Japan’s contribution to the cocktail scene, both from his own bar and from Japanese mixologists worldwide. Urushido delves into what exactly constitutes the Japanese approach to cocktails, and demystifies the techniques that have been handed down over generations, all captured in beautiful photography. While some ingredients may take some tracking down, I am still quite taken with this beautiful book and find the hunt half the fun. I made the Shiso gin & tonic and forgot to take a photo – I had to sub a few things as time ran out for me – but it was delicious.
Otaku Food!: Japanese Soul Food Inspired by Anime and Pop Culture by Danielle Baghernejad: Otaku is defined as a young person who is obsessed with computers or particular aspects of popular culture to the detriment of their social skills. But don’t let that definition define your thoughts on this fun and tasty collection of recipes that young and old, computer obsessed or not, will enjoy. Recipes from Okinawan donuts, Yukihira style char okakiage, to Yakisoba are shared along with anime related anecdotes.
Ramen Otaku: Mastering Ramen at Home by Sarah Gavigan is a guide to ramen for the home cook, from the chef behind the beloved shop Otaku Ramen. Sarah is otaku. Loosely translated, she’s a ramen geek. During her twenty years working in film production and as a music executive in L.A., Gavigan ate her way through the local ramen spots, but upon moving back to her native Nashville, she found she missed the steaming bowls of ramen she used to devour. So she dedicated herself to mastering the oft-secretive but always delicious art of ramen-making and opened her own shop within a few years. Gavigan’s 40+ recipes are accessible to the home cook who wants to learn about the cuisine but would sometimes rather make a quick stock in a pressure cooker than labor over a vat of liquid for twenty-four hours. Ramen Otaku strips the mystique from ramen while embracing its history, magic, and rightful place in the American home kitchen.
I purchased a copy of Ramen Otaku along with Wabi Sabi: Finding Beauty in Imperfection and Asian Ingredients: A Guide to the Foodstuffs of China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam for this giveaway. The publishers for the first two titles mentioned above forwarded a copy of their books to ship along with those I ordered.
If you are a fan of Japanese cuisine, our EYB Library has 983 books on Japanese cooking and over 3,300 online recipes featuring this cuisine. I am a huge fan of Tim Anderson who has a new cookbook Your Home Izakaya being released in October which looks spectacular. Nancy Singleton Hachisu and Kimiko Barber‘s books are incredible as is Japanese Home Cooking by Sonoko Sakai. Be on the lookout for The Way of the Cocktail: Japanese Traditions, Techniques, and Recipes another fun book devoted to drinks being released in October.
Special thanks to Zojirushi, Cutluxe, Mariner Books and Mango Publishing for offering their products and books to one US member of Eat Your Books. Entry options include answering the following questions in the comments section of this blog post.
Visit the Zojirushi site and leave a comment about which product you would like to try.
Visit the Cutluxe site and leave a comment about which knife you would like to try.
Which cocktail would you like to make from The Japanese Art of the Cocktail?
Please note that you must be logged into the Rafflecopter contest before posting or your entry won’t be counted. For more information on this process, please see our step-by-step help post. Once you log in and enter your member name you will be directed to the next entry option – the blog comment. After that, there are additional options that you can complete for more entries. Be sure to check your spam filters to receive our email notifications. Prizes can take up to 6 weeks to arrive from the publishers. If you are not already a Member, you can join at no cost. The contest ends at midnight on October 20th, 2021.
a Rafflecopter giveawayDisclosure: The following were sent to me for review: a Zojirushi griddle and takoyaki plate, a 8 inch Shinobi chef’s knife from Cutluxe, a copy of The Japanese Art of the Cocktail from Mariner Books and a copy of Otaku Food! from Mango Publishing.
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