Editor’s note: In the Taste of Life series, cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.

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Kazuko Goto opened a restaurant in Tokyo two years ago to value the seasons and treasure the people who will eat her food.

From dishes served in bowls to simmered dishes, the restaurant’s food served in select containers that offer the harmony of the seasonal ingredients and dashi stock is unadorned yet rich.

Each dish is the epitome of Goto's long-standing endeavors in Japanese cuisine and food education. With hopes of passing the spatula to the next generation, she manages the restaurant with her daughter Sumire and a young chef who runs the kitchen.

Goto grew up calling the daily side dishes “omawari.” It is a word used in Kyoto and while “obanzai” is used more often in recent years, it stands for dishes around (“mawari”) the rice bowl. As side dishes that pair well with rice, small bowls of vegetables or dried foods fit nicely next to hamburger steak and stews.

“I hope to continue suggesting ideas that would bring Japanese cooking back from something we only eat on special occasions to something much closer to us,” says Goto.

The flavors born from the natural features of Japan suit the Japanese aesthetic and the recipes are easy to follow.

This week, Goto is introducing her favorite omawari called “teppai.” It is a dish that uses Kujo “negi,” a type of green onion, dressed in vinegared miso with a dash of mustard.

The name is said to come from “teppo-ae” (literally “dressed in guns”), reflecting people’s surprise at its spiciness.

On special occasions, seafood such as “akagai” (blood clam) or firefly squid are added, with thin deep-fried tofu endearingly called “oage-san” (Mr. Deep-fried) added on normal days. The green onions that become sweeter as it gets colder are seasonal treats.

For a great finish, be sure not to overcook the dish so that the green color is retained and remove excess oil from the deep-fried tofu.

The recipe for the vinegared miso uses the Kyoto-style white miso available at large supermarkets beyond Kansai.

As everyone has different preferences for sweetness and saltiness, adjust the amount of each by checking how the dish tastes.

Goto says she still remembers her mother’s words, “You should not overdo things when making Japanese dishes and raising children.”

“We should let each demonstrate the innate power,” says Goto. “She taught me the importance of stepping back and observing.”

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Kazuko Goto is a cooking expert and vice chairman of Washoku Japan. She has written books that include “Cha-kaiseki ni manabu hibi no ryori” (Daily dishes inspired by tea ceremony meals). In the summer of 2022, she opened Hibi no Ryori Viola in Tokyo’s Hiroo.

BASIC COOKING METHOD

Main ingredients (Serves 2)

4 Kujo negi (if unavailable, use other green onions such as “wakegi”), 15-cm square thin deep-fried tofu (“abura-age”), for vinegared miso (40 grams Kyoto-style white miso, 1 Tbsp sugar, 1/2 Tbsp boiled down sake, 2/3 Tbsp rice vinegar, 1/2 tsp Japanese mustard paste (“nerikarashi”)

1.Wash the Kujo green onion and cut off the roots. Bring water to a boil in a pot, hold the leaf part of the green onion and dip the white part in hot water. Once it bends when pressed to the bottom of the pot, dip the green part in water as well. When the green becomes vivid, drain and cool in a sieve. When no longer piping hot, cut into a length of 4 cm.

2.To remove oil from the fried tofu, dip in boiling water and pull out immediately. Gently rinse and rub with hands under running water to remove excess oil. Pat dry by pressing against paper towel and cut into rectangles of appropriate size.

3.Mix ingredients for vinegared miso. Add a moderate amount of mustard, check the taste and adjust the amount.

4.Mix Kujo green onion, fried tofu and vinegared miso delicately.

About 100 kcal and 0.9 gram salt per portion
(Nutrient calculation by the Nutrition Clinic of Kagawa Nutrition University)

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From The Asahi Shimbun’s Jinsei Reshipi (Life Recipe) column