Japanese Taco Rice Recipe

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VA blogger, vegan blogger, vegan Japanese recipe, vegan recipe, vegan weight loss journey

Sounds strange right? It really is a Japanese dish that is influenced by what thought was Mexican food. While in Japan, I had this a few times and loved it after such a long time without any Mexican food. I love spicy Mexican and Spanish food – yum!!! My stomach is seriously like an iron kettle when it comes to spicy food. (Unfortunately Genki Husband isn’t the same way, that just means more for me then which I’m not complaining.) So yeah, this is a recipe that I played upon after having it in Japan. This isn’t the exact same recipe but rather as I was running yesterday I remembered this dish but then wanted to add a little bit more of a flare to it since I wanted more spice.

Taco Rice in Japan is more of a dish that is a first layer of rice, topped with ground beef and finally a little bibb lettuce and chopped tomatoes. There is usually almost no spice as Spanish spices are a bit more expensive and hard to find in Japan. Here’s a sample I found on my favorite Japanese cooking blog (sorry, it’s only in Japanese). This is a recipe but one without too many restrictions.

Serves 4
1 can refried beans (make sure it’s vegan) or make homemade
Salsa (Homemade or store bought)
Rice, cooked
Mixed Greens (or other lettuce of course)
Vegan Meatless Crumbles
1 block tofu
2 tsp smoked salt or other Cajun style seasoning of your choice
Shredded vegetables of your choice (I used red cabbage and carrots)

1. Make the rice and prepare everything in a smorgasbord style.
2. Prepare the vegan meatless crumbles according to this link.
3. Dice the tofu and put in a boil with 2 tsp smoked salt or other Cajun style seasoning of choice. Then place all of the pieces on an oil sprayed sheet of aluminum foil for your toaster oven or oven. Set the oven of your choice at 350F for about 30 minutes. Or if you are in a hurry, set the toaster oven on toast or broil and it will be ready in about 10 minutes or less. It should look slightly browned and crispy.
4. Layer your plates with all the delicious ingredients to your preference.

*My Assembly: I wanted more salad so I took a huge plate of organic greens, topped with Japanese premium rice, refried beans, meatless crumble and veg. Then I add more spice with Sriracha – yum!!!
**Genki Hubby Assembly: He had a large plate of Japanese premium rice, topped with lots of meatless crumble, refried beans and a little lettuce and veg.

Vegan Curry Ramen

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curry ramen, japanese recipe, vegan Japanese recipe, vegan ramen, vegan runner

Hello Heaven calling? Curry is one of my ultimate favorite Japanese borrowed entrée from India. When I lived in Osaka, Japan I visited this authentic Indian curry at a small but always busy restaurant called Tiger Direct Indian- Curry House. My mouth is still watering over the thought of the homemade naan, all freshly made curry sauce and the general smell of the Indian spices filtering through the darkened restaurant giving a tiny hug of comfort to patrons. Honestly I carried the business card of the business around for about 5 years after returning from my life there. Finally I took the card out of my wallet but the memory of dining with friends for lunch. Mmmmm

Curry is just my favorite sauce to use on just about everything. In college many years ago, I introduced curry ramen to my now husband. In America, this wasn’t popular yet and he had never even had curry up until about three years previously – sadly it didn’t go down the best the first try. Thankfully he grew to love it (otherwise marriage might have not happened – I kid, I kid). In college we would take a curry cube and mix it with a prepared ramen package (minus the chemical filled sachet that comes in the package). It was very thick but so filling and worth the few bucks to make it. Additionally it could be created in the microwave – score!

This last weekend it was cooler and I was grouchy. So, I decided that curry was definitely in order. The hubby wanted something with noodles so – curry ramen came back into the household after many years. I did have some curry cubes but in honor of trying to eat all natural, I decided I was going to recreate a favorite classic of my own and use simple ingredients. Hooray!!! I made this on the stove but you can make it in the microwave for under a few bucks.

Serves 2-4 people (depends on how hungry you are)　カレーラーメン

2 pkg ramen noodles (yeah, that cheap stuff is okay)
1-2 tsp vegan bouillon (omit if using broth)
2 cups water or broth
Handful of dried wakame
½ onion, thinly sliced
½ cup carrots, thinly sliced
1-3 tbsp curry powder

1. Boil the ramen noodles in the water. This can be done on the stove or in the microwave. If making in the microwave, heat some water until hot and pour over the noodles. Place a small plate on top of the bowl and steam the noodles.
2. Once the noodles are al dente, add all the other ingredients, minus the curry powder.
3. Keep the mixture on simmer if doing on the stove. If doing by microwave, heat the mixture up for 1 minute.
4. Stir in the curry powder and mix well. Simmer for another few minutes until the curry sets up. If doing by microwave, stir in curry powder and let it set for another minute.
5. Enjoy! Yum!!!!

Note: You can add any other vegetables but this is what I had in stock, obviously it was pre-farmers’ market day.

Vegan Japanese Corn Potage

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corn, healthy recipe, Japanese corn potage, vegan Japanese recipe, vegan recipe

Lately I have really been in an all-around inclusive Japanese fad as of this last week. For some reason I have been missing Japan as of late and probably due to this fact, I have wanted to relive my days as a Japanese alien/citizen. So, when my husband and I saw corn-on-the-cob at the farmer’s market/flea market this past Saturday, I knew what would end up on the menu. It was the first time my husband had heard of this sweet, thick Japanese soup called Corn Potage. (Actually I made it once before going vegan; I guess that is just how memorable that attempt was at the time.)

Have you heard of corn potage? It is traditionally French but the Japanese have a serious love attraction to corn on the cob and feast their addiction with this readably available adapted corn potage. It’s been a few years since I lived in Japan but while I stayed there it was available in all sorts of places, even steaming hot in vending machines alongside the country road next to cows! Since most Japanese houses do not have central heating like in America, hot drinks are usually available all year around to warm the cold. There is nothing like walking on a snow covered road for 20 minutes and grabbing a nice hot cup of steaming corn potage. In the summer it is both served warm and cold, depending on how the customer orders it.

Personally I have never lived or visited France but by sifting through recipes, I do believe the original corn potage was made with egg. In Japan, eggs are rather expensive so they are used sparingly as a special treat of protein instead of a thickener for soups. If you have had the chance to try medieval French corn potage, you might be interested in trying this variable version of the traditional for something different. “Corn Potage” basically means “potted dish” and commonly is just a thick soup. So potage can easily be made vegan by the usage of cornstarch or a roux of flour & a fat. This recipe I made from a Japanese recipe online at cookpad.com. It turned out just as I remember it from Japan and somehow it seemed even better knowing it was a healthy vegan version. Yum!

The hubby loved the corn potage also, even though he didn’t care for it the non-vegan way years ago. I think he liked this version since it has no heavy white cream and egg in it that sits heavy in the stomach. This recipe is savory, sweet, creamy and since it’s thick it can retain it’s thermal heat for longer periods of time. In fact we whipped this recipe up in about ten minutes (while making vegan tapioca pudding and Gardein wraps) and took it in a thermal container to-go. We took a nice 30 minute scenic walk to the park and then had dinner on a picnic blanket. It was steaming hot and we actually had to keep the lid of to release some heat before devouring. It was so tasty and filling! Perfect for a cool summer evening at the park…Mmmm

Original Japanese Recipe Here

3 Ears Sweet Corn-on-Cob, fresh (or 200g canned)- cut off of cob
½ tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 tsp vegan bouillon (chicken is preferred but for some reason it’s hard to find here now)
2 tbsp flour
1 cup water
1 cup coconut milk (I used Trader Joes’ Unsweetened Coconut Milk)
A little salt and pepper to taste

1. Place oil in a large soup pot. Sauté the onion and corn kernels until this nice aroma spills out but don’t let it get brown.
2. Add the water and the ears of corn. (Yes, the kernels have been taken off but there is still a little starch and also tons of flavor left in the ears so add them in whole.) Bring to a boil for about 5 minutes.
3. Once the corn kernels are cooked through (but not mushy- yuck!), take off the heat and add the milk and vegetable bouillon.
4. Toss in the blender or food processor and make it creamy.
5. Return to stove and add the flour to thicken up the soup. You can also do this when you are sautéing the onions but I prefer to do it afterwards. This should take no more than 1 minute.
6. You can add optional toppings such as chopped tomatoes, chopped green onions, chopped avocados or whatever you prefer but just remember it is a slightly sweet potage so it really doesn’t need much. Enjoy!