A favorite at parties, these buffalo chicken wings are perfectly moist with a wonderfully crispy exterior. The sauce can be adjusted to suit your preference in spiciness. DO NOT skip placing the breaded wings into the refrigerator! If you do you’ll lose a lot of the crunchy texture!

Buffalo Chicken Wings
Prep Time: 85 minutes Cook Time: 25 minutes Serves: 5-6

• 20 chicken wings (sometimes sold at supermarkets as “party wings”)
• 2 teaspoons Garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon Black pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon Paprika
• 3/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup All-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Butter
• 1/2 cup Hot sauce

1. Combine garlic powder, pepper, cayenne, paprika, salt, and flour together and mix well.
2. Rinse chicken wings and dry well with paper towels. Place dried wings into a large bowl.
3. Sprinkle wings with flour mixture one handful at a time and coat. Cover with plastic wrap and place bowl in refrigerator for at least 45 minutes, 90 minutes preferred.
4. Heat a pan or deep fryer with oil to 375 degrees. If using a pan pour just enough oil to submerge wings, 1-1.25 inches deep.
5. Add wings to hot oil and fry for 8-12 minutes, or until wings are golden brown and cooked through.
6. While wings are frying melt butter into a saucepan and add hot sauce. Once sauce is heated through remove from heat and set aside.
7. As wings finish frying allow them to sit on a bed of paper towels for a few minutes to drain excess oil. Place cooked wings into a large bowl and drizzle sauce over as desired. Toss wings in the sauce until well coated.
8. Plate and serve with ranch or blue cheese dressing.

A simple recipe for a tasty dish. Recipe is portioned not as a main dish but for a meal where you might prepare a variety of smaller dishes to share.

Shiitake Beef Fry
Prep Time: 1 hour (marinade time) Cook Time: 10 minutes Serves: 2

• 8 ounces of beef sirloin, diced
• 2 Tablespoons Soy sauce
• 1 Tablespoon Sherry
• 1/2 teaspoon Sesame oil
• 2-3 Garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon Ginger, minced
• 3-4 Dried shiitake mushrooms
• 2 Green onion stalks, chopped
• Salt/pepper to taste

1. Combine beef, soy sauce, sherry, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger. Cover and let marinade for a least 1 hour, 2 or more preferable.
2. 20 minutes prior to cooking place dried shiitake mushrooms into warm water to rehydrate. Slice shiitake mushrooms and remove stems.
3. In a medium pan heat oil and fry beef for 1-2 minutes until browned.
4. Add shiitake mushrooms and continue frying until beef is cooked through.
5. Remove pan from heat and add green onions.
6. Plate and serve.

New York Strip steak with warm balsamic tomato sauce, garlic mashed potatoes, and satueed asparagus & mushrooms

One of my wife’s favorite recipes from my recipe book, this is a simple yet delightfully delicious way to prepare a steak dinner at home. The sweetness of roma tomatoes melds perfectly with the tang of balsamic vinegar to create a wonderful sauce for a simply seasoned steak. While I prefer to use New York or Ribeye cuts when making this recipe, almost any cut of steak will work well.

Steak with warm balsamic tomato sauce
Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Serves: 4

• 4 cuts of steak, preferably 3/4-1 inch thick
• 8 Roma tomatoes
• 1/4 cup scallions, diced
• 2-3 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• Olive oil (garlic or basil infused if available)
• Salt/pepper

1. Remove steaks from refrigerator 10 minutes prior to preparation of other ingredients. Steaks are cooked best at near room temperature.
2. Drizzle olive oil into a large pan (big enough to hold all steaks) over no heat. Peel and crush garlic cloves and add to oil.
3. Slice into skin of Roma tomatoes all around the equator, set aside in heat proof bowl.
4. Bring enough water to a boil in a small pot to submerge and cover Roma tomatoes.
5. Once water has boiled, pour over Roma tomatoes and allow to sit for 3 minutes. Drain hot water and quickly cool tomatoes with cold water from faucet.
6. After tomatoes are cooled the skin should easily slide off. Cut tomatoes in half and remove all seeds. Dice tomato flesh and set aside with diced scallions.
7. Heat the pan with garlic/oil over medium high heat. Add a pinch of salt to the garlic and olive oil.
8. Lightly sauté garlic for one minute and then remove from pan.
9. Salt and pepper one side of each steak. Move steaks into hot pan and cook for 3-4 minutes per side for medium rare.
10. After steaks are cooked, remove to a plate and let rest.
11. Add tomatoes, scallions, balsamic vinegar, and 2 tablespoons of water into pan with drippings from cooking the steaks.
12. Bring pan to medium heat and warm the sauce. Add a pinch or two of salt to taste.
13. Plate steaks and spoon balsamic tomato sauce on top.
14. Enjoy!

Miso soup at its core is basically miso dissolved into water. This recipe takes it a step further by incorporating the use of dashi broth and clams to enhance the richness and body of the soup. If you can find miso that has dashi-no-moto mixed into it, this will further increase the flavor of your soup!

This recipe is very simple and fast. Easy to whip up after a long day at work when you want something quick and delicious! The ingredients below make enough for about 4-6 nicely sized bowls of soup. The amount of miso you actually add will vary depending on your taste preference. I also prefer to use red miso, as I feel it gives the soup more body, but you can always use whatever miso you prefer.

Simple Miso Soup
Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes

• 4 cups dashi stock (dissolve 1/2 tsp dashi-no-moto per cup water)
• 1/2 block of tofu, cubed
• 1/8 white onion, sliced thin
• 2 Tablespoons dried wakame (seaweed)
• 1/3 cup daikon, cut into sticks
• 3-5 Tablespoons Red miso (preferably one that has dashi-no-moto mixed in!)
• 2-3 Tablespoons green onion, sliced
• 3 clams (optional)

1. Heat dashi stock in a small pot, bring up to near boil.
2. Add onions, daikon, and clams.
3. Cover pot and cook until onions and daikon are soft.
4. Add wakame and tofu cubes into pot. Reduce heat to a high simmer (not boiling).
5. Just before serving add red miso. Stir until miso clumps are dissolved. Do not boil soup once miso is added.
6. Pour miso soup into bowls and garnish with green onion.

Ingredients for miso soup

Bowl of Miso soup ready to eat!

Recently I’ve begun experimenting with making some of my favorite broths at home. I started out with nabe broths (I can put together a pretty good pirikara broth now) and slowly moved on up to Pho and ramen.

My experiments with trying to cook ramen broth started off with the classic “tonkotsu” broth. This clear, marrow rich broth is not common here in Hawaii but it is all the rage in Japan. Since my first attempts I’ve slowly graduated to modifying the tonkotsu recipe with some other elements to give it a stronger flavor. I’ve come to find that combining dark miso into the mix gives the rich marrow flavor a saltier bite, which I enjoy.

Ramen is so versatile that beyond the broth and noodles, you can pretty much throw in whatever you want. For tonight’s preparation I had some leftover tempura pieces, which I ended up reheating and tossing into the mix.

Pork Miso Ramen
Prep Time: 40 minutes Cook Time: 6-7 hours

• 2 pounds pork bones with as much marrow as possible
• 2 pounds chicken bones (can substitute with 3 cups chicken stock)
• 1 medium white onion, cut into 8 sections
• 1 bulb garlic, cleaned but whole
• 2 inch section of ginger, cut into slices
• Addition 1 inch section of ginger, skinned and whole
• 1 stalk of leek (white bottom portion)
• 3 shiitake mushrooms
• 1/3 cup dark red miso (with dashi-no-moto in it if available)
• 2 Tbsp Seasame oil
• Oil for frying
• water

1. Place pork and chicken bones into a pot and cover with water. Bring pot to a boil and leave for 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat a saucepan with 1/2 inch of oil. Over medium heat add onions, garlic, and leek. Cook until items are brown and caramelized (roughly 30 minutes).
3. When pork bones are done with initial 5 minute boil, drain into a colander. Rinse pot and place pork bones back inside along with chicken bones. Fill pot with water until bones are submerged by at least 1 inch of liquid. If using chicken stock in place of bones add that in now.
4. Bring pot back to a boil, siphoning off the “foam” or “scum” that rises to the top for the first 20-30 minutes.
5. When onions and garlic are well caramelized, use a spoon and move into pot with pork bones. Drain as much oil out as you transfer them to the pot.
6. Add shiitake mushrooms.
7. Cover the pot and leave on a high boil for 6 hours. Add water to keep ingredients covered as needed.
8. After 6 hours remove bones from pot. Line a strainer with paper towel or cheesecloth and strain broth through into a large bowl. Pour strained broth back into pot and put over medium heat.
9. Grate remaining 1 inch of ginger finely into pot. Add in sesame oil and miso. Do not bring the pot to a boil once miso has been added. Monitor heat to keep broth hot while not boiling.
10. Prepare bowls with ramen noodles and other ingredients. Pour broth over and enjoy!

Onions, garlic, ginger and leeks

Caramelizing the aromatics in oil

Pork bones in chicken broth/water after initial boiling

Pork Miso Ramen with Tempura and char sui

This recipe uses the slight spiciness of cumin along with the flavors of garlic and bacon to create a delicious, yet simple, breakfast treat.

Breakfast Burrito
Prep Time: 7 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes

• 1/2 cup sausage, diced (any type works)
• 1/4 cup white onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 strips bacon
• 2 tablespoons green onion, chopped
• 2-3 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2-3 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 flour tortillas
• 1-2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• Pinch of salt
• Fresh or bottled salsa (optional)

1. Heat a saucepan to medium and brown bacon. Remove bacon when crisp to paper towel. Drain bacon drippings, leaving just enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
2. Reduce stove to low heat. Add minced garlic and pinch of salt. Stir lightly until garlic begins to brown.
3. Increase heat to medium. Add sausage and onions and sauté until onions begin to soften.
4. Add in cumin and oregano.
5. Pour beaten eggs over sausage and onions. Stir constantly as eggs scramble.
6. While eggs are still soft, crush the previously fried bacon and add bits into pan. Then add cilantro and green onions.
7. Turn off the heat and sprinkle in cheddar cheese.
8. Warm two tortillas in a pan or microwave and spoon mixture evenly into both. Top with salsa if desired.

Quick & Easy breakfast burrito

Delicious corned beef & cabbage meal

This year since St. Patrick’s Day happened to fall on a weekday, the prospect of making corned beef & cabbage after work was not so appealing. No one really wants to prepare such a large meal after being at work all day.

Slow cooker to the rescue! This recipe lets you throw everything into the cooker and come back home to a delicious corned beef meal. The addition of garlic and vinegar give the corned beef broth subtle flavors that accentuate the natural saltiness of the meat.

Slow Cooker Corned Beef & Cabbage
Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 8-9 hours

• 3-4 pound corned beef brisket w/ seasoning pack
• 2 medium carrots, cut
• 3 medium potatoes, halved
• 1/2 medium cabbage head, sliced thick
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp white sugar
• 2 Tbsp cider vinegar (red wine vinegar can be substituted)
• 1 tsp cracked black pepper
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• water to cover

1. Place corned beef brisket at bottom of a large slow cooker.
2. In a bowl combine water, salt, pepper, seasoning pack from corned beef, garlic, sugar, vinegar and bay leaves
3. Arrange carrot and potatoes on top of brisket
4. Pour water/spice mixture into slow cooker, add more water if necessary to cover corned beef and veggies
5. Put slow cooker on LOW and cook for 5-6 hours
6. Add cabbage to the slow cooker in the last 2-3 hours of cooking. If you have a smaller slow cooker, transfer some broth from slow cooker to a pot and simmer cabbage leaves for 20 minutes until soft.
7. After 8-9 hours in slow cooker the corned beef will be tender and flavorful. Remove and serve!

Veggies cut and ready for cooking

Place corned beef brisket in bottom of slow cooker

Slow cooker filled with corned beef, broth, carrots and potatoes

Bound to be one of the most popular Japanese appetizers on menus across the US, chicken karaage is not unfamiliar to us here in Hawaii. Although there are many variations on this particular dish (and sometimes different names like “chicken tatsutaage”), the true original dish is simply deep fried marinated chicken pieces.

Making chicken karaage is actually quite easy. If you’d like to give it a try at home here’s a quick and simple recipe:

Chicken Karaage
Prep Time: 1-2 hours Cook Time: 15 minutes

• 5-6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 2 tsp grated ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp sake (rice wine)
• 1+ cup of cornstarch

1. Take chicken and remove any excess fat. Cut chicken into large bite sized cubes.
2. Combine ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sugar, and rice wine and mix well
3. Add cubed chicken pieces into the marinade mixture and allow chicken to marinade for 1-2 hours
4. Heat hot oil to roughly 350 degrees in a deep saucepan (or use a fryer)
5. Dredge chicken pieces lightly in cornstarch and shake off any excess. Add chicken into hot oil.
6. Cook chicken until golden brown and crispy on the outside, roughly 4-5 minutes depending on thickness of chicken pieces.
7. Remove to plate and garnish with lemon. Serve while hot.

I hope that through this recipe you find that enjoying delicious chicken karaage doesn’t require a visit to your nearest Japanese restaurant. This tasty dish can be prepared easily at home! Enjoy!