Austin Bakes for Japan Photos

The Austin Bakes for Japan bake sale held in multiple locations all over Austin yesterday was a huge success! We raised over $11,000 for Americares relief work in Japan. Woohoo!



Bakers, bloggers, and businesses volunteered their time and goodies for the bake sale. All items were sold by donation and Austin donors really came through. The goal for the sale was $10,000 and we exceeded it! Thank you, Austin. It was great to see how generous Austinites were. My husband and I really enjoyed meeting fellow volunteers and all the folks who came by to make donations. Special thanks to Kathryn from Austin Gastronomist for masterminding this whole event and Lisa from Lisa Is Cooking for organizing the central location sale.



If you'd still like to donate, it's not too late. Online donations can be made here.

For more info about the sale and how much we raised, check out the Austin Bakes site.

Here are some photos I shot yesterday at the central location of the sale hosted by Foreign & Domestic restaurant where I volunteered. (And let me just say, I had a peek at their Sunday brunch menu and am itching to get back over there to try it.)

Volunteers at our location included a Japanese anime mascot (who brought cookies and directed street traffic to the site) and this adorable kimono-clad little one who also helped grab the attention of passersby.

Uchiko Preview

Today, Tyson Cole's new restaurant, Uchiko, opens. A few days ago, we got the chance to attend an Uchiko pre-opening dinner. The restaurant offered a half-price menu to attendees willing to give them a trial run before opening and give feedback on how things went.

In 2003, Cole opened Uchi as executive chef and co-owner. His presentation of Japanese food flavored with modern ingredients from all over the world quickly made Uchi one of Austin's hot spots. From my first meal there shortly after Uchi opened, it's become my favorite restaurant — not just because of the food, but also because of their precision — from the service to the aesthetics to the consistency of quality. Cole was named one of Food & Wine magazine's Best New Chefs of 2005 and the acclaim kept coming.

Today, Cole opens his second restaurant with Paul Qui, Uchi's former chef de cuisine, and also, one of the guys behind East Side King — a food trailer in East Austin behind Liberty bar, in command. (We fell in love with East Side King's Asian-flavored bar food earlier this year.) Uchiko will take some of the familiar Japanese flavors and combinations that we love from Uchi, but spin them off in a new direction, so don't expect a duplication of experience. What is the same is the attention to detail in the food, the presentation, the space (like Uchi, designed by Michael Hsu) which they call "Japanese farmhouse." You'll see a wall of charred pine — a traditional Japanese method used to seal wood, hand-painted tiles, tansu furniture, an incredible art piece made of slices of recycled paper (photo), gorgeous modern light fixtures, and a clean, modern exterior with beautiful sculptural trees.

Another difference — Uchiko will take reservations. (Uchi only does reservations for early and late seatings.) Uchiko's bar is much bigger, seating 50, with 200 more seats in the restaurant.

The evening we ate there for the preview, we were seated at a table with no window and not enough light for decent photos. So I got to put the camera away and focus on the incredible flavors coming my way. But I've included links below to Uchiko's web site, Tyson Cole's blog which includes lots of behind-the-scenes info and photos, and other articles and interviews about Uchiko.

On to the food. We had heard from friends who dined earlier in the week, that they had experienced some hiccups in timing on their food. Clearly, those issues had been ironed out because our food delivery was executed perfectly and our server was knowledgeable and his suggestions were spot on. That's why they do these soft openings, to work out the kinks. Our only problem was in ambition. We were way past full by the time we were presented with dessert menus. But we couldn't help ourselves, we had to try the intriguing new flavors.

Here's what we tried:
Lobster Gazpacho — chantrais melon gazpacho, chunks of lobster, and thai chili oil
Koviche — scallop, tomatillo, kala­mata powder, and black lime
Hotate — diver scallop with avocado in aioli
Cobia — with cured cucumber and fresh mint
Madai — japanese bream with shiso, Meyer lemon zest, and olive oil
Wagyu Momo — grilled wagyu beef with peaches, and thai chimichurri
Tempura Nasu — Japanese eggplant crisps with mitsuba and sweet chili sauce
Bacon Onigiri — crisp bits of fried pork belly with rice, banh mi pickles and bonito flakes
Ao Saba — grilled mackerel with huckleberries and pickled mushrooms
Grapefruit Sorbet — with sliced grapefruit, candied fennel, avocado mousse, and fennel pollen
Tobacco Cream — chocolate sorbet served over maple budino, with huckleberry sauce and scotch

The lobster gazpacho was perfection. The melon gazpacho with chunks of lobster and a little spike of chili was just the right palate refresher to start off the meal. We were scraping the bowl. I loved the kalamata powder in the Koviche sushi paired with scallop. I'd never had madai (Japanese bream) before. It was my favorite sushi of the night. I also love shiso and Meyer lemon and they enhanced the mild fish without overpowering it.

From the grill, the eggplant tempura was hot and absolutely perfectly seasoned. And I don't even like eggplant. I'm also not much of a fan of raw mackerel, but the Ao Saba from the grill menu turned me on to mackerel in a new way. It was rich and savory and luscious and we loved the zing of the huckleberries.

And last, but definitely, not least, the desserts. Uchi's acclaimed pastry chef, Philip Speer, is also producing Uchiko's desserts. These offerings held up to the high standard of the rest of our meal. We tried the grapefruit sorbet and the tobacco cream with chocolate sorbet. One word of caution: the tobacco cream is infused with tobacco and my husband (an ex-smoker) got a pretty big hit from this dessert. The maple budino, which serves as the base of this dessert, was one of the most amazing sweets I've ever tasted. I couldn't tear myself away from it. But I ordered the grapefruit sorbet which consisted of three generous scoops of grapefruit sorbet sitting on top of thin slices of grapefruit, candied fennel, avocado mousse and fennel pollen. I loved, loved, loved this combination of flavors. And like the gazpacho we started with, this was the perfect light, clean flavor to end the meal with. I have to say, this was the kind of meal where I danced a little in my seat with every new plate and flavor presented to us.

One of my favorite things about eating at Uchi has always been that I leave there feeling inspired by the craftsmanship that goes into every element of the restaurant, especially the food and flavor combinations presented. I'm really excited to have had that experience at Uchiko as well. I can't wait to go back and see what else they have on offer.

More info on Uchi:
• Uchi and Uchiko web site

• Uchiko's menu

• Behind-the-scenes info and photos on Uchiko at Tyson at Uchi blog.

• Interview with Tyson Cole on KUT.

• Interview with Uchiko executive chef Paul Qui from Austin 360.

• What's in your fridge with Tyson Cole and Paul Qui from Relish Austin.

• Eastside King


Uchiko
4200 North Lamar, Austin
phone reservations: 512.916.4808
serving dinner, 7 days
online reservations

Uchiko is coming!

I've already had my nose pressed up against the glass trying to get a peak inside. Uchiko, the much-anticipated second restaurant from Uchi's Tyson Cole is coming soon.

The new Uchi/Uchiko web site went up today complete with Uchiko's new "Japanese farmhouse" menu. I can't wait!!

Uchi has been my favorite restaurant since they opened. From day one at Uchi, every single detail has been crafted and presented with precision and easy elegance. The food, the service, the design... it's become the standard by which I measure other restaurants. And most impressively, that standard has remained consistent every single time I've dined there. It is our special occasion restaurant of choice and the place we are always most excited to share with friends who come to visit Austin. I can't wait to see what Uchiko has in store for us now. I drive by the new Uchiko location every morning on my way to work and have been watching the progress and tapping my foot with impatience. I'm really excited that an opening date is in site next month.

In the interest of full disclosure, between the time I shot this photo earlier in the week (planning this post) and actually putting it up today, I've been invited to a half-price soft opening preview, which I most certainly will be attending. I can't wait to report back. But I would have made reservations on my own, and as a matter of fact, had already called last week trying to do so. I'll be doing so again, probably before we even make it to the preview. I am by no means a professional restaurant reviewer, nor do I pretend to be. But I will be happy to share my enthusiasm and the highlights of my experience with you. I won't be "reviewing" it, but I'm always happy to share food experiences that I'm excited about.

Until then, get a look behind the scenes at Tyson Cole's blog, TysonatUchi.com. He includes photos of the interior and the food.

Uchiko
4200 North Lamar
Austin
512.916.4808

Japanese Hot Pot with Chicken & Mushrooms

I have the best husband ever. In true Santa fashion, he gave me just the thing I really wanted for Christmas but hadn't even thought of putting on my list... a Japanese hot pot and the perfect hot pot handbook to go with it, Japanese Hot Pots by Japanese chef Tadashi Ono and writer Harris Salat. I have a favorite udon noodle hotpot I love to order when we go out for sushi in the winter. I've tried replicating the luxurious broth at home without much luck. But with my first try from this book, I found the flavors I was looking for. You know that feeling you get when you sit in a hot springs (or hot tub) outdoors in the cold or better yet, in the snow? You get warm and radiant all the way down to your core. You feel like a wet noodle afterwards, but in the best, most relaxed way. Eating a good hot pot can give you that same warm, comforted and nourished to your core feeling, with noodles!



First, about the pot. A Japanese clay hot pot is called a donabe (pronounced doh-nah-beh). These traditional earthenware vessels conduct heat evenly and retain that heat better than any other cooking material. They have a rounded unglazed bottom and a domed, glazed lid that allows heat to circulate. The lid has a small hole which acts as a steam vent and gives you a heads up when your soup is boiling. The towns of Iga and Shigaraki in central Japan (where my hot pot came from) are famous for making these pots in the traditional way. One important thing to note: you must temper your new hot pot before using it. This is easily done by cooking rice in it and then allowing it to cool in the pot, then clean it and allow it to dry completely before the first use. I'd advise doing this on a separate day from when you plan to cook your first hot pot. It makes the cooking process a little simpler and less time-consuming and you won't be in a rush for your pot to dry. The most important thing about hot pot cooking is to make sure that the pot is completely dry before you fire it up. If not, the water in the unglazed portion of the pot could expand when heated and crack it. Check out this video for step-by-step instructions on how to temper your new hot pot.

If you don't have a hot pot or want to try a few recipes before committing, you can use an enameled cast-iron pot like a Staub or Le Creuset.

In Japanese culture, sharing a meal from a single pot is thought to bring people closer together. We cooked ours on our gas stove and then brought it to the table to serve. But if you have a tabletop burner, you can cook it right there at the table. I was pleasantly surprised by how our donabe retained heat throughout the entire meal. The soup was steaming when we brought it to the table. But even after taking a few photos and leisurely eating our meal, the last bite was still quite hot at the bottom of the bowl.

I made a mushroom hot pot. The recipe in the book uses a variety of mushrooms, tofu, napa cabbage, tofu and spinach. I switched the tofu to chicken and the spinach and cabbage to boy choy. Feel free to use whatever you like. That's the fun of a hot pot.

The first thing you'll need, after your cooking pot, is the dashi, or broth. If you're wanting to make your hot pot quickly as a weeknight meal, I'd advise making the dashi ahead of time so it'll be ready to go. The recipe below is the base dashi recipe from the book. You make it with kombu (seaweed) and dried bonito flakes. You can find these at Whole Foods in the Asian aisle or at an Asian or Japanese market. You can also find kombu and bonito online at Amazon.

Dashi (Kombu-Katsuobushi Dashi)

8 cups + 2 tablespoons water
2 6-inch pieces of kombu
1 1/2 ounces (about 3 cups packed) dried, shaved bonito flakes

Pour 8 cups of water into a large stockpot. Add the kombu. (Do not heat yet.) Let steep for at least 30 minutes.

After steeping, bring the kombu and water to a boil over medium heat. When the water has begun to boil, carefully remove the kombu. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of water.

Now add the bonito flakes and give them a gentle stir to break up the clumps. Bring the mixture up to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes. If any foam or bubbles form on the top of the broth, remove them from the surface with a spoon.

Turn off heat and let steep for 15 minutes.

Strain through a fine sieve or cheesecloth. (The book says not to squeeze or press on the bonito, just let it strain through.)

At this stage, you can use the broth immediately or let cool and then refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Makes about 6 cups.




Mushroom Hot Pot (Kinoko Nabe)

4 cups dashi (from the recipe above)
1 cup sake
1/2 cup mirin
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 heads of baby bok choy
1 pound chicken tenders
1/2 pound small shiitke mushrooms (about 16), stems removed
2-4 trumpet mushrooms
1/2 pound enoki mushrooms, trimmed and pulled apart into bunches
2-3 serving bundles of frozen udon noodles, defrosted
Shichimi togarashi (citrus, sesame, chile seasoning)

Combine the dashi, sake, mirin and soy sauce in a bowl. Whisk together to combine. Set aside.

Place your tempered hot pot or enameled cast iron pan on the stove or burner.

Cut your defrosted udon noodle bundles into quarters. Place them in the outside bottom edges of the hot pot. Leave space in the center for the chicken. Place chicken tenders into the center of the hot pot. Cover with dashi about 3/4 full - save some broth in reserve, if it gets too full. You don't want your pan to boil over. Place the lid over the pot.

Bring the hot pot with noodles and chicken up to a boil over high heat. When it reaches a boil, decrease heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

Remove the lid and add the mushrooms and boy choy to the pot. Cover and simmer another 5 minutes. (If using spinach, add it in the last minute before serving.)

Turn off heat and take the hot pot to the table — place on a trivet or heat-safe surface. Serve sprinkled with Shichimi togarashi.

Serves 3-4.

Adapted from Japanese Hot Pots by Tadashi Ono and Harris Salat.

To learn more about Japanese food, check out the Japanese Food Report blog by Harris Salat.

If you're in NYC, check out Tadashi Ono's restaurant, Matsuri.

Postscript: Listen to KCRW's Good Food (Jan. 9, 2010) for an interview with Harris Salat and Tadashi Ono about hot pots.