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Newest recipes

  • Tteok and cheese – the ultimate comfort food fusion!

    Tteok and cheese – the ultimate comfort food fusion!
  • Nutritional yeast dressing with a fiery kick: love it!

    Nutritional yeast dressing with a fiery kick: love it!
  • Umeboshi salad dressing: new twist for a blood orange salad

    Umeboshi salad dressing: new twist for a blood orange salad
  • Matcha noodles with matcha dressing

    Matcha noodles with matcha dressing
  • Homemade “umeshu”

    Homemade “umeshu”
  • Fruity tomato salad – summer on a plate

    Fruity tomato salad – summer on a plate

Tteok and cheese – the ultimate comfort food fusion!

25.1.2024 By Juulia Leave a Comment

Tteok and cheese

What do you get when you mix the iconic Korean street food tteokbokki and the classic American mac and cheese?

TTEOK AND CHEESE!

Tteok and cheese is an ultimate comfort food to me! Soft rice cakes, bubbly dashi infused cheese sauce, a mountain of roasted garlic, all my favorite veggies… Snuggled beneath a golden crispy crunchy top. I can devour this treat straight from the baking dish, and fight you for the last bite. But win or loose, nobody will be hungry after this. That’s guaranteed!

Shortcut to Tteok & Cheese here!
Tteok and cheese

CHEESY RICE CAKES

I ended up with this tteok and cheese equation when I was simultaneously craving for Korean rice cakes (tteok) and mac and cheese. I’ve never been to Korea, yet I’ve fallen in love with tteokbokki, a dish consisting of rice cakes in an addictively spicy gochujang sauce… (That’s putting it quite simply by the way, there’s obviously way more to this dish than that). I’ve been making tteokbokki at home since 2017, and although I don’t cook this rich and delightfully spicy dish as often as I did in the beginning, the craving hits regularly. I’m actually super happy that my tteokbokki post (in Finnish here) is still one of the most read recipes on my blog!

The idea of combining tteokbokki and cheese sauce has actually been brewing in my mind since I had cheesy rice cakes in New York a few years ago. And with a quick googling I can tell that many others have had the same revelation 🙂 The internet is filled with recipes for ‘tteok & cheese,’ ‘cheesy tteokbokki,’ and ‘cheese tteok.’ It seems that cheese-covered tteokbokki and other cheesy rice cake creations are quite popular in Korea as well! What wouldn’t I give to experience tteokbokki with all its variations firsthand on the streets of Seoul someday…

Oh well. While waiting for that dream trip to happen, I shall continue my culinary journeys from home. The tteok & cheese recipes I came across with seem to vary from simple combinations of rice cakes and cheese sauce to more complex creations. Can you guess which category my dish falls into?

Ingredients for cheesy korean rice cakes

Cheesy Loaded rice cakes!

Yeah… I went all in with my tteok & cheese. The casserole was loaded with pan-fried king oyster mushrooms, leeks, spring onions, broccolini, and deep-fried tofu – plus rice cakes of course! I also found a box of local sweet corn that I froze at the end of summer. In you go corn!

My cheese sauce happily combines ingredients from various parts of East Asia and also our Western neighbor Sweden. The base of the sauce is Japanese kombu dashi, which I enriched with oat cream and thickened with a garlic roux. What’s that you say? Well, I browned a heap of garlic in vegan butter, then added in wheat flour. A pinch of white pepper and Chinese five spice, a drizzle of Shaoxing wine, and then it’s time for the star. Lots of cheese! I wanted a really flavorful cheese so I opted for the ever-delicious Västerbotten cheese from Sweden. Quite a combination, but I love it!

Cheese tteok

All things in moderation…

Both the rice cakes and the cheese sauce are extremely filling and hearty. And, you need lots of the sauce to ensure all the rice cakes are thoroughly coated… Fully immersed under the cheesy blanket, the rice cakes become heavenly soft. Left to peak on the surface? Not quite so soft at all. And I want my rice cakes soft!!

You could leave this dish as just rice cakes and cheese sauce, and call it a day. But in my opinion all those carbs and fat need some balancing! Hence, all those veggies. As much as I love my carbs and cheese, I love veggies too, and my comfort food will almost always have plenty of veg! They also turn this meal into a more balanced kind – you get some fiber and nutrients along with each comforting spoonful…

… except the crunch!

To ensure a properly crunchy top, I sprinkle panko crumbs and sesame seeds on the surface before baking. You can of course also add more cheese! I’m also opting for a dish that’s on the shallow side for this recipe, in order to maximize the surface area. And to amp the crunch up, I garnish the golden-brown surface with crispy fried onions, and crumbled nori seaweed snacks right before serving!

Loaded ricecakes

Tteok & cheese time!

Despite the long list of ingredients, tteok & cheese is relatively straightforward to prepare. You just make the cheese sauce, then layer everything in the baking dish. The oven does the rest! You do need to find all the ingredients first though– or just replace some with what you have in your own pantry. (I’ve added suggestions for substitutions in the recipe.) I do however highly recommend a visit to your local Asian grocery store!

Please enjoy my take on Tteok & Cheese! I hope this recipe will bring you as much joy and comfort as it’s brought to me. If you do make it, I’d love to hear how it turns out! You can tag me over on IG @vaimomatskuu – or leave a comment here ☺️

Cheesy loaded rice cakes aka tteok and cheese

Tteok and cheese is a fusion of Korean street food tteokbokki and the American classic mac and cheese. Soft rice cakes, mushrooms, broccoli, corn, leeks, and tofu puffs, smothered under a rich dashi infused cheese sauce, topped with a crispy surface!
Cuisine Fusion
Servings 4 people
Author Juulia
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 30 minutes mins
Total Time 50 minutes mins
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Ingredients
 

Cheese Sauce:

  • 60 g (Plant based) butter
  • 12-16 Cloves of garlic (depending on their size)
  • 4 tbsp All-purpose flour
  • 1 dl Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
  • 6 dl Kombu dashi (or diluted tsuyu for broth)
  • 4 dl Oat cream (or other plant based cooking cream)
  • 2 tsp Garlic powder
  • ½ tsp Ground white pepper
  • 2 tsp Chinese five spice
  • 400 g Nutty strong cheese, grated (For example Västerbotten, aged cheddar, )
  • 1-2 tsp Miso paste

For the casserole:

  • 400 g Korean tteok rice cakes
  • 200 g Deep fried tofu puffs
  • 200 g Broccoli florets (or bok choy, spinach, kale…)
  • 4-6 King oyster mushrooms (or similar amount button mushrooms or shiitake)
  • 2 tbsp Plant based butter
  • 1 Leek
  • 4-6 Spring onions
  • 2 dl corn

Topping:

  • Panko bread crumbs
  • Sesame seeds
  • Crispy fried onions
  • Nori seaweed snacks
  • Spring onions
Notes:
Rice cakes don’t really reheat all that well, so it’s best not to make more than you’ll eat at once. I usually make just a half batch for our two person household. Luckily, rice cakes are sold also in portions of 200g! By the way, if you can’t find Korean rice cakes, store-bought gnocchi can be a good substitute in this recipe!
Sometimes, I make a double batch of cheese sauce in advance, making the preparation of this dish really just an assembling of the ingredients.
Perhaps you already noticed, but by using plant-based fat, cream, and cheese, this recipe is vegan. Just make sure that the dashi you use does not contain katsuobushi, just kombu and shiitake! I often use a dashi powder in recipes such as this, it’s a wonderful product to use as a base for all kinds of soups and stews.

Instructions

Preparation:

  • Preheat the oven to 225°C. Boil a pot of water. Place the rice cakes in a heat-resistant container and pour enough hot water over them to cover. Leave the rice cakes soaking in the hot water while you prepare the other ingredients.
  • Slice the leek in to ½ cm rounds, wash them thoroughly (leeks can hide dirt inside them!). Chop up the broccoli into bite sized piece, finely mince the spring onions. Cut the mushrooms to bite sized pieces, and brown them in a small amount of butter in a frying pan. If the broccoli has thick stems, you may want to thrown them on the pan too for a moment. If using frozen corn, thaw and drain it. And finally: peel and thinly slice all that garlic!

Cheese sauce:

  • Heat up the dashi and keep it warm under a lid. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and sauté the garlic until it starts to have a light golden color. Add in the flour and stir with a whisk or wooden fork until smooth. Gradually add in the Shaoxing wine and dashi while stirring, to avoid any lumps. Finally, add in the oat cream and the spices.
  • Let the sauce simmer for a few minutes while stirring, then add the grated cheese. Stir the sauce until smooth, taste, adjust as needed. Then remove the saucepan from the heat. Keep the sauce warm under a lid!

Tteok and cheese:

  • Drain the rice cakes from the soaking water and separate any that are stuck together. Layer the rice cakes, mushrooms, tofu, and vegetables in a flat baking dish and mix. Pour the cheese sauce over them. Try to push all rice cakes under the sauce!
  • Sprinkle panko and sesame seeds on top (and optionally a bit more grated cheese). Bake the dish on the middle rack of the oven for about 20 minutes, then move it to the top rack to get a golden color. You can also turn on the broiler at this point, just be careful not to burn the surface!
  • Let the dish rest for a moment before serving, and finish the Tteok & Cheese with crumbled nori seaweed, fried onions and some chopped spring onions.
Cheesy ricecakes

Afterthought: I know I dubbed this as the lovechild of Tteokbokki and Mac & Cheese and it’s really not very close to neither. Yes there are Korean rice cakes like in Tteokbokki and yes there’s a cheese sauce like in Mac and Cheese. But I suppose that’s where the similarities end 🤪 But then again, no child is quite like their parents?

Nutritional yeast dressing with a fiery kick: love it!

19.1.2024 By Juulia Leave a Comment

nutritional yeast dressing

Nutritional yeast: LOVE It!

Who loves nutritional yeast? Me me me! And millions of others 🙂 Nutritional yeast flakes are especially loved by vegans and vegetarians for their nutty, cheesy, and umami flavors, which can add a cheesy taste to a variety of dishes without animal products. True to its name, nutritional yeast is packed with nutrients: it contains iron, zinc, and B vitamins (including B12 in some products), as well as fiber and protein. It’s a real bonus that you can sprinkle these flakes on just about anything for the taste alone!

Nutritional yeast works wonders in all kinds of foods, but I hadn’t tried it in a salad dressing yet. Well, now I have! I recently came across a recipe where nutritional yeast flakes are blended into an incredibly thick and addictive “vinaigrette” with soy, oil, and vinegar, and I’m happy to spread the word about this sauce to all of you. Hope you enjoy this nutritional yeast dressing as much as I do!

Jump to Recipe!
nutritional yeast recipe

Nutritional yeast… Brewer’s yeast… nooch?

I came across these tasty flakes back in the day under the name “brewer’s yeast”. They have indeed been sold as such in Finland for decades, as a dietary supplement. For some reason, I never stopped to find out where this name comes from – I just suspected that the product must be related to beer making. And lo and behold, I was right! Nutritional yeast aka brewer’s yeast used to be a brewery by-product – apparently it was yeast that was filtered out of the beer, so it had a slightly bitter taste.

Nowadays nutritional yeast (or nooch as the cool kids say) is made with molasses. In case you’re wondering why would I eat yeast? … Well, fear not: the yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), has been made inactive. It’s been heated up and dried, and it will not start bubbling in your belly! Instead, it will just dance on your taste buds lol. Both brewer’s yeast and nutritional yeast have been around for a long time – and although back in the early 90’s when I first saw it only in hippy health stores, it seems to be extremely trendy now. If you are cooking vegan or vegetarian food you surely couldn’t have avoided it… And rightfully so, it adds so much flavor to so many dishes!

By the way! There’s a good article about this ingredient in Epicurious, if you want to look deeper into the history of this beloved flakey substance 🙂

ravintohiivahiutale salaatinkastike

Nutritional yeast dressing

I have been using nutritional yeast mainly in my vegan “cheese” concoctions, and sprinkled on top of all kinds of savory dishes. But now it’s become a part of my salads too! I discovered a recipe called Nutritional Yeast Vinaigrette over on the YouTube channel by Carla Lalli Music. She shared a recipe from her IG pal @cabincorn along with a loads of hype. It sounded almost too good to be true, so obviosly I had to give it a go immediately!

The original recipe (that someone shared in the comments, so take my use of “original” with a grain of salt) includes only nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, tamari, garlic and olive oil, but Carla substituted part of the oil with tahini. Everything is blitzed up into a thick emulsion and yes, you certainly will be sampling spoonful after spoonful whilst making it! It is GOOD.

I was curious about the recipe, so I did some googling for “nutritional yeast dressing” and “nooch dressing”. Well it just so happens, that the interweb seems to be full of recipes with very similar ingredients. Mostly on plant based recipe blogs and sites – for obvious reasons I suppose? Well, let’s add one more to the list! I could not resist taking a spin on this recipe 🙂

nutritional yeast vinaigrette
Try… not… to… LICK

Chinkiang vinegar, chinese sesame paste, sichuan chili oil, yum!

My inner taste compass has lately been pointing steadily towards Asia, and my cupboards are filled with ingredients such as black Chinkiang vinegar, Chinese sesame paste and homemade Sichuan chili oil. Obviously I had to use them in the recipe! I also added in some fresh ginger along with the garlic, and mellowed out the vinegary sharpness of the dressing with some agave syrup. The resulting emulsion is super thick and creamy! So thick in fact, that I’ve been thinning it ever so slightly with freshly squeezed mandarin juice.

Once you start playing around with different vinegar, fat and spices, you really can adjust this recipe to all kinds of tastes and uses. Swap the sesame paste to peanut butter: get a different result. Blend in some fresh herbs, scallion, crispy fired onion: a different result. Substitute some of the vinegar with lemon juice? A different result. The possibilities are endless!

Serving suggestions

With what ever you end up using, you can serve this nutritional yeast dressing with salad, obviously! This includes the more substantial salads based on chickpeas, pasta, rice, beans… Lately I’ve been so lazy with my cooking however, that my lunches have literally looked like the pictures on this blog post. A lunch consisting of charred broccolini, smothered with the nooch dressing is how I roll these days… To be fair though, I’m currently working from home and just sitting on my laptop all day long. My meals tend to be on the lighter side of things for a reason!

Anyway, the point is, you can use the dressing with what ever you want! I think it would be great with all kinds of roasted root/veggies (especially something like pumpkin or sweet potato!), but also with pan seared or fried tofu, fatty fish like salmon. Since the sauce is rather on the tangy side, I would pair it with a dish that includes something sweet.

nutritional yeast dressing
In hindsight, I should’ve searched my cupboards for something sweet (dried fruits, caramelized crispy fried shallots, honey coated cashew nuts?) to top this off! Oh well, next time.

The recipe below has been modified from the recipe shared in a YouTube video by Carla Lalli Music. Her recipe is an adaptation of a recipe by Griffin Wilson (IG: @cabincorn )

Nutritional yeast dressing – with a fiery kick!

This thick and creamy nutritional yeast dressing gets it irresistible flavor from nutritional yeast (obviosly), and light soy sauce, Chinese black vinegar, ginger, garlic and Sichuan chili oil. Serve it with salads, or drizzle on your favorite roasted veg!
Keyword salad dressing
Author Juulia
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 10 minutes mins
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Equipment

  • Immersion blender

Ingredients
 

  • 1½ dl Nutritional yeast
  • ⅔ dl Llight soy sauce
  • ¾ dl Black Chinkiang vinegar
  • 3 cloves Garlic
  • 2-3 cm Piece of fresh ginger
  • ½ dl Chinese sesame paste
  • 4 tbsp Agave syrup
  • 1 dl Neutral tasting vegetable oil
  • ½ dl Sichuan chili oil (with/without the solid chili flakes)
  • 1 tbsp Toasted sesame oil
  • 1-2 tbsp Freshly squeezed mandarine juice (If needed!)
Notes:
  • Store the nutritional yeast dressing covered in the fridge.
  • Go ahead and experiment with other oils, vinegars, nut / seed pastes, seasonings… to get your own perfect combination!

Instructions

  • Measure out the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame paste, syrup and nutritional yeast into a blender / deep and narrow container. Throw in the peeled garlic and ginger, cut into smaller pieces. Blend until homogenous.
  • Start drizzling in the neutral tasting oil in a thin stream, whilst blending to create an emulsion. Drizzle in also the chili oil, with as much of the solid chili flakes as you can tolerate 😉 Finally blend in the toasted sesame oil.
  • If you want to thin out the dressing, I would recommend using mandarine juice (or some other rather sweet fruit juice). Just make sure you blend it in well!
nutritional yeast dressing

Umeboshi salad dressing: new twist for a blood orange salad

13.1.2024 By Juulia Leave a Comment

blood orange salad
Umeboshi salad dressing with a fennel and blood orange salad = h e a v e n l y !

Blood orange season is here!

And so is the new year: Happy New Year! My first recipe of 2024 is all about blood oranges – ’tis the season, and I’m loving it. My go-to for the season is a classic fennel and blood orange salad – it’s just perfect with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and some flaky salt! As the season goes on, I do however think of ways to jazz up this beloved combo. You know, add a little twist to spice things up! This year, I decided to dress my salad with some salty and tangy umeboshi – an ingredient I adore as much as blood oranges!

You can grab the recipe for my umeboshi salad dressing and the fennel and orange salad with kalamata olives at the bottom of the blog post!

Or: click here for a shortcut!
blood orange and fennel salad
fennel and blood orange salad

Blood oranges and Fennel = match made in heaven

I’m all about that fennel and blood orange combo, it’s a classic that never gets old. But sometimes I’m in the mood for a little change. I might switch out the fennel for some endive, beets, carrots, asparagus, cabbage, or even avocado. And those blood oranges? I might swap them for a grapefruit, a pomelo, or a sweetie. But no matter what I try, I always end up back with fennel and blood orange. There’s just something so perfect about the sweet, fresh fennel with the tangy blood orange!

This year’s twist to the forever wonderful fennel and blood orange salad is a umeboshi salad dressing. For a moment I thought I had come up with something “new” here! After digging through my own recipe archives however, I realized that I have actually combined umeboshi and blood oranges before… Oh well. When you’ve been writing a food blog for over 10 years, you can’t always remember everything you’ve done! Besides, fennel wasn’t part of the equation then. (The recipe in question was a purple sweet potato and blood orange salad with a cranberry dressing. I won’t link the post here, since it’s only published in Finnish.) Sooooooo maybe I can call this idea new anyway?

Anyhow, it’s about time the funky and bright umeboshi dressing gets a dedicated blog post.

umeboshi vinaigrette
umeboshi salad dressing
umeboshi salad dressing
umeboshi

Umeboshi?

Umeboshi is a Japanese pickle made from salted ume fruits aka Japanese apricots, seasoned with red shiso. Umeboshi has an intensely salty, sour, and tangy taste and a soft, juicy texture. They have really a strong flavor, so if you eat them as they are, you might settle for just a few (followed by a little grimace). I personally love umeboshi, as well as the salty ume su pickling liquid, that is a by-product of their preparation. And when I eat them I do grimace too, but it’s an expression of joy!

I’m actually dreaming about making umeboshi myself – especially after I somewhat successfully imitated the wonderful umeshu liqueur, using tart green plums instead of the ume. They are unfortunately not sold here in Finland. Maybe the same plums could replace the Japanese apricots in this case as well? (The instructions for making umeboshi can be found on the excellent Just One Cookbook blog!)

Umeboshi dressing
Umeboshi salad dressing

Umeboshi salad dressing

Ume su is salty and tangy, just like umeboshi, and I actually often use it as a vegan alternative to fish sauce! However, my umeboshi salad dressing doesn’t contain ume su, but umeboshi. I chop them up into tiny bits so as you eat, you get these intense pops of ume goodness here and there. But I suppose you could also blend them into the sauce 🙂 I’m thinking this salad dressing is a kind of vinaigrette – it’s just that the acidity comes from umeboshi instead of vinegar.

The recipe doesn’t require much salt, as umeboshi are already quite salty. In order to achieve a pleasant balance of flavors, the umeboshi dressing does need a bit of sweetness too. For me this usually means agave syrup, but runny honey works too. Why not maple syrup as well? The dressing also includes blood orange juice, finely chopped shallots and plenty of roughly ground black pepper. The olive oil I use is also rather peppery! It comes from a Sicilian organic farm Bosco Falconeria. I absolutely love this green unfiltered extra virgin olive oil! It’s a good thing it came in a three liter package…

Bosco Falconeria
Umeboshi dressing
umeboshikastike

Umeboshi salad dressing with a blood orange and fennel salad

Umeboshi salad dressing is a tangy and funky way to add a twist to the classic fennel and blood orange salad!
Keyword blood orange, salad, salad dressing, umeboshi
Servings 2 people
Author Juulia
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 20 minutes mins
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Ingredients
 

Umeboshi salad dressing:

  • 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 3-4 tbsp blood orange juice
  • 4-6 umeboshi
  • 2 tbsp agave syrup (or runny honey / maple syrup)
  • 2 tbsp finely minced shallot (about half a small shallot)
  • ½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
  • salt to taste / as needed

Fennel and blood orange salad:

  • 3 blood oranges
  • 1 small fennel
  • ½ small shallot
  • 10-15 kalamata olives (pitted)
Notes:
You can bulk up this very basic salad with endives, chicory, arugula, avocado, carrot ribbons… Different kinds of seeds and nuts are also wonderful additions. I love to add my favorite Finnish vegan feta to this, but mozzarella and stracciatella or even ricotta are also great, if you eat animal based products (which I do, btw, just in very much moderation).

Instructions

Fennel and blood orange salad:

  • Cut off the blood orange peels and the white pith with a sharp knife, making sure to gather all the juices (work over a bowl for instance!) for the umeboshi salad dressing. Cut the blood oranges to bite sized pieces.
  • Remove any dry parts of the fennel. Remove the green fronds (to be used in serving) and thinly slice the fennel. Cut each kalamata olive in quarters. Thinly slice the shallot, reserving the other half for the dressing.
  • Plate up the salad by layering all the ingredients on a serving platter or on individual plates, adding the green fennel fronds on top.

Umeboshi salad dressing:

  • Remove the pits from the umeboshi and finely mince them with a knife. Finely mince the shallot. Mix all the ingredients, adjust the taste as needed, and spoon the dressing over the salad!
Fennel and blood orange salad with olives and  umeboshi salad dressing
umeboshi dressing

Matcha noodles with matcha dressing

8.8.2023 By Juulia Leave a Comment

matcha nuudelit
Matcha soba, matcha dressing and seasonal veggies = PLING! You’re awake.

Matcha, noodles.

Noodles are life! But matcha? Not so much. I’ve never really been into any tea. But, there’s more to tea than just flavor! Green tea and matcha are supposedly good for you in all kinds of different ways. And hey, there’s caffeine in there too! I LOVE caffeine. Maybe I just need to be persistent – kind of like with celery – and eventually I’ll fall in love with matcha?

Jump to Recipe
matcha nuudelit

Matcha

Matcha is finely ground green tea powder, originating from China. Matcha has been a quintessential part of Japanese culinary heritage for almost a thousand years. Whilst green tea in general is infused into the drink by steeping, matcha is blended into drinks and consumed. Just mix it up with your liquid of choice, and you’re done. That’s putting it really very simply though, there’s a lot more to matcha than that… Especially in Japan there are traditional spritual and ceremonial aspects to matcha which I really want to learn more about! But for the time being, I’m just trying to get acquainted with the flavor – not the entire thousand year old history of matcha! Baby steps, you know…

Wikipedia tells me that matcha is made from tea leaves grown in the shade, and the leaves are covered up before harvest. This way the leaves develop more amino acids and a sweeter flavor. Well, I can’t make comparisons about the sweetness, since I don’t drink any tea whatsoever. But as far as I can tell, matcha tastes like grass to me. Most drinks and foods made with matcha seem to be sweetened and I really am not into anything sweet. Hence, I’ve just never been interested in matcha.

matcha nuudelit
The matcha in pictures was gifted by Matcha Crew

Matcha Crew

I finally got in the mood for matcha, when a cute little contemporary matcha room called Matcha Crew opened in Helsinki. I popped by one day out of curiosity and ordered perhaps the second (?) matcha drink of my life. I ended up picking a “Summertime happiness” – a cold matcha soda with yuzu marmalade – and a miracle happened: the next day, I found myself back at Matcha Crew, ordering another Summertime happiness.

Perhaps my issue with matcha was not the flavor, but what it’s typically combined with? Sugar, milk, cream… Matcha itself actually has a quite interesting, complex, earthy flavor with tannins, bitterness … and yes, the grassiness. Maybe I can figure out some matcha flavor combinations more enjoyable to me?

Matcha noodles

Having gulped down a few Summertime happiness in a week, I decided to get some matcha suitable for cooking. But the kind people of Matcha Crew wanted to gift me with their product instead! Thank you so much <3

*Product in pictures was gifted by Matcha Crew*

At this point it was early June. My go-to summer dishes are all kinds of cold noodles, so I ended up brainstorming a matcha and yuzu dressing for some cold soba noodles. A kind of homage to the drink that got me into matcha to begin with!

matcha

matcha nuudelit

Hello caffeine my old friend

I ended up using matcha soba with my matcha yuzu dressing, and quickly realized that this is not a late night snack, unless you want to stay up all night. Matcha has something like 18.9– 44.4 milligrams of caffeine per gram of tea (according to this source) and a portion of my matcha noodles has 2-3 grams of matcha.

PLING, you’re awake!

As a reference, the daily recommended intake of matcha is something around 2-4 grams (although different sources give different numbers…). One teaspoon of matcha weighs 2 grams.

The caffeine buzz from matcha is however different from coffee. Again, the sources say different things, but apparently matcha has less caffeine than coffee, but it gives you a more long lasting and steady sort of energy than the sudden spike and quick crash of, say, a double espresso. If I have a bowl of these noodles for lunch, I definitely don’t need an afternoon coffee (nor matcha) anymore. This stuff is potent!

matcha kastike

Matcha noodles with matcha dressing

This uplifting and refreshing bowl of matcha noodles with a matcha, tahini and yuzu dressing is my new summer lunch obsession! I love to add in plenty of seasonal veggies, fruits and herbs for extra freshness.
Course Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine Fusion
Diet Vegan, Vegetarian
Keyword vegan, vegetarian
Servings 2 people
Author Juulia
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 5 minutes mins
Total Time 15 minutes mins
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Ingredients
 

  • 200 g (matcha) soba noodles (+ salt for the cooking water)
  • 15 cm piece of cucumber (and/or other crunchy fresh veggies like sugar snap peas, new cabbage, carrots…)
  • 100 g (daikon) radish (pickled or fresh!)
  • 150 g honey dew or cantaloupe melon (or blueberries, white currants, kiwi … any seasonal fruits and berries you like!)
  • 1-2 green onions
  • 1-2 dl shredded herbs (loosely packed) (shiso, mint, chervil, tarragon, cilantro, thai basil…)
  • 1-2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (to garnish!)

Matcha dressing:

  • 2-3 tsp matcha (depending on how strong you like it!)
  • 2 tbsp yuzu juice (or lemon/lime juice)
  • 3 tbsp white tahini
  • 2 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 small clove of garlic
  • ¼ tsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1-1½ tsp agave syrup
  • ¼+ tsp salt (= to taste)

Optional:

  • 1-2 tsp grated ginger or ginger shot
  • 1-2 tsp crispy chili & garlic oil
  • ½-1 tsp yuzukosho
  • 1 rkl pistachio or pumpkin seed oil
Notes:
  • When you make the matcha dressing for the first time, take time to adjust the flavors to your liking. Remember though that the sauce needs to be strong, in order to season well the bowl of noodles.
  • In case you want to make this dish hot, don’t heat the dressing up to higher than 80°C or the flavor and colour of the matcha might suffer.

Instructions

  • Mix all the ingredients for the matcha dressing. Adjust the flavor to your liking. Optional: add in ginger and/or yuzukosho and/or crispy chili oil to taste, plus drizzle in some pumpkin seed or pistachio oil for added body.
  • Cook the soba noodles in salted water, as instructed in the package (typically 4-5 minutes). While the noodles are cooking, chop up the veggies and fruits to bite sized pieces. Thinly slice the green onions and finely shred the herbs of your choice.
  • Once the noodles are cooked, rinse them in cold water and drain well. Mix the sauce and half of the veggies, herbs and fruits with the noodles. Portion the mixture to two bowls.
  • Add the remaining veggies, fruits and herbs on top of the noodles. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and serve!
matcha nuudelit

Ps. Store the opened bag of matcha air tightly in the fridge and us within a month from opening.

Are you a friend of matcha? Do you use it in cooking? I’d love to hear your ideas for me what I should do with matcha next!

Homemade “umeshu”

21.5.2023 By Juulia Leave a Comment

luumulikööri

Umeshu!

I fell in love with japanese plum liqueur umeshu on our first (and hopefully not the last) trip to Japan seven years ago. I wanted an umeshu on the rocks at every stop on the way! Now I’m not a big fan of any sweet liqueur out there, but there’s just something irresistible about the sour and sweet aromas umeshu has. Once back in Finland, things have continued the same. If a place serves umeshu, I’ll be ordering it for sure.

Once I realized that umeshu is often home made in Japan, it didn’t take long for me to figure out a way to make it at home here in Finland too! It actually isn’t all that difficult … although, accessing ume plums is nearly impossible. A quick trip to a store specializing in Turkish ingredients around this time of year is however a way to solve the problem! See, a liqueur made with the small tart and sour green plums they sell gives you a very similar taste to umeshu! 

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luumulikööri
luumulikööri

Homemade umeshu

You need just three ingredients to make homemade umeshu. Greengage plums, white rock sugar, and alcohol. Well, to be honest, there is a fourth ingredient, and that is time. Homemade plum liqueur takes at least half a year to develop its flavors. But it’s worth the wait!

If you can get your hands on actual ume plums, that would be ideal. But greengage plums really are a good substitute! They are sold here in Helsinki in Turkish grocery stores under the name Yeşil Erik. And whilst shopping, pop by a grocery store specializing in Asian ingredients – at least here that would be the place to find rock sugar. I’ve been opting for vodka as the alcohol, but you can of course also use japanese distilled spirits such as shōchū for a more “authentic” “umeshu”. In any case, the alcohol content should be over 35%!

vihreä luumu
kotitekoinen luumuviini

Rock sugar

Apparently homemade umeshu is best sweetend with rock sugar, because it dissolves into the alcohol slowly. The slow process gives more aromas due to osmotic pressure, but since I’m really not an expert on this topic I recommend anyone interested in hopping to Chopstick chronicles for more information on this! If I understood correctly, whilst the sugar is yet not dissolved, the alcohol seeps better into the fruits, steeping the aromas out of them. Once the sugar is dissolved, the flavored alcohol is then pulled out of the fruits into the liqueur. Or something like that? I don’t really know but I’m definitely not questioning the science!

So, rock sugar it is. The recommended amount is 50-80% of the weight of the plums. Because I’m not so fond of sweets, I’ve stuck to 50% with my batches. Once the rock sugar, greengages and alcohol has been acquired, it’s time to make homemade umeshu! You should wash and soak the plums for a few hours, then pluck out their stems. Remove all plums that have bruises. Layer the plums with the rock sugar and cover up with the alcohol, then all you need to do is wait.

Greengage liqueur in the style of umeshu

The homemade umeshu from last year is now been steeping for a year and it tastes wonderful! I’m drinking it sparingly, a little goblet at a time, served with some ice. The flavor is clearly reminiscent of umeshu, but there’s a dose of blackcurrant leaves and rhubarb in there too. All things I love! Now I just have to wait a whole year for the next batch to get ready … needless to say, I made way more this time than last time!

The sources for my recipe are the wonderful Just One Cookbook and Chopstick Cronicles -blogi.

Greengage liqueur aka homemade "umeshu"

A liqueur made of tiny tart greengage plums tastes just like umeshu! You need just three ingredients - greengages, rock sugar and alcohol - plus some patience. It takes at least half a year for the homemade umeshu to be ready!
Course Drinks, preserve
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Steeping time: 180 days d
Total Time 180 days d 20 minutes mins
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Equipment

  • 1,5 litre glass jar

Ingredients
 

  • 400 g unripe greengage plums
  • 200 g white rock sugar
  • 6 dl vodka (at least 35% abv)
Notes:
According to my sources, you should remove the plums from the liqueur within a year, because they can apparently get bitter otherwise. I don't have experience over that, since my first batch is now a year old!
If you're making this recipe with ume plums, you can also eat the plums after discarding them. I'm not sure if the same applies to greengages, but in any case to use them I'd cook with them, or make a jam out of them. By themselves they are quite boozy after all.

Instructions

  • Sterilize the glass jar and it's lid with boiling water and swirl around a splash of vodka in the jar and the lid.
  • Wash the plums and soak a few hours. Then remove their stems and take out all the bruised fruits. Layer the fruits in the jar with the rock sugar, then pour over the vodka, submerging the plums.
  • Put the jar in a dark room temperature cabinet and shake it once per day for the first 2-3 days. Then leave the jar to steep for at least half a year, or even longer to develop the flavors.
  • Serve the homemade umeshu on the rocks, or with some soda water. I often squeeze in some lemon, lime or yuzu too!

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Jella Juulia

Hi! My name is Jella and I’m a Finnish food blogger, content creator and food photographer from Helsinki. Click here to read more about me!

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