Ingredients:

• ½ cup chopped parsley
• 1 tsp Emperor's Kitchen^®Organic Johsen Shoyu
• 3 carrots, cut in 1/8 inch diagonal slices
• 1 Tbsp Emperor's Kitchen^® Organic Kuzu
• Pinch Emperor's Kitchen^® "SI"sea salt
• 2 tsp ginger juice
• 1 tsp Emperor's Kitchen^®Organic Toasted Sesame Oil

Heat oil, add carrots, toss, sprinkle with a few grains of salt, and saute 3-5 minutes. Add 7 ounces of water, cover, and simmer over low heat about 5-10 minutes, or just until tender. Add parsley and shoyu, toss, and simmer 2 minutes more. Remove from heat. Dissolve kuzu in 1 Tbs cold water and slowly add to vegetables while stirring constantly. Return to heat and bring to a simmer while stirring. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, add ginger juice, toss, and serve

Ingredients:

• 1 cup tightly packed dried apricots
  
• 1 tsp tahini
  
• 2/3 cup water
  
• 2 tsp lemon juice
  
• 3 cups apple juice
  
• 4 Tbsp Emperor's Kitchen^®Organic Kuzu

Combine apricots, water, and 2 cups of the juice in a pot. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes. Pour the liquid remaining in the pot into a measuring cup and add more apple juice to equal 2 ½ cups. Puree the cooked fruit, tahini, and juice in a blender, suribachi, or food mill. Return to the pot and add the salt and lemon juice. Dissolve the kuzu in 3 Tbs cold water, add to pot, and bring to a simmer over medium heat while stirring constantly. Simmer over low heat 1 to 2 minutes, then pour into custard cups or other small bowls. Let pudding set and serve at room temperature or chilled.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbs Emperor's Kitchen^® Organic Kuzu, dissolved in 1 cup cold water
• ½ cup Emperor's Kitchen^® Organic Kyushu Brown Rice Vinegar
• ¾ cups Sweet Cloud^® Organic Barley Malt Syrup
• ½ tsp ginger

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Add to sauteed vegetables or tofu dishes.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 block tofu
• 1/3 - 1/2 cup water
• 1 ripe avocado
• 1/4 cup safflower oil
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup Miso Master^® Organic Mellow White Miso
• 2 Tbsp chopped onion
• 1/4 cup minced parsley
• 3 Tbsp Emperor's Kitchen^® Organic Kyushu Brown Rice Vinegar

Blend all ingredients, except parsley, until smooth. Add a little more water if necessary to achieve desired consistency. Add parsley and mix it in with a spoon. Serve with salads, vegetables, or as dip.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup unrefined olive or safflower oil
• 1 tsp dill or caraway seeds
• 1 bay leaf, cut into 2-3 pieces
• 1½ tsp Emperor's Kitchen^® "SI"sea salt
• 1 clove minced garlic
• Pinch white or red pepper
• ¼ cup Emperor's Kitchen^® Organic Kyushu Brown Rice Vinegar

Other vegetables may be substituted, but use a variety of colors. Hard vegetables such as carrots and broccoli should be briefly steamed or parboiled in lightly salted water, then immediately cooled under running water and drained. To prepare marinade, bring first 7 ingredients to a simmer. Then turn off, cover, and steep. Separately parboil or steam green beans and cauliflower for 1 to 2 minutes, then rinse under cool water. Combine marinade, vegetables and beans, and the scallions and/or parsley. Refrigerate several hours or overnight to allow flavors to blend. Serve over lettuce leaves in small bowls.

Umeboshi vinegar adds a pleasantly pungent flavor to cooked leafy greens, especially cabbage and Chinese cabbage. It also goes very well with cauliflower, broccoli, or green beans. Steam or saute your vegetables until tender but still colorful. Drain if necessary, place in a serving bowl, and toss with Emperor's Kitchen® Umeboshi Vinegar.

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp Emperor's Kitchen^®Mikawa Mirin
• 1 finely minced clove garlic
• 2 Tbsp water or stock
• 2 tsp lemon juice (optional)
• 2 Tbsp Emperor's Kitchen^® Shoyu (or 1 tsp grated fresh ginger)

To marinate fresh tofu, cut a one pound block of tofu into ½ inch thick slices and drain on paper towel. Cut slices into 1" cubes and place in a bowl. Pour marinade over and set aside for 30-60 minutes, turning occasionally. Use in simple sautes and stir-fries such as Mushroom-Tofu Saute.

Mushroom-Tofu Saute

Glazed Beets

Heat oil in a skillet, add sliced beets and salt, and saute briefly. Add water to cover bottom of skillet, lower heat, cover, and cook for 20-30 minutes or until beets are nearly tender (Check occasionally and add more water if needed to prevent scorching). Add mirin and cook for about 5 minutes more, then add shoyu, and cook for another minute. Add water to a depth of 1/4 inch.

Crush lumps of kuzu into a coarse powder before measuring. Thoroughly dissolve kuzu in 1 tablespoon water and add to beets while stirring. Stir constantly until liquid returns to a simmer. Cook for 1-2 minutes more, adding a little more water if too thick.

SESAME OIL RECIPES

Ginger Fried Rice

Break up chunks of rice with the side of a wooden spoon. Mix thoroughly, cover, and cook 1 to 2 minutes longer.

Caraway Cabbage

SHIITAKE MUSHROOM RECIPES

Mushroom Gravy

Mushroom Barley Stew

Wash barley and place in a large pot along with shiitake, water, and kombu. Use a small plate or bowl to keep mushrooms submerged. Soak for 3 hours. Remove kombu and reserve for another use. Remove and slice shiitake (discard stems). Return shiitake to pot, bring to a boil, and add salt and bay leaf. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet and saute onion until translucent. Add carrot and celery and saute for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. After simmering soup for 1 hour or so, add oregano, sauteed vegetables, and a little more water if necessary. Simmer until vegetables are tender (about 15 minutes). Remove from heat. Dilute the miso in a little water and add to soup. Serve hot, garnished with minced parsley or scallion if desired.

TAMARI RECIPES

Quick Tamari Pickles

These simple pickles take only a few minutes to prepare and are ready to eat in 2-4 days. They are best in the fall and winter.

Fill a wide-mouthed jar with either carrot or rutabaga cut into thin, inch-long "matchsticks". Cover with a mixture of half tamari and half water, screw on the jar cover, and let sit for at least 2 days before eating. When the vegetables are pickled enough to have lost their raw taste they should be refrigerated. These pickles keep well, though they get a little stronger with age. The left over tamari mixture can be used for one or two more batches of pickles.

SHOYU RECIPES

Onion Soup

Three-minute Tahini-Shoyu Sauce

UMEBOSHI PLUM AND PASTE RECIPES

Orange-Ume Dressing

Nori-Maki Sushi

Sushi is easy to prepare and adds a festive touch to daily meals as well as party buffets.

Cut carrots into julienned strips and steam until just cooked. Cut scallions and cucumber julienne-style.

A bamboo sushi mat is helpful for rolling sushi. Position bamboo mat so that you can roll it away from you. Center one sheet of nori rough side up on mat. With wet hands, place some rice on the center of the nori. Spread rice and press down gently to 1/2" thickness, leaving a 1" extension of nori uncovered at end opposite from you.

Spread a dab of umeboshi paste across center of rice in a line from left to right. Place a few carrots, cucumber, and scallion strips in a thin layer on top of umeboshi.

To roll sushi, use your thumbs and carefully pick up the mat by the margin closest to you. Reach over with fingertips to hold filling in place as you begin to roll. Gently but firmly push sushi mat away from you, keeping hold of mat end so that it doesn't roll into the sushi. Brush nori extension at opposite end with a little water to make it sticky. When roll lies over the extension, hold it there for a few seconds to allow nori to make a seal.

Remove sushi roll from mat to cutting board and slice with a sharp knife into about 8 equal pieces.

A sauce for dipping can be made with equal parts shoyu and water, and a few drops of juice from grated fresh ginger root