Nothing cookin': Japanese hiyayakko

This simple dish takes no cooking at all. It is a variation of hiyayakko - a classic Japanese beer snack.

Raw silken tofu is simply garnished with wakame seaweed and ever so lightly poached enokitake mushrooms.

I make the dressing out of equal parts of:

• soya sauce
• sake
• katsuobushi extract and
• lime juice (because I can't find yuzu that the original recipe requires).

An itsy drop of wasabi adds a pleasant zesty tone. That's it. Nothing cookin', really.

Veg(etari)ans: just skip the katsuobushi extract.

Breton cotriade: poor French fisherman's delight

Breton cotriade is basically the same as Russian ukha: mostly white sea fish stewed with potatoes and onions. In Russia most of time it is made of fresh water fish, while in Brittany, naturally, of the catch from the brine.

The only condiments being sea salt and coarsely ground pepper, this dish brings out the best of the flavour in fish. It is very simple yet exquisitely delicious.

The recipe couldn't be simpler: peel and cut potatoes, let them dry a bit (this way they will less likley crumble). Peel and chop an onion. Put the potatoes and onions in cold water, bring to boil, then add fish. Add salt and pepper to taste. This comes out even better when you use the heads of big fish.

Simplest, quickest and yet great spaghetti dinner

All best things in life are free, they say. Well, some may not be free but they can still be very cheap.

Like this amazing spaghetti recipe: a family dinner for under a pound, how about that? I learnt it from my Italian friend Luisa. Once we were stuck late at night at home with a few mouths to feed and a virtually empty fridge. The kitchen cupboard was not exactly full too (see, this was not my home!) Luisa came to rescue and everyone was full and happy in just 20 minutes.

1. Boil a pack of good quality spaghetti al dente.
2. Peel and slice a head of garlic.
   
3. Toast garlic golden brown in generous amount of olive oil.
4. Mix the garlic and oil into the cooked spaghetti.
5. Serve with grated parmiggiano or cheddar.

I serve it with some chopped sun-dried tomatoes and salted anchovies if I have those, but that is optional. Here the best of Italian cooking comes forward: simplicity, healthiness, taste based on the quality of ingredients and time-proven combinations.

I am really tempted to predicts that this recipe, if ever noticed, may come in vogue in the forthcoming months.

A bowl of goodness: Asian seafood and mushroom noodles

A bowl of noodles is a favourite Asian lunch. It is healthy, filling and delicious.

The type I make most often is a little constellation of delightful chunks and pieces.

Seafood:

• two types of shrimp,
  
• squid,
  
• baby octopuses,
  
• clams,
  
• mussels.
  

Seaweed:

• konbu,
• wakame,

Mushrooms:

• shiitake,
• cloud ear,
• jelly ear,
• yamabushitake,
• oyster mushroom,
• snow ear.

Veggies:

• daylily buds,
• lotus root,
• pak choy,
• kang kong.
  

A smidgen of toasted black and white sesame seeds livens up an already vibrant mix even further.



I made this one Korean style, flavoured with kimchi, but I also make it, with the help of some herbs and condiments, in a variety of other styles:

• Japanese miso (miso paste and katsuobushi extract),
• Thai tom yam (galangal root, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves, chilies and fried chili paste) or
• spicy Szechuan (doubanjiang, Szechuan pepper and sesame oil).

Dim sum : touch my heart!

Dim sum is supposed to be lunch food only, something you grab in between business appointments. At dinner you are expected to take your time with your family. Since I am not burdened with either, I can do as I please. So when I'm lazy I just fix me dim sum.

I line a bamboo sieve with a banana leave. Its gentle scent transfers to the dough with hot steam and make simple lowly buns a culinary delight.

While the pot is steaming away, I make my own Thai-style dip:

• a glub of Thai chili sauce
• juice of one lime
• a clove of garlic, crushed (NOT chopped!)
  
• a sprinkle of fish sauce
• a wee splash of Kikkoman soya sauce
  
• chopped fresh coriander.

Twelve minutes and, voilà, lazy bachelor's dinner is ready!

Simple lunch pleasure: grilled goat cheese sandwich

Culinary delights don't have to be complicated. It is mostly down to quality ingredients and right combinations.

This grilled goat cheese sandwich takes 5 minutes to fix. First, I sprinkle delicious sesame bread I buy from a Brazilian grocer with a few drops of aceto balsamico bianco and olive oil. I cut the cheese (no puns here) into thin circles and line them on the bread. Three minutes under grill is enough to turn the dry and sharp mass into drippy flavour-oozing deliciousness.

Now tomato wedges and some Italian lettuce mix and your lunch is ready!

This is the French goat cheese I use: crottins de chèvre, "goat drops". What a poetic name.