Go Fish

This fun little fishy is as colorful and playful as your little one. A custom initial makes this shirt one of a kind.

Cost: $20.00

Shipping: $5.00

Custom: This adorable onesie can be made to order in both infant (NB-24 months) and toddler sizes (2-4T, 5/6, 7).

Quality: Quality is of the utmost importance to Petey Pie's, so you can rest assured that my products are durable and made to withstand little hands. The applique is embellished with 100% cotton fabric, prewashed, and fused to prevent fraying. A straight stitch in coordinating color gives the onesie a handmade appearance. Tear away stabilizer is also used to ensure durability and comfort.

Care: Machine wash, gentle cycle; tumble dry low. Warm iron if necessary.

Unagidon: Japanese summer survival tool

Japanese summer is relentless, especially in the cities. The concrete jungle absorbs the sun heat while millions of air-conditioners pump out typhoons of hot area in the streets. It is in fact so bad that it is a national custom to send "midsummer heat fatigue" (natsubate) greeting cards inquiring how others are managing.

Unagi-don, grilled eel fillets served on top of hot rice, is supposed to provide strength to withstand the exhausting heat. There is even a special day, Doyou no Ushi no Hi, when its consumption is deemed especially beneficial.

Whether a commercial gimmick or Oriental wisdom, unagi-don is a superbly delicious dish. In fact, I enjoy it even more in winter. I cook it the Kansai way: cutting the eel's belly and basting the grilling fillets with tare made of sake, mirin and shoyu. Unlike epicurean Kansai merchants, stuck-up Edo (Tokyo) samurais hated that practice as it reminded them of seppuku (commonly and incorrectly known as harakiri).

The recipe is really simple:

1. If you have a whole eel: cut of the head, gut it, cut it in 6-7 cm pieces and removed the spine. Don't worry about the small bones.
2. Mix shoyu, mirin and sake half a cup each. Marinate the filets for at least an hour.
3. Grill the filets, regularly turning them over and basting with the marinade. Depedning on your grill takes up to 20-30 minutes.
   
4. Serve on top of freshly cooked Japanese rice. For the authentic taste only use short-grained japonica, long-grained jasmin and basmati just wont' be right.
   

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.