Inari with shiitake

Today´s Sunday treat: Inari with shiitake mushrooms and rice.

I cheated and bought ready-made inari this time.... I usually make them myself from abura-age, but the inari no-moto is so handy when you have no time for that... I managed to get some without msg, so I´m happy!

Today I used:
2,5 cups of rice: white and brown mixed
3 large, dried shiitake´s, left for 30 minutes in warm water to soften
1/2 carrot, diced
Sesame seeds, black and white mixed
Mix of mirin, soya, dashi, salt and sugar

Rice is boiled, and while this happens I cut the shiitake and carrot into strips and boil them in a mix of mirin, soya, dashi, salt and sugar.
The boiled rice is mixed with this + sesame seeds and filled into the inari.

We eat the inari with soy sauce and ginger. Yum!

Surfaced

... the shiso has finally surfaced.
I think my first seeds were planted a bit too deep, about 1.5 cm, so a few days after the first sowing, I decided to plant a few more seeds, this time just under the surface.
This has done the trick, and now I have about 10 little shiso plants on their way.
Today they´re going into larger pots.

This is the same shiso seeds I´ve been using since I got them from Japan 2 years ago,
so they keep well.

Pictures coming! Have to locate the camera....

It's that time of year again...

...planting season!

Snow is still heavy and deep on the ground.
But spring has arrived with sunny and longer days.
Little Shiso seeds will soon be planted, this year in a brand new mini greenhouse on my kitchen bench.
Stay tuned!