Yakitori and Sauteed Mushrooms

When we were living in Paris, we used to bring the kids to a nearby Japanese restaurant (unfortunately run by some Chinese) for a few makis and yakitoris. Easy and fast to eat and the kids just like them.

In Stuttgart, they seem to have only one Japanese restaurant, and I was told by my Japanese neighbour that it was expensive and so-so. The Chinese here seem mostly into all-you-can-eat lousy Chinese buffets than pseudo Japanese restaurants, so it means that I'll have to make my own yakitoris if I want to eat them.

The good thing is that the possibilities are quite endless when it comes to what we can put on a skewer. I usually do it with chicken filet, wings, minced meat rolled into balls, beef filet and cheese, pork, seafood, vegetables etc.

I always make some Japanese rice to go with the yakitoris (the kids like to eat the sticky rice with the sweet yakitori sauce) and occasionally some mushrooms (brown and white button, shitake, golden pin, abalone etc) to accompany them.

I like to marinate my meat before cooking them. And I bake them quickly before putting them on their skewers to be grilled so as to make sure that they are cooked through.

Meat (cut into skeweable portions)
Onions
Bell Peppers

Leeks
Mushrooms
Sherry/sake
Light Soy Sauce

Sesame oil
Sugar
Mirin
Ginger (minced)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Cucumber (juliened)
Wooden or metal skewers (the former are best put into water to be softened in order to prevent burning during cooking)

Sweet Yakitori Sauce :

100ml Mirin

3 Tbsp Sake

100ml Soy sauce

50g Sugar

Marinate the meat in the sake, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, mirin and ginger for at least an hour. Remove from the marinade and drip dry, reserving the marinade (if any) for later. Skewer the meat with vegetables like bell peppers, onions, mushrooms etc if desired. Bake the skewers in a hot oven for 10 minutes.

Prepare the yakitori sauce by combining the mirin, sake , soy sauce and sugar in a casserole and simmering it till the sugar is dissolved. Pour the leftover marinade from the meat to the sauce.

Return the skewers to the new marinade, making sure to coat both sides generously with the sauce. Grill the skewers (e.g. on a BBQ) for 2 minutes on each side. Return them to the marinade to be re-coated with the sauce and then grill them again. Brush the meat with the marinade while it's on the grill.

Sprinkle some salt on the cucumber and serve it with a few yakitoris and a bowl of rice.

As for the mushrooms, just stir fry them with a little oil, garlic, oyster sauce, soya sauce, sherry, sesame oil, salt and pepper. Add some chopped parsley or coriander leaves just before serving if you wish.