Chanko Nabe and a Six Word Memoir

Chanko Nabe

The other night I tried out this Marusan Chanko Nabe Soup that was on sale at Don Quijote. Inside the bag is 1.7 lbs of tasty broth ready to cook up with all the vegetables, tofu, and meat that you want.

INGREDIENTS
1 bag of chanko nabe broth
6 shiitake mushrooms
6 to 8 inches of kombu
1 small wom bok (napa cabbage)
2 cups bean sprouts
1 small bag konnyaku noodles
1 small box firm tofu
2 stalks green onion
1 small tray thinly sliced beef

I basically used whatever vegetables I had available. Feel free to also add carrots, leeks, other Japanese mushrooms – whatever you like and have available.

Chanko Nabe Vegetables

Bring the soup to a boil then add the mushrooms and konbu. Wait a couple minutes then add the cabbage and bean sprouts. After that cooks down, in goes the tofu and noodles.

Chanko Nabe Noodles

I add the green onions and thin slices of beef shortly after and cook for just about a minute or so.

This was very fast and easy – and made a big pot of food! But next time I think I’ll try to see if I can make this without having to buy the premade broth. The main ingredients were basically soy sauce, chicken soup, powdered bonito, and a couple other seasonings.

A Six Word Memoir

The other day I was tagged by Elle over at Elle’s New England Kitchen to do a six word memoir – this basically involves choosing six words to describe yourself. Here’s what I came up with…

Most people would probably describe me as:

1. Easy-going
2. Cheerful

But those people who know me really well would also know that I can be very:

3. Tenacious
4. Straightforward
5. Adventurous
6. Loyal

It actually took me a while to come up with this list…are you able to describe yourself in six words?

11 comments - April 19, 2008

1 Pixie { 04.19.08 at 8:56 pm }: I did have to quickly research kombu; those noodles look ever so tempting!
2 made healthier { 04.19.08 at 11:39 pm }: Hi Pixie,
Thanks! There are several types of kombu in the stores that I go to. The one I used in this recipe is called nishime kombu.
3 kat { 04.20.08 at 4:03 am }: 6 words would be very difficult…but, that chanko looks great!
4 Elle { 04.20.08 at 10:06 am }: Thanks for playing!
5 made healthier { 04.20.08 at 12:42 pm }: Hi kat,
Thanks! That means a lot coming from someone living in Japan.
6 made healthier { 04.20.08 at 12:42 pm }: Hi Elle,
Thanks for inviting me to play!
7 rowena { 04.20.08 at 10:35 pm }: I’m so looking forward to when I can walk into a grocery store and find something like nabe soup (or anything similiar). In desperation I bought one package of nori yesterday to make sushi…4 euros a package! Which means over 6 dollars if you did the exchange rate!

Good to see the 6-word memoir making the rounds! It IS tough to do isn’t it?
8 made healthier { 04.20.08 at 11:46 pm }: Hi rowena,
Wow, that is a lot for a package of nori! And too bad, cause that isn’t the kind of food you can stock up on here and bring back. Nothing is worse than stale nori. I used to try and re-crisp it by toasting it over the stove burner…but it never quite did the trick. Make sure you have “grinding lots of sushi” on your list of things to do for when you come back!
9 Kevin { 04.21.08 at 3:22 pm }: That looks like a tasty meal!
10 White On Rice Couple { 04.21.08 at 3:44 pm }: i have to try cooking with kombu, I see it all the time at my local market, never tried it. Geez, so much delicious stuff and so little time.
Describing myself in six words is hard…I have to think about that one….
11 made healthier { 04.21.08 at 3:51 pm }: Hi Kevin,
Thanks!

Hi White On Rice Couple,
From the kinds of recipes I see you folks making, I think you would really enjoy cooking with kombu! I use either nishime kombu or dashi kombu that comes dried in small packages.