Hi, I’m Francis,
the host of this show "Cooking with Dog."
First, for the dashi sauce, combine the dashi stock, sake,
mirin,
soy sauce
and salt,
and turn on the burner.
Lightly stir the mixture.
Bring it to a boil
and then turn off the heat.
Add the shredded ginger root.
Then, pour the sauce into a bowl chilled with ice
and let it sit to cool.
Next, trim off the stem end and the bottom of the kabocha squash.
Slice off the firm skin.
Cut the kabocha wedge into 4 pieces.
Then, slice each into 6mm or 1/4 inch slices.
Peel the firm outer skin on the bottom third of the asparagus spears.
Trim off the bottom ends.
Then, cut them into 4 equal pieces.
Next, remove the stem end of the string bean pods.
Then, cut the bean pods into 3 equal pieces.
Remove the stem end and the seeds of the red bell pepper.
Cut it in half lengthwise.
Then, cut each half into 3 pieces.
Trim off the cap of the eggplant.
Watch out for the small thorns on the cap and stem.
Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise.
Make numerous shallow cuts along the outer skin diagonally.
Cut each half into 3 pieces.
Then, lightly rinse the eggplant
to remove any unwanted flavor.
Remove the excess water with a paper towel.
Now, place all the vegetables into a plastic bag.
Add the olive oil or any type of vegetable oil.
Then, shake the bag to coat the pieces with the oil evenly.
And now, let’s grill the vegetables.
First, place the eggplant on the grill
with the skin side facing down.
Brown the skin and then flip the pieces over.
When the eggplant softens,
place the pieces into the bowl of the dashi sauce.
Next, arrange the kabocha slices on the grill.
Kabocha take a long time to cook so grill them on low heat.
Pierce the slices with a bamboo stick
to check if they are ready.
Drop the kabocha into the dashi sauce.
Finally, grill the asparagus, string bean pod and bell pepper together
since they require about the same cooking time.
Lightly brown the vegetables.
Then, place the pieces into the sauce.
Grill the rest of the vegetables
and soak them in the sauce as well.
Let the bowl sit in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours
to help the vegetables absorb the dashi sauce.
Now, place the vegetables into a bowl.
Arrange the pieces in the bowl
to make the dish more presentable.
Pour a generous amount of the dashi sauce over the vegetables.
Finally, top with the itogatsuo,
very thin strips of dried bonito.
Grilling the ingredients will bring out the umami, savory taste.
Okra, shishito peppers, zucchini and mushrooms
also go great with this recipe.
Chilled yakibitashi is even more delicious on the next day
so don’t hesitate to make a large amount of the dish.
Good luck in the kitchen.