Ginger Chicken-don

This recipe was adapted from a food coordinator in Japan by the name of Shiori.  This woman has so far released four cookbooks I believe and sometimes appears on morning cooking shows which I sometimes sit down to watch.

After cooking and eating this dish tonight, it has quickly become one of my favorite rice dishes of all time.  The smell of fresh ginger simmering in the frying pan along with chicken should be more than enough to get your taste buds bursting.  My mouth is actually beginning to water while writing this so I think it`s time to show you the recipe!

Ingredients

• 1 piece of chicken breast
• 1 heaped teaspoon fresh ginger
• 3 asparagus
• 2 lettuce leaves
• 5 or 6 cherry tomatoes
• 2 cups rice
• 2 desert spoons soy sauce
• 2 desert spoons cooking sake
• 1 desert spoon cooking sugar
• Mayonnaise

Method

1. Wash and cook the rice.  While the rice is cooking, there are a number of things to be done.
2. First, remove any chicken skin and slice the chicken diagonally on the chopping board.  This method, called “Sogi giri” in Japanese is the precise and artistic method used for preparing sashimi (raw fish).  You can read a little more on it here.  Once you`re done, cut the chicken into smaller strips, sprinkle on a little salt and pepper on each side and dip each piece in flour.



3. Once the chicken is prepared, put the soy sauce, sake and ginger into a bowl and mix.  Put it to one side for now.
4. Next, wash and remove the outer spines from the asparagus.  Cut the asparagus diagonally into smaller pieces and put to one side.
5. The final preparation stage is to wash and finely slice the lettuce.  Now, onto cooking.
6. Fry the chicken well on both sides and add the sliced asparagus to the frying pan.  Add the “soy sauce, sake and ginger” mix to the frying pan and simmer for a couple of minutes.



7. Place the lettuce on top of the rice, along with the ginger fried chicken.  Slice and place the cherry tomatoes on top and squirt on a little mayonnaise.  Serves 2.