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By I-Ching Ng  Harumi Kurihara descended in a roomy Tribeca loft on a crisp
April morning during her recent book tour across the U.S. to give me a cooking
lesson. And while cooking times and tablespoons versus teaspoons consumed my
mind, I was quickly put at ease as Kurihara entered the room. Under the spring
breeze and tepid sun, the reigning queen of Japan’s culinary empire exuded a calming
effect in the midst of the bustling city.
Dubbed as Japan’s Martha Stewart by the English media, the
title only befits her entrepreneurial spirit and soaring popularity at home and
abroad.
With her approachable, mother-like presence, the congenial 59-year-old
demystifies the cult of celebrity cooking as she reveals her graceful balancing
act as a renowned chef, restaurateur, lifestyle guru and above all, a merry
wife and caring mother of two.
Surprisingly, Kurihara says her rise to success was purely
accidental.
Married to Reiji Kurihara, a renowned Japanese newscaster, the
humble housewife with an ardent passion for good cooking and fresh ingredients would
often entertain guests from Japan’s media powerhouses. Her mouth-watering
dishes quickly won over the taste buds of TV producers and created a media
frenzy. These informal trials landed her an appearance 23 years ago on Fuji
television’s popular cooking show “Yu Shoku Banzai.”
“I never imagined becoming a professional one day. Cooking
has always been my calling, and I am overwhelmed with joy when people share
delicious meals together. Food can work magic and reinforce human bonds,” Kurihara
says.
 Since then, she has created more than 4,000 original
recipes, sold seven million copies of her cookbooks and become a national
sensation with hordes of Japanese women following her simple cooking philosophies
and home décor advice.
Born in the small seaside village of Shimoda in Shizuoka,
the successful entrepreneur is still amazed by what an ordinary housewife can
achieve if she steps out of her domestic comfort zone and ventures into the
corporate arena. “Family has always been my priority. I’m somewhat traditional
in thinking and glad to have the support from my husband to fulfill my culinary
potential,” she says.
As the family matriarch, she rules her domestic kingdom — which
includes a chain of housewares stores, an affordable gourmet cookware line and more
than 20 cookbooks —with the help of her two adult sons.
Kurihara’s kitchen is the quintessential melting pot of East
and West, where a marriage of Japanese taste and Western presentation often takes
place. The widely traveled chef draws upon culinary influences from Southeast
Asia to Italy and from the Middle East to America, creating fusion dishes such
as Japanese-style green risotto, tuna carpaccio and an eclectic array of tofu
delicacies, from tofu steak, tofu and grounded pork kebabs to tofu and avocado
dressing and tofu with basil and Gorgonzola dressing, making the plain, nutritious
squares more appealing.
Voted the best cookbook of 2004 at the Gourmand World
Cookbook Awards, beating out entries from 67 countries, her first English title
“Harumi’s Japanese Cooking” (Berkeley, $27.95) aims to open a new door to
modern Japanese home cooking for Westerners who are often deterred by a foreign
language, a foreign food culture and hard-to-find ingredients.
And while the cookbook honors further confirm Kurihara’s
celebrity chef status, she does not exhibit spectacular showmanship like Martin
Yan’s signature cleaver-chopping stunts. Kurihara believes soul food resonates
better among the audience. “I think friendly, natural and at home feeling is
more engaging. People often miss the warm atmosphere of home cooking, not the
fancy restaurant ones,” she says.
Kurihara, however, does emphasize the need for food presentation.
She says first impressions are often lasting. “It goes beyond the taste. People
will appreciate the effort behind and it will give them more insight of your
personality as well.”
With that, I put my pen aside and was ready to give it my
best effort. I rolled out a sushi mat for a hands-on cooking session, to create
the no-frills but delectable Ura Maki Zushi, with the master herself.
 RECIPES
Ura Maki Zushi (inside-out roll)
Place ½ sheet of nori on nonstick parchment paper and evenly
spread a thin layer of fresh sushi rice across it (don’t leave the edges free
on this one). Carefully turn it over so the nori is facing up and add the
ingredients. For this roll, use crab stick (about 8 oz.), avocado and shiso
leaves.
Use mayonnaise instead of wasabi and dab on top of the
ingredients. Roll carefully and evenly away from you.
Put some toasted sesame seeds on a plate and roll the sushi
in them so the roll is well coated.
Using a sharp knife, cut into about 1-inch pieces and serve.
 Bite-size Steak Pieces with Japanese Vegetables (Koro Koro
Steak Tataki fu)
This original recipe uses many Japanese vegetable
ingredients but if you cannot find some of them then use what you have locally
such as watercress, cilantro, parsley or radish.
(Serves 4)
About 2 lbs sirloin steaks (3/4 inch thick if possible)
Sunflower oil or vegetable oil for cooking
2 tablespoons finely chopped ginger
¼ cup chopped myoga, if available
¼ cup spring onions, chopped
¼ cup chopped celery
Small handful shredded shiso leaves or a mix of
fresh basil and mint leaves, to taste
Dashi shoyu sauce, to taste (see ingredient notes)
Grated daikon, if available
Ingredient Notes:
Dashi shoyu is a mixture of dashi (fish stock) and soy sauce
(half and half). It is heated and then allowed to cool before use. If you
cannot make you own dashi, use good quality fish stock.
Preparation
Cut the steak into bite-size pieces. Heat the oil
in a ridged griddle pan or frying pan and
quickly cook the steak cubes, browning on all sides. Mix the chopped
vegetables, except the daikon, together. When the steak is cooked to
your liking, place it on a
serving dish with the chopped vegetables on top. Make the dashi shoyu
sauce and pour it on the steaks. Give
everyone a small plate and eat with grated daikon.
Recipes and food pictdures from “Harumi’s Home Cooking” (Berkeley Publishing,
$27.95)
*First photo by Harald Franzen
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