PROJECT Champuru

Aug 12, 2022 | Kitchen PROJECTS, Summer

チャンプルー
PROJECT Champuru

This Kitchen PROJECT is about making champuru (a stir-fry that is a signature dish of Okinawa) in YOUR kitchen

Every household in Okinawa will have its own variation on the basic theme. A classic version made with bacon, tōfu, gōya, onions and eggs can be downloaded from the CHAMPURU Kitchen Culture blog post.

In my cookbook, KANSHA (page 104-106), I offer a vegan version of miso-glazed champuru made with kabocha squash and chunks of shimi-dōfu (frozen-then-defrosted, the tōfu takes on a meaty texture).

Photo above from KANSHA
© Leigh Beisch, styling by Karen Shinto. Vessel by Frederick Warren.

One of my goals as a teacher is to introduce ingredients and techniques that readers may not be familiar with — especially ones that can provide additional options for those who eat primarily (or exclusively) from the plant world. Okinawa’s champuru is a fine opportunity to discover kuruma-bu 車麩 (spiral-shaped sticks of dried wheat gluten), a plant-based source of protein.

Kuruma-bu is typically inexpensive and, because it is shelf stable, can be stored for months, even years, in a dark, dry, cool spot in your pantry — ready in a pinch when you want to add volume to a dish. Its spongy texture provides a pleasant meaty chewiness. Chunks or wheels of kuruma-bu absorb flavors from the foods with which it is cooked.

Download this recipe for FU CHAMPURU that includes A Guide to Cooking with kuruma-bu.

My August 2022 newsletter is all about champuru.

PROJECT Springtime Sweets

PROJECT Springtime Sweets

洋菓子・yōgashiWestern-Style Confectionery Japan's food culture includes ingredients, techniques and dishes that have been adopted and/or adapted from non-Japanese sources.  One large category is confectionery. Earliest influences were from the Portuguese in the 16th...

Celebrating Sakura

Celebrating Sakura

The Japanese take great pleasure in celebrating the seasons and SAKURA (cherry blossoms) are emblematic of spring. From the time buds (tsubomi 蕾) first appear to the official pronouncement of blooming (kaika 開花) it is often less than a week. And from there to...

PROJECT Temari Sushi

PROJECT Temari Sushi

This KITCHEN PROJECT  features temari-zushi, bite-sized spheres of tart rice topped with various ingredients. HINA MATSURI is celebrated on March 3 and during the weeks leading up to it, and for several weeks thereafter, scattered chirashi-zushi and/or temari-zushi ...

Cooking Cloth

Cooking Cloth

Cloth is the work horse, and often unsung hero, of the kitchen. In the Japanese kitchen, cloth enables the cook to perform a wide range of tasks such as lining steamers, draining and straining, enveloping, and shaping.Cloths known as fukashi nuno 蒸し布 are used to line...

Recent Posts & Projects