Tag: well-being

~West Coast Is The Best Coast~

~West Coast Is The Best Coast~

I know it’s quite cliche, but let me say it again. West coast is truly the best cast. Honestly! My boyfriend and I visited Los Angeles this past weekend (I know this is not the best timing. We tried to be as careful as possible, 

Father’s Day

Father’s Day

How was your Father’s Day? You may or may not know, but I live far away from my parents. I moved to the U.S. from Japan about 10 years ago, so I don’t get to see them very often. As I get older, I miss 

Mochiko Chicken

Mochiko Chicken

Aloha! Happy Monday😌

I know. Mondays can be rough.

So, let me lift your sprits up with this AMAZING recipe…. – Mochiko Chicken!

If you think this is just the regular fried chicken, you’re mistaken. Im not going to say it’s healthy because it’s absolutely not. But! I can promise you it’s delicious. You can’t possibly eat healthy everyday! Sometimes you need that greasy and crispy greatness haha. It’s all about that balance. You gotta honor your unhealthy cravings sometimes.

What’s so different about this fried chicken? Well, I’m glad you ask! The difference is…..how you season the chicken. Unlike American fried chicken, you’d have to season and marinate the chicken and not the flour or batter. It just becomes a symphony of UMAMI!

So, here you go!

By the way, this recipe is inspired by chef Sheldon Simeon. He is such an amazing chef based in Maui, Hawaii. Make sure to check out this website!

Mochiko Chicken

Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Marinating5 hours
Total Time6 hours
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Hawaiian
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • 4 chicken thighs (boneless)
  • 1 cup corn starch
  • 1 cup mochiko (rice flour)
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp gochujang
  • 2 tbsp minced ginger
  • 4 cloves minced garlic
  • 2 tbsp sake
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp water
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour (I used canola oil)
  • 2 tbsp garlic salt
  • oil for deep-frying

Instructions

  • Marinate the chicken: In a medium bowl, mix together ginger, garlic, gochujang, sake, soy sauce, and eggs, and water. Add sugar, corn starch, and mochiko into the bowl. Combine. Add the chicken, massage the marinade into them, and cover.
  • Refrigerate this for at least 4 hours (I left it in the fridge overnight).
  • Heat about 2-inches of oil in a large sauce pan until the temperature is about 325F.
  • In a large bowl, combine flour and garlic salt. Place chicken into the bowl and lightly dust the chicken with the flour mixture.
  • Deep-fry the chicken till golden-brown (about 3 minutes on each side).
Mac Salad

Mac Salad

This is not a regular macaroni salad, it’s a cool macaroni salad! If you look at the recipe, you’d be surprise how simple this salad is. You would also be surprised how tasty it is. Aaaand, you’d be shocked to know how much mayonnaise you’d 

Pressure Cooker Saimin

Pressure Cooker Saimin

This morning, during meditation, I imagined what my future self would look like. I imagined what my future self would say to me. I imagined my successful and fulfilled life. So, this is what I pictured in my head: I’m in a therapist’s office (it’s 

Banana Earl Grey Tea Bread

Banana Earl Grey Tea Bread

Growing up, I used to looooove earl grey bread.

Walking into bakeries in Japan is like going into a whole new world (I watched Disney sing along last night. Hence why…..oops lol). As soon as you step in, you smell the buttery, sweet, salty deliciousness. Also, the presentation is always on point!

Being a bougie kid that I was, I loved the kind of food that goes well with some good old wine like the kind of food adults like (it was so bad though, I could not eat food kids usually love. I could also tell the difference between expensive ingredients and cheap ingredients. If my mom were to use cheap ingredients, I just would not eat that food. Wow like who did I think I was???lol). Anyways, whenever my mom and I went to a bakery together, I would always ask her to get an earl grey bread loaf. It was my absolute fav❤️

A few days ago, when I was brainstorming some cooking ideas, something came to my mind: “earl grey tea bread.” I went to the kitchen, and I saw some ripe bananas on the counter and thought, “hmmm, they will go well together.” So, there you go. It’s not too sweet, and earl grey just makes it 1000 times better. It’s such a classy little bread loaf, everyone would love it! I also added some chia seeds for a fun texture😋

Enjoy❣️

All my love,

Kaori

Banana Earl Grey Tea Bread

Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time50 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 1 loaf

Ingredients

Little funsies

  • 1/2 ripe banana (we'll use total of 3 bananas for this recipe)
  • 1 bag earl grey tea bag
  • 2 tbsp chia seeds

Dry ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • a pinch salt

Wet ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter (room temperature, coconut oil as an alternative)
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs (1/2 cup of apple sauce as an alternative)
  • ripe bananas (mashed)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350F and coat the loaf pan with nonstick oil spray. Set aside. (I used coconut oil spray)
  • Combine the dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
  • In a large bowl, combine butter and brown sugar. Mix until creamy.
  • Add eggs, mashed bananas and vanilla extract (the rest of the wet ingredients). Mix until completely incorporated.
  • Combine chia seeds and tea leaves (open the tea bag and mix in the leaves) into wet ingredient mixture.
  • Gradually add dry ingredient mixture into wet ingredients and mix until there are no flour sockets.
  • Spoon the batter into the loaf pan and top with banana slices (1/2 banana). Bake for about 50 minutes.
  • Once baked, make sure to stick a toothpick in the middle and see if it comes out clean.
Poached Chicken with Chili Sauce

Poached Chicken with Chili Sauce

Hi y’all! I hope you guys are beginning the week with calm and mindful spirit. I started meditating with my roommate last week and it’s been going great so far. I feel like I can start my mornings with a good note and really it’s 

Simple Cucumber Salad

Simple Cucumber Salad

Cucumbers are just so refreshing. Whenever I eat cucumbers, I feel so clean, healthy, and overall great! I don’t know why, but I just feel that way. Anyways, this salad is SO easy to make and SO yummy, it is perfect for the summer weather! 

Matcha Smoothie Bowl

Matcha Smoothie Bowl

What I love about this smoothie bowl is not only does it taste good, but it’s also healthy af!

I know green tea aka MATCHA is a thing nowadays. But do you know why so many wellness enthusiasts are obsessed all of a sudden??

Matcha comes from Japan and it is finely ground powder of specially processed green tea leaves. Traditionally, matcha was used as a ritual to bring peace in ourselves. It’s not just drinking that was important, but it is the whole experience – beautiful green color, the smell, warmth, respectful space, peaceful environment, etc. A long long time ago, ever since Ku-kai and Saicho (Buddhism monks) brought back tea leaves from China, Japanese people researched how we could get the maximum benefits from tea leaves. That is how matcha powder was developed. As Eisai wrote in his book, “Matcha has a possibility to richen our mental and physical health,” it was sometimes used for medicinal purposes. They also knew that matcha can help heighten our focus, so monks often had this matcha ritual before practicing meditation.

Although it was super rare back then, we can now all enjoy this miracle powder at home!

Some benefits include: 
 - Lots of antioxidant (much more than normal brewed green tea has!!)
 - Provides vitamin C, zinc, and magnesium
 - Boosts metabolism
 - Rich in fiber
 - Aids in concentration
 - Lowers cholesterol 

No wonder people are so obsessed, right??

Lately, I am trying to cut back on my caffeine intake and I’ve been drinking matcha in the afternoon (I am a huge coffee lover, and I used to drink at least 3 mug full of coffee a day). It is a great alternative to coffee, so if any of you are like me, you should definitely try it!

It’s a little bitter, so you might need a little bit of getting used to at first. Trust me, this smoothie bowl is a great way to begin your matcha journey! It is honestly so delicious, and it’s such a fun way to enjoy your smoothie as a snack or even as a meal:)

I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do! Let me know your thoughts and leave a comment below:)

All my love,

Kaori

Matcha Smoothie Bowl

Prep Time5 minutes
Total Time5 minutes
Course: Breakfast, Snack
Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

  • 2 frozen bananas
  • 1/2 apple
  • 2 tsp matcha powder (I recommend matcha love from itoen)
  • 1 cup spinach
  • 2 tbsp chia seeds
  • 3/4 cup coconut almond milk (any type of milk would work fine!)

Toppings (anything you want to put on really!)

  • Berries
  • granola
  • banana slices
  • honey (this is important)

Instructions

  • Add frozen bananas, apple, matcha powder, chia seeds and spinach into a blender and blend until incorporated and creamy (Pour in milk little by little as you blend).
  • Taste test it and adjust the flavor as you need! You could add some more bananas for sweetness, matcha powder for more intense and bold flavor, add some apples for more freshness, etc.
  • Divide it into two bowls and put toppings you like! For this one, I personally put sliced bananas, strawberries, and some granola.
  • Drizzle some honey on top.
Oven-baked Japanese Spare Ribs

Oven-baked Japanese Spare Ribs

These ribs are honestly so delicious, you have to try! I do love some good old BBQ ribs, but this one just holds a special space in my heart. Every Christmas, my mom would make these amazingly flavorful pork ribs. As a child, I thought 

Intro + Matcha Banana Chocolate chip Cookies

Intro + Matcha Banana Chocolate chip Cookies

Hi guys! I know I have a bio on this website, but I thought I should introduce myself here. First off, thank you so much for stopping by! I am SO SO excited to start this journey and share my experiences with you. My inspiration