The World Cup Food Challenge - Day 10, Japan (Tamagoyaki)

When I started this World Cup Food Challenge, I joked about cheating for Japan and just going to get some take-away sushi. I did not, of course, mean it. Au contraire, I had grand plans. There are quite a few things Japanese which I have always wanted to make. Sushi, is one. I have only had a hand in making sushi once, in a friend's restaurant a lifetime ago and a world away. I was entrusted to roll the ...erm, rolls. I always wanted to have a go at making it all on my own. But good sushi is abundant around here, that every time the thought occurs to me, I had the option of trekking halfway across town (which would involve an epic journey of about ten minutes by bicycle) to get the necessary ingredients, coming back and taking however long it takes to make the damn things, or to walk all of one minute to the nearest sushi restaurant. It was not a tough decision. So, I have never made it. And I knew I was not going to this time because I was not about to buy sushi mats for what would most likely be a one time thing. On the other hand, good tempura is non-existent around here, so that ranked higher on my list of choices. I have always really liked tempura and do miss it a great deal. Aside from that, I have also always wanted to make miso soup, from scratch. I did none of that. See, Day 10 was midsummer's day. Being the day after the midsummer's party, I reckoned in advance I was not going to be in a fit state to be slaving in front of a stove. I needed something quick and simple, and because I did not manage to plan and shop in advance - because all the shops were closed on midsummer's day - it had to be something using the measly ingredients I had at home.

What I decided on in the end, was some miso soup from a packet, which I have had in my cupboard for more than a year. It was going to be (1) boil water, (2) empty packet into water and (3) wait one minute. On some level, I did feel a bit like it was going to be cheating. But I made another executive decision: I set the rules and exceptions for after-party days. Decision made, I went with the plan and did the packet miso soup thing. A plan B became immediately necessary because the soup tasted horrible! I was not expecting it to be the best miso soup ever, but ugh, it was horrible!

So, hungover and hungry, I needed an alternative. A few quick minutes on Google and I ended up with tamagoyaki; egg, I had! It is a thin rolled up omelette, often sweet.

Tamagoyaki

In preparation for this dish, I watched these videos:
http://www.japanesecooking101.com/tamagoyaki-recipe/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lclhzwuvxNw

I did not however follow any particular recipe. I basically just mixed together the random ingredients I had and rolled it up.

Ingredients
2 eggs
a pinch of salt
1 tsp of sugar (estimated)
a dash of mirin
a dash of soya sauce
a small shallot (only because I had it and felt I needed to add something in it)

Method
The key to this is in the rolling, I decided. It is what makes it different from any other omelette. That, and the sugar, I suppose.
1. Beat the eggs with all the ingredients.
2. Pour just enough egg onto a heated pan cover the pan with a thin layer of egg.
3. When egg is half cooked, roll the egg from one end till about the middle of the pan and move the rolled part of the egg to the edge of the pan.
4. Pour more egg at the unrolled edge of the egg, enough to form a thin layer.
5. Repeat steps 3 & 4 until all the egg is cooked. 
I suggest watching the videos if doing this for the first time- I am not convinced I have explained the method well. It is important to start rolling when the egg is half cooked so that the the roll sticks together.

Verdict: it will do. It's no tempura, but it's no miso soup from a packet either!