Favorite uses for Shiso
I bought a small shiso plant a couple of weeks ago at the farmers' market in Hollywood because I have had it in restaurants and liked it, but I don't remember exactly what I had, and I've never made anything with it before.
I found this recipe, which looks promising, for a start, but it only has three ingredients and does not say how to use the sauce once it is made. I think it might be good with sushi or fish.
The plant is growing very fast and making big leaves, and so I may need to put it in a bigger pot (or maybe put it in the ground), but I need to know what I will be able to do with mass quantities of it. Perhaps I can mix it with Yuzu, since I have quite a bit of that also and seldom use it, although I do put it in Japanese soups. Maybe the shiso should go into soups, but I am hoping there are other uses for it.
I have been growing shiso every year. In my NY area, shiso comes back every year by self seeding. I use shiso in many recipes as an herb, especially in salads. I have used it on pizzas. Not bad.
When I have too much, I give them to a Japanese farmer in a farmers market not too far from me, and he would give me extras when i buy things from him.
dcarch
I've never used it in cooking, but do be warned. Once you have it in your garden, you'll have tons of it from now on. You may be able to control it by cutting off the flowers, but as you noted, it grows so fast, it's hard to keep up with it.
I read a mystery book set in Japan, (I wish I could remember the name of the book or the author). They make a tea to treat fever made out of a plant they called "beefsteak." I looked it up, and found out it was Perilla, aka Shiso. I don't know why they called it beefsteak in the book, since I later learned the name shiso. Maybe it was a different strain or something.
Sally
Funny, I do recall seeing shiso referred to as 'beefsteak plant' in seed catalogs many years ago - but not so recently...
Interesting. I planted my shiso in the same area as my mint. Now I have a new plant, a cross between mint and shiso.
dcarch
oh weird, dcarch, they hybridized.
Lars, Do you have the red or the green variety?
Shiso often is used in pickles, and gives a bright fuschia color. You could make sour pickled plums (umeboshi) or cucumber pickle. It's a very strong, unique taste, however.
You can also use the green type chiffonade as a flavor garnish like green onions on somen or other noodle dishes.
Thanks, Gooster! I have the green variety, and it has a very strong, pungent flavor, but I do think it would be good in pickles. I can also see it being used as a garnish, as you suggested. BTW, what kind of range to you have in your new kitchen?
Here isanother use for it, although I'm not sure what it is.
I think it might also be good in scrambled eggs or perhaps an omelet. If I make the shiso/garlic/soy sauce recipe, I guess I could use that on noodles, or maybe in eggs.
I got this link for Ume Shiso Pasta from this Japanese forum, which I had not visited for a while.
The first link looks like a rice ball. I'm guessing that was for the dipping sauce you're going to make. You can baste the sauce as you grill the rice ball -- sort of street food style. I looked at the video -- some of those Japanese-European hybrids can be pretty bizarre. Umeboshi is a very strong, sour/salty taste. I've been to Japan numerous times -- the adapted dishes can take some getting used to.
I googled and found this recipe -- I've not tried it, but it sounds good:
http://food52.com/recipes/4891-quick-cucumber-and-shiso-pickles
Here's a good overview of the pickles you might recognize from a typical bento box in a restaurant -- several use shiso.
http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/06/guide-japanese-pickles-tsukemono.html
The range in the "country" kitchen is a CornuFe 90 (Albertine). The City one got a Bosch 500. Enjoy your new Berta! It was a prime candidate for the City one, but the cost was beyond what we wanted to pay for a 2nd home/part time rental. If we buy another house there I'd strongly consider that one.
I saved that pickle recipe, and I will try it the next time I buy cucumbers.
I used a couple of shiso leaves cut in a chiffonade as a garnish for the sushi we had last night, and that was an interesting addition and could be substituted for the ginger (gari) that I usually serve. However, I have plenty of pickled ginger at the moment.
I can probably find the Umeboshi in one of the Japanese markets close by, but if it has a very strong flavor, I might not like it. I'll still try it, however. My brother-in-law used to live in Japan, and his first wife was Japanese, and so my sister's three step-children are half Japanese. However, they do not speak Japanese and have very strong Texas accents! Jack (my BIL) enjoys going to the Japanese markets and restaurants here.
I just remembered that I have three new Japanese cook books that I have not used yet, and I need to look through those to find shiso recipes. I have a Japanese pickle cook book also, but I generally just buy the pickles, as some are difficult to make or require odd ingredients. I bought a pickling mix the last time I was at a Japanese market, and that worked well. I served cucumber pickles that I made with it last night. The problem with the mix is that the instructions are all in Japanese, and so I'm not sure if I made it correctly, but it tasted good.
Your ConuFe is very beautiful, but it looks like they do not make a 30" version. We've already bought our new range (Berta), and I think I will be happy with it.
If you don't want to buy a full jar of umeboshi, look for the onigiri/musabi (rice balls) in the deli section. It is a common filling. The taste is intensely sour, but with a shiso/vinegar/salt flavor. The vinegar reacts with the shiso to produce an intense red color.
I'm certain you'll love the Berta! We are happy with the CornuFe in the more traditional home (pics/reveal in profile) but would love to have the Berta in the loft.