Tadashi Ono

I'm usually skip Japanese cookbooks as they tend to be more delicate flavors vs other cuisines and my heavy allergies don't let me taste subtleties.

This book has a mix of traditional recipes (basic ramens) along with many modern recipes of what must be middle of the night stoner foods. Things like fried rice omelets and cabbage / fried egg / stir fried noodle pancake pile. I don't usually think gut bomb when I think Japanese so this was more my style of cooking. It also includes recipes show more with heavy Chinese and British (curry) influence.

Plenty of things to try if you just want a clean broth soup all the way to super bowl level fare. show less

This cookbook is amazing! I love Japanese food, but grilling has been a huge part of my repertoire since I first learned how to cook. And now, finally, I am able to combine these two wonderful things.

The book opens with a brief introduction to the authors and a short history of the grilling arts in Japan. Following this they included a nice long section to the ingredients they deem essential to Japanese grilling, explaining what each item is, how it's made or gathered, and how you, as a show more person living outside Japan, can get it for your own use. They devote en equal amount of time to suggesting how you set up your grill to resemble the traditional Japanese yakitori grill, and even what kind of charcoal is the best.

But really, the star of any cookbook is the recipe section. And these recipes are so mouthwatering that I immediately started planning my grilling escapades, even though it's only January. The recipes are all quite short, usually only requiring a handful of ingredients, and all offer helpful and practical suggestions about how to arrange the food on the grill to achieve the best results. Suffice to say that I'm going to be trying a lot of these, this summer.

Strongly recommended for anyone who loves grilling, Japanese food, or just looking at mouthwatering pictures and daydreaming. show less

I wish there were photos for every dish (or at least more photos). I also wish there were recipes/instructions to make noodles but I acknowledge that it’s probably not feasible for most home cooks. Each type of noodles here could probably be a book in itself. The recipes are great, though. Clear and fun to read. I am excited to start trying them.

Lovers of Japanese food are already familiar with sushi, but now they have another treat to try. The art of table top cooking is demystified in Chef Tadashi Ono and food writer Harris Salat's new cookbook Japanese Hot Pots: Comforting One-Pot Meals.

Hot pots or onabe are a staple in Japanese cooking especially in the winter months. These dishes are known for being simple and easy to prepare. While you can prepare them using a stove, for added fun try cooking tableside and get the whole show more family involved.

Authentic recipes are featured in this beautifully illustrated book. The recipes are clearly written and easy to follow including hot pot recipes for vegetables; fish and seafood; chicken and duck; and beef, pork, lamb and venison. There is an index and a handy section on resources for those hard to find items.

The Bottom Line: Perfect for the wintertime cooking, this cookbook fills a unique niche in Japanese cooking. Highly recommended for all home chefs looking to try something new and fun.

This review first appeared in the Mini Book Bytes Blog: http://minibookbytes.blogspot.com/ show less