ACNH kabu ankake
How to make:
- You will need kabu, which is a small, round type of Japanese turnip. If you can’t find those, you could try daikon but you won’t be able to make the lid. Or you can look for Daisy Mae every Sunday morning.
- The mince was leftover dumpling filling and I used pork, shiitake, spring onions, shaoxing wine, salt, pepper, msg, corn starch, panko, soy sauce, I don’t remember if it’s everything but any mince works. I highly recommend panko (and egg) in minces because it really makes the mince really soft and juicy and is quite fool proof. If you can eat both, I also recommend a ratio of around 80% beef to 20% pork for better flavour and fat ratio. Kabu ankake soboro is usually made with chicken mince, so you can try that too.
- The final component is an, which is a slightly thickened sauce. It can consist of dashi, mirin, some soy sauce and salt to taste and water, and thickened with a slurry of corn starch later. I’m sorry I don’t actually do measurements I just taste as I go.
1. Wash and peel each turnip and make sure to get the top area around the stalk, if the turnip comes with a long stalk just chop it but leave some on for the aesthetic (the stalks are yummy and edible too). Cut the top as a lid and a bit off the bottom parallel to the plate so they can balance and not fall over.
2. Using a small spoon, carve out a circle as a guideline. To make a nice circle you can just hold the spoon stuck inside and twist the turnip in a circle with the other hand. This works better for round spoons if you can find one but it’s still possible with a normal spoon.
3. Scoop out some turnip to make a bowl and keep the scooped out turnip to cook in soup or something. For ACNH kabu ankake it doesn’t have to be that deep cos it protrudes out and I prefer more turnip anyway but you can carve deeper, fill inside and flatten the top so the lid closes.
4. Fill the pot up to half the height of the turnips with the an. It can consist of dashi, mirin, some soy sauce and salt to taste and water. Water will come out of the turnips so you don’t have to fill too high, and the sauce can be slightly stronger as it will dilute a little. Don’t make it too strong but you don’t want it too thin either. Put lid on and steam for around 20-30mins or until soft all over.
5. After steaming, add a bit of a corn starch slurry into the broth to thicken into the an (sauce) and cook for a short while and pour over when serving.
Enjoy! They can be kept in the fridge for a few days cooked.
