The Iron Chef Gets Creative With Cabbage
Chef Greg Harrison | Photo courtesy Greg Harrison
Masaharu Morimoto, known around the world as the star of Iron Chef and Iron Chef America, has just opened his newest restaurant at the Andaz Maui at Wailea. Chef Greg Harrison, a native of Los Angeles and a graduate of the renowned Le Cordon Bleu, will be executive chef.
With each of Harrison’s culinary endeavors, he follows his personal mantra: “To learn, to live, to love and to leave a legacy.” Of the opportunity, Chef Harrison adds, “I am grateful that Chef Morimoto chose me to come here and lead the team opening the new restaurant. He has entrusted me to inspire the team atmosphere, and most importantly to make his food and teach others to do the same. We are constantly striving for consistency and quality, which is part of the great opportunity and challenge in opening Morimoto Maui.”
Morimoto has expanded his own brand of “global cooking” to his new restaurant, and he and his chef are exploring ways to integrate locally grown and harvested eco-friendly produce into the unique menu, with exclusive local ingredients such as fresh opakapaka and produce from Kula Produce, including po-hole ferns, Waipoli and Kula greens, and sweet Maui onions.
I would like to thank Chef Morimoto for giving me one of his own recipes to share with MidWeek readers.
Tofu most commonly is sold in vacuum packs or in aseptic brick packages, and it is usually found in the produce or dairy sections of the supermarket. If it’s not aseptically packaged, the tofu should be kept cold. Once opened, leftover tofu should be rinsed, covered with fresh water and stored in the refrigerator. The water needs to be changed daily and the tofu should be eaten within a few days.
TOFU STUFFED CABBAGE
* 1 package firm tofu
* 1/2 teaspoon sesame paste
* 2 teaspoons sugar
* salt, to taste
* 2 teaspoons soy sauce
* 2 teaspoons potato starch
* 2 egg whites
* 1/2 ounce hijiki (optional)
* 1/2 medium carrot (can add other vegetables of your choice)
* 8 cabbage leaves
* 4 cups chicken broth
* salt and pepper, to taste
Drain tofu on a plate for 10 minutes. In a large pot, boil 2 quarts of water and poach each cabbage leaf for two-three minutes. Drain and let cool.
Shred carrot and put it into a bowl. Soak hijiki in water for 15 minutes and drain. Put hijiki into the bowl with the carrot.
Put tofu, sesame paste, sugar, salt, soy sauce, potato starch and egg whites in food processor and blend well. Add the pureed tofu to the bowl with the carrot and hijiki and mix. Divide the mixture into eight pieces and shape them into small balls. Put each one into a cabbage leaf and roll, tucking in the ends.
In a large pot, bring chicken broth to a boil and add salt and pepper, to taste. Add cabbage and cook for two-three minutes. Serve in soup bowls.
Makes four servings.
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