Favorite Japanese Recipes for a Homemade Party Menu

Living Well favorite Japanese recipes: miso soup, pork dumplings, okonomiyaki and sesame doughnuts

One year we skipped the catering for the Living Well Christmas party and made the whole meal ourselves.

Four courses. All Japanese. Every bit of it cooked in our own kitchen, by our own team.

It took longer than picking up the phone . . . and it was worth it. Better food, a better evening, and we knew exactly what went into every dish.

These four recipes were my favorites from that menu, and they have stayed in our rotation ever since. Make one on a weeknight, or make all four and turn it into a party.

Want them on paper? Download the printable version of all four recipes.

Why We Cooked Instead of Ordering In

A catered tray shows up finished. You get the food, but you never get to see what went into it.

Cooking it ourselves meant we picked the oil, the salt, and the sweetener. Real broth instead of a bouillon cube. Coconut sugar instead of the white stuff. Avocado oil in the pan.

It also turned dinner into the activity. Everybody had a job. The dumplings got folded by six pairs of hands, and nobody spent the evening looking at a phone.

That is the part I did not expect. The food was good. The night was better.

How the Four Recipes Fit Together

This is a full Japanese menu, laid out in the order you would actually serve it.

Miso soup opens the meal. Light, warm, and fast to finish once the broth is made.

Pork dumplings come next. They are the most hands on of the four, which makes them the best one to hand to helpers.

Okonomiyaki is the main course. It is a savory cabbage pancake, and it was the dish most of our party had never heard of. It is also the one they asked about for weeks afterward.

Japanese doughnuts with caramel sauce finish it. Sesame in the batter, warm caramel over the top.

If you are making all four, start the dashi broth first. The okonomiyaki batter needs a full hour in the refrigerator, so mix it early and let it rest while you fold dumplings.

What To Buy Before You Start

Most of this menu comes from a regular grocery run. A handful of items are worth a trip to an Asian market or an online order, and once you have them they keep for a long time.

Kombu and bonito flakes are the two halves of dashi, the broth underneath both the miso soup and the okonomiyaki batter. Kombu is dried kelp. Bonito flakes are dried, shaved fish. If you cannot find bonito, a few drops of fish sauce will get you close.

White miso paste is milder and a little sweeter than red. Look for one with a short ingredient list. Miso is traditionally fermented, so keep it in the refrigerator.

Wakame is a dried seaweed that softens the moment it hits hot broth. A little goes a long way.

Nagaimo (also sold as yamaimo) is the Japanese mountain yam that makes okonomiyaki light instead of dense. It is slippery to grate, so work quickly and rinse your hands right after.

Shaoxing wine goes in the dumpling filling. Dry sherry is the usual stand in.

Dumpling wrappers live in the refrigerated case near the tofu. Buy a few more than the recipe calls for. The first several folds are practice.

Four Techniques That Make the Difference

Do not boil the miso. Kombu turns bitter over a hard boil, and miso paste loses its smooth, mellow character. Keep it at a gentle simmer, and stir the miso in at the very end.

Squeeze the cabbage. Salting the cabbage and wringing it out in a clean towel is what keeps dumpling filling from going watery. It looks like a fussy step. It is the whole difference.

Rest the okonomiyaki batter. An hour in the refrigerator lets the flour hydrate, and that is what gives you a pancake that holds together when you flip it.

Watch the oil temperature. For the doughnuts you want hot but not smoking. Too cool and they soak up oil. Too hot and the outside browns before the middle is done.

Miso Soup

Course: Lunch or Dinner / Cuisine: Japanese / Recipe by Dr. Michelle Jorgensen

This easy soup is a classic, and it is the gentlest possible way to open a big meal. Homemade dashi is what separates it from the packet version.

Ingredients

2 pieces kombu, 3 inches each
2 cups bonito flakes, or a few drops of fish sauce
8 cups water
2 Tbsp dried wakame seaweed
8 to 10 Tbsp white miso paste
2 green onions, chopped
6 ounces firm tofu, cut into small cubes

Instructions

Gently rinse the kombu. Put it in a medium pot with the water and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Do not let it boil, or the kombu flavor turns bitter. Add the bonito flakes and let them settle to the bottom.
Strain the kombu and bonito flakes out of the broth.
In a small bowl, stir the miso paste together with some of the hot broth until the mixture is smooth, then stir it back into the pot.
Crumble the wakame into the pot. Add the green onions and tofu. Simmer over very low heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Do not boil.

Note: The miso goes in last, and it never sees a hard boil. Leftovers keep in the refrigerator for two to three days. Warm them gently instead of reheating hard.

Pork Dumplings

Course: Lunch or Dinner / Cuisine: Japanese / Recipe by Dr. Michelle Jorgensen

The perfect appetizer for a Japanese meal, and the dish everybody can help with. Makes about 25 dumplings.

Ingredients

2/3 lb napa cabbage
1 lb ground pork
2/3 Tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 1/4 Tbsp light soy sauce
1 1/4 Tbsp Shaoxing wine
2/3 tsp salt, plus 2 pinches for the cabbage
1/8 tsp pepper
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 1/4 Tbsp sesame oil
25 dumpling wrappers

Instructions

Set aside 6 to 8 whole cabbage leaves to line the steamer.
Cut the rest of the cabbage into small cubes. Put it in a bowl, sprinkle with two pinches of salt, mix with your hands, and let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes.
While the cabbage sits, combine the pork, ginger, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, salt, and pepper. Mix well, then add the green onion and sesame oil.
Put the cabbage in a clean towel and squeeze the liquid out. Add it to the pork mixture.
Put 1 to 2 Tbsp of filling in the center of a dumpling wrapper. Wet the outside edge of the wrapper with your finger.
Fold the wrapper in half over the filling into a half moon. Pinch the center together, then start at one outside edge and pinch along the entire round edge. Pinch tightly so they stay sealed. Set each one in the lined steamer.
Add 2 inches of water to a pan that will hold the steamer. Bring it to a boil.
Set the steamer over the boiling water. Make sure the water does not touch the dumplings.
Steam for 10 minutes, or until cooked through.
Serve with ponzu or soy sauce.

Note: Uncooked dumplings freeze beautifully. Freeze them in a single layer on a tray first so they do not stick together, then move them to a bag. Steam them straight from frozen and add a couple of minutes.

Okonomiyaki

Course: Lunch or Dinner / Cuisine: Japanese / Recipe by Dr. Michelle Jorgensen

You have to try this one. Most people have never heard of it, and it is the dish our whole party talked about afterward. Think savory cabbage pancake, crisp at the edges, piled with toppings.

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
6 inches nagaimo or yamaimo yam
1 1/2 cups dashi
8 large eggs
1 cup tenkasu or agedama (tempura scraps)
1/2 cup pickled red ginger
1 head green cabbage
1/2 lb sliced pork belly
Avocado oil, for the pan

For the Toppings

Okonomiyaki sauce
Japanese mayonnaise
Katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
Pickled red ginger

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder.
Peel and grate the nagaimo into a small bowl. Work quickly and rinse your hands right after touching it. Nagaimo is very slippery, so keep a good grip. Add the grated nagaimo and the dashi to the flour mixture.
Mix until combined. Cover the bowl and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least one hour. While it rests, prepare the okonomiyaki sauce and the rest of the ingredients.
Prepare the other ingredients. Discard the cabbage core and mince the leaves. Cut the pork belly slices in half and set aside.
After an hour, take the batter out of the refrigerator. Add the eggs, tempura scraps, and pickled red ginger. Mix until combined. Add the minced cabbage a third at a time, mixing well before adding more.
Heat avocado oil in a large pan over medium heat. When the pan is hot (about 400F), spread the batter into a circle. We like ours thick, about 3/4 inch. If this is your first time, make them smaller and thinner so they are easier to flip.
Lay 2 to 3 slices of pork belly on top and cook covered for 5 minutes.
When the bottom is nicely browned, flip it. Press gently to keep the shape together. Cover and cook another 5 minutes, then flip one last time and cook uncovered for 2 minutes.
To serve, spread okonomiyaki sauce over the top, drizzle with Japanese mayonnaise, and sprinkle with dried bonito flakes. Chopped green onion and more pickled red ginger are good on top too.

Note: The hour of rest is not optional. That is what lets the flour hydrate so the pancake holds together when you turn it. Cook these one at a time and move each finished one to a plate while the next goes in the pan.

Japanese sesame doughnuts drizzled with caramel sauce

Japanese Doughnuts with Caramel Sauce

Course: Dessert / Cuisine: Japanese / Recipe by Dr. Michelle Jorgensen

The perfect dessert to finish this meal. Toasted sesame in the batter, warm caramel over the top, and coconut sugar instead of white sugar in both.

For the Doughnuts

2 2/3 cups flour
2 Tbsp baking powder
1 cup coconut sugar
1 pinch sea salt
2 eggs
7 oz milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp white sesame seeds
2 Tbsp black sesame seeds
Avocado oil, for frying

For the Caramel Sauce

1 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp vanilla

Instructions

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, coconut sugar, and salt. Make a well in the center and add the eggs. Stir in the milk and vanilla with a fork.
Warm the sesame seeds in a dry pan, then crush them lightly in a mortar and pestle. Stir them into the batter.
Pour 3 inches of oil into a pan. Heat until hot but not smoking. Drop the batter in by rounded spoonfuls and cook until they bob to the surface, at least 3 minutes. Drain on a paper towel.
For the caramel sauce, add the coconut sugar to a pan and cook on low until it starts to melt. Add the butter, milk, and vanilla and stir constantly until melted and runny. Pour it over the warm doughnuts.

Note: Coconut sugar gives the caramel a deeper, more molasses-like flavor than white sugar does. These are best the day they are made, so fry them right before you serve dessert.

How To Serve All Four Together

If you want to cook the whole menu in one evening, the order matters more than the clock does.

Start the dashi first. It feeds both the miso soup and the okonomiyaki batter, so make the full batch at once. Mix the okonomiyaki batter next and get it into the refrigerator, because that hour of rest is running in the background while you do everything else.

Then fold dumplings. This is the social part of the evening. Set the filling and the wrappers in the middle of the table and let everybody take a turn.

Serve the soup while the dumplings steam. Cook the okonomiyaki last so it comes off the pan hot, and fry the doughnuts after everyone has eaten. Warm caramel and a warm doughnut are worth the extra ten minutes.

One more thing. Do not try to plate this like a restaurant. Put the toppings out in little bowls and let people build their own. It keeps you in the room instead of at the stove.

If you like making things from scratch, here is another one of my from-scratch favorites: my homemade version of MUD/WTR.

Real Food, Even at the Party

Somewhere along the way, celebrating started to mean handing the cooking to somebody else. I understand why. Life is busy and takeout is easy.

But the meals my family remembers are the ones we made. Not because they were fancy, and definitely not because they were fast. Because everybody had their hands in it.

You do not have to cook a four course Japanese menu to get that. Pick one recipe. Make it with someone. That is the whole idea.

If getting real food on the table on an ordinary Tuesday is the harder problem, that is what my 30 Minute Meal Formula is built for. It is free, and it is the same framework I use at home.