Turnip and Meatballs Stew / 肉団子とカブの煮物 / 肉丸子焖芜菁

This dish is called 蕪と肉団子の煮　(kabu to nikudango no ni) in Japanese, one of the popular winter vegetable dishes in Japanese home-cooking. Obviously, I am way to outdated now. It is now spring and sakura is seen almost everywhere around my place. It will be great time for hamani next week, hopefully next few rainy days would not do any harm to the blooming sakura before its peak.

Back to the dish, the leaf is usually cooked together in the pot but I used it for making pickle. Turnip leaf can be stir-fried too, as if any other green leafy vegetables. The texture of turnip is softer and finer than daikon, it is also less or not "smelly".

Turnip and Meatballs Stew

Ingredients:

• 500 g turnip
• 100 g minced pork or chicken
• 1/2 small onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp green peas (heap)
• * 1 tsp cooking sake / 料理清酒
• * 1/4 tsp salt
• *1/4 tsp sugar
• *1 tbsp water
• *1 tsp katakuriko OR corn starch

Stock:

500 ml water

10 cm konbu for stock / kelp

2 tbsp sake

Salt to taste

Method:

1. Fill water in a pot, add in konbu and soak it as you prepare turnip and other ingredients.
2. Put minced meat in a bowl, add in all ingredients marked with *. Mix well in same direction until nothing stick on the side of the bowl and the mixture became sticky. Mix in chopped onion and green peas, mix well and set aside.
3. Cut off turnip leaves, wash and drain. Then, cut into bite size. Set aside.
4. Peel turnip and cut into chunks.
5. Bring (1) to a boil, once it is boiled remove and discard konbu. Add in turnip and simmer till it is cooked.
6. Push turnip one side of the pot, add in meatballs. Meatball: Use a small spoon to scoop (2) and shape into ball then drop into the pot.
7. Add sake and salt to taste. Cook till meatballs are well done, add in (3) and cook for few minutes.
   
8. Turn the heat off, serve warm.

It was white valentine's day in Kyoto, snowed heavily for 2 days and kids had fun playing with snow for the first time. The last time snowed like this was 18 years ago.
J walked to kindergarten in the snow for the first time, and about an hour later the weather warning was announced we had to fetch him home.