Vegetable Nanbanzuke

Nanbanzuke is a popular cooking technique flavored for summer preparations. In this interesting technique seasonal ingredients are first deep-fried and then pickled in vinegar flavored marinade, the opposite of the usual process in which food is marinated first and then cooked. To a traditional Nanbanzuke marinade I add Kayanoya Original Vegetable Stock Powder to make this popular standard even more flavorful.

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Ingredients

4 Servings

2 cups rice vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 packet Kayanoya Original Vegetable Stock Powder
1/4 cup Kayanoya Double-Aging Soy Sauce
1 tsp sea salt
2 akatogarashi dried peppers
1 pound American eggplant
1/2 pound red bell pepper
1/2 pound green zucchini
1/2 pound yellow zucchini
Canola oil

Directions

Have a large bowl of cold water with ice cubes at hand.
In a saucepan add the rice vinegar, sugar and Kayanoya Original Vegetable Stock Powder and put it over medium heat. On simmering reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 3 minutes, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Then, add Kayanoya Double-Aging Soy Sauce, sea salt and akatogarashi pepper and bring it to a simmer. Remove and discard the sachet. Cook the mixture for 1 minute. Turn off the heat and put the saucepan in a large bowl of cold water to cool quickly.
Cut the eggplant, red bell pepper and green & yellow zucchini into small bite sized pieces (1 1/2-inch x 1-inch).
Heat 1 inch of oil in a skillet. When the oil is hot, add and cook the vegetables until they are lightly golden. Drain the cooked vegetables on paper towels. While they are hot, transfer and marinate them in the prepared vinegar marinade. You can enjoy the vegetables after 2 hours of pickling or continue to marinate them for up to two full days. As the vegetables are left longer in the marinade, they absorb much stronger flavor.