Recipes by Kenji Nakamura
20 recipes
Smoked Tea & Red Miso Cured Duck Breast Bowl with Toasted Pearl Barley & Charred Fig Ponzu
Quick-curing duck breast in a punchy mix of smoky Lapsang Souchong tea and dark red miso draws out surface moisture and infuses deep, woodsy umami in just 15 minutes. Rendered to shatteringly crisp skin and paired with dashi-simmered pearl barley and charred fig-yuzu ponzu, this bowl hits every tastebud with Japanese precision and smoky, vibrant fruit.
Aji Panca & Yuzu Kosho Cured Swordfish Bowl with Coconut-Dashi Rice
Swordfish is the steak of the ocean, but its lean texture can turn dry if overcooked. Quick-curing it in shio koji, yuzu kosho, and Peruvian aji panca locks in moisture while creating a deep, caramelized crust when hard-seared, served over fragrant coconut-dashi rice.
Pan-Seared Duck Leg Carnitas Bowl with Black Garlic-Tamarind Glaze & Charred Tomatillo-Yuzu Kosho Relish
Melt-in-your-mouth duck leg carnitas are shredded and pan-seared in rendered fat until ultra-crispy, served over jasmine rice with a dark, sticky black garlic-tamarind glaze and a smoky, fermented citrus-tomatillo relish.
Guajillo-Miso Cured Hard-Seared Tofu Bowl with Charred Peach Salsa
Extra-firm tofu gets cured in a rich paste of dark red miso and fruity guajillo chile to draw out excess moisture and deeply season its core, then hard-seared for a caramelized crust. Served over warm sesame-dashi rice and topped with a bright, smoky summer peach salsa.
Crispy Shio Koji Pork Belly Bowl with Charred Pineapple-Gochujang Glaze
Pork belly gets the ultimate tenderizing treatment with a quick shio koji cure before being seared to crispy perfection. Glazed in a smoky, sweet-spicy charred pineapple and gochujang sauce and served over sesame jasmine rice, this bowl balances deep umami with electric tropical acidity.
Shio Koji-Cured Wild Salmon Bowl with Charred Mango Pebre & Coconut-Dashi Rice
Wild-caught salmon gets a fast shio koji cure, rendering the flesh silky and deeply umami-rich before a hard sear. Paired with aromatic coconut-dashi jasmine rice and a bright Chilean-Japanese charred mango pebre salsa, this bowl balances sweet, salty, smoke, and acid in every bite.
Shio Koji Duck Breast Bowl with Forbidden Black Rice & Mole Verde Miso
Crispy shio koji-cured duck breast meets rich, nutty forbidden black rice and a bright, velvety Mole Verde laced with white miso. Fresh pickled kumquats and shiso add a vibrant citrus snap that perfectly cuts through the rich duck fat.
Shio Koji Lamb Chop Bowl with Black Garlic-Harissa Tahini & Toasted Farro
Succulent, shio koji-cured lamb chops grilled to a rosy medium-rare, paired with a smoky black garlic-harissa tahini drizzle over nutty toasted farro and edamame. The enzymes in shio koji work pure magic on lamb, unlocking deep umami while mellowing its gamey notes.
Crispy Shio Koji Chicken Thigh Bowl with Coconut-Turmeric Rice & Yuzu Kosho Nuoc Cham
Crispy, deeply savory shio koji-cured chicken thighs sit atop fragrant turmeric-coconut Jasmine rice, balanced by a bright, electrifying yuzu kosho nuoc cham. Quick-pickled green papaya and fresh herbs round out this bowl with texture, fat, and high-acid harmony.
Shio Koji Skirt Steak Bowl with Gochujang Chimichurri & Furikake Poblano Rice
Enzyme-tenderized beef skirt steak charred on cast iron, served over aromatic furikake-poblano rice and crowned with a fiery Korean-Argentinian chimichurri and blistered sweet corn.
Shio Koji-Cured Charred Octopus Bowl with Yuzu-Pimentón Finishing Oil
This vibrant lunch bowl pairs Spanish Pulpo a la Gallega sensibilities with Japanese cure and sear techniques. Tender octopus is short-cured in shio koji to amplify sweetness and tenderize the flesh, high-heat charred in cast iron, and served over warm rice with a smoky yuzu kosho finishing oil.
Kombu & Shio Koji-Cured Tofu 'Gravlax' Bowl with Yuzu-Passionfruit Ponzu
Elevate your midday desk escape with silky, kombu-cured tofu that mimics the lush texture of raw sashimi. Paired with a vibrant yuzu-passionfruit dressing and crisp summer veggies over seasoned sushi rice, it's bright, complex, and intensely satisfying.
Shio Koji Flash-Cured Duck Breast with Aji Panca-Plum Glaze
Flash-curing duck breast in shio koji tightens the proteins and seasons deeply in just 15 minutes, paving the way for maximum skin render and pan-sear precision. Served with a tangy, umami-loaded Mexican-Japanese plum glaze and a bright Thai herb salad, this dish bridges South America, East Asia, and Southeast Asia in one explosive dinner bite.
Baja-Nikkei Halibut Ceviche with Yuzu Kosho Leche de Tigre
Where the coastal crudos of Ensenada meet the precision of a Tokyo sushi counter. We're using green yuzu kosho—a fermented Japanese paste of citrus, chili, and salt—to build a complex, fiery, and deeply umami curing liquid for fresh halibut.
Chilled Soba & Steamed Japanese Eggplant with Tomatillo-Black Sesame Emulsion
I firmly believe that cold noodles are the ultimate canvas for cross-cultural experimentation. In this refreshing summer lunch, we're taking earthy Japanese buckwheat soba and pairing it with a wildly vibrant, quick-blended emulsion of raw Mexican tomatillos and rich black sesame paste. It's a collision of CDMX and Tokyo that coats the noodles perfectly, while flash-steamed Japanese eggplant soaks up all that sharp, nutty umami.
Passionfruit & Yuzu Scallop Tiradito with Toasted Buckwheat
Scallops are delicate creatures, and a heavy-handed traditional lime cure will turn them into rubber erasers in minutes. By using a Nikkei-inspired leche de tigre made from bright passionfruit, aromatic yuzu, and umami-rich white soy sauce, we gently 'cook' the scallops just enough to firm their exterior while keeping the center sweet and creamy. The crunchy toasted buckwheat gives it that essential earthy textural contrast you usually get from Peruvian cancha.
Smoky Ancho-Miso Char-Grilled Pork Shoulder with Shiso Salsa Crunch
I love taking hardworking cuts like pork shoulder and transforming them through the magic of enzymatic marinades. By slicing it like a steak and curing it in a smoky ancho-miso paste, we get a tender, caramelized crust on the grill that screams summer BBQ. The rich fat is perfectly balanced by a highly textured, herbaceous shiso and pumpkin seed salsa that hits every single taste receptor.
Cast-Iron Blistered Shishitos with Aji Amarillo Crab 'Dynamite'
This is my Tokyo-meets-Lima take on a classic izakaya bar snack. We use screaming high heat to aggressively blister shishito peppers, then toss them off-heat in a Peruvian-Japanese 'dynamite' sauce made of sweet lump crab, aji amarillo, and Kewpie mayo. The residual heat melts the fat into a smoky, sweet, and fiery glaze.
Gochujang & Mezcal Marinated Jammy Eggs with Crispy Quinoa
I love taking the DNA of a Japanese ajitsuke tamago (ramen egg) and throwing it a wild curveball. Here, we're plunging soft-boiled eggs into a smoky, fiery bath of Korean gochujang and Oaxacan mezcal, then serving those umami-cured yolks over pan-crisped quinoa.
Shio Koji-Cured Watermelon & Tuna Tostadas with Yuzu-Gochujang
A cross-cultural summer lunch that plays with texture, temperature, and your expectations. We're using the enzymatic power of shio koji to compress watermelon until it matches the meaty chew of raw yellowfin tuna, then tossing both in a vibrant yuzu-gochujang dressing. Spread over a creamy edamame-avocado base on a crisp tostada, it is a wild, refreshing bite that hits every single umami receptor.