I would like to share here another dinner I had prepared during week 36. I flipped through the cooking magazine which I had bought the last day, and decided to cook the following for dinner:
This is “Mapo nasu”, a version of “Mapo tofu” using nasu (eggplant) instead of tofu. The recipe also included tomatoes. Both eggplant and tomatoes are summer vegetables, which is the reason why I thought this dish would be perfect to make! Furthermore, eggplant and tomatoes were sold everywhere, very cheap! I never find such fresh vegetables in Singapore, which made me want to cook something with them while I am in Japan.
Tomatoes had to be cut in wedges, which I found the most challenging as its liquid-y part inside often spilled out, the tomatoes ending up in a weird shape. I also noticed that a lot of liquid came out from the vegetables while stir-frying. As it can be seen in the photo, the dish ended up to be slightly soggier than expected… Despite that, and thanks to the tianmianjian (sweet bean sauce) my grandmother gave some to me, the taste was great, amazing with rice!
The second dish for the day was grilled salmon. I coated it with starch flower to make it crispy at the outside. Moreover, I made tartar sauce to go with it, which was my grandmother’s suggestion. 
Making the tartar sauce was easier than expected. I boiled some eggs, simply crushed them with a fork and mixed with mayonnaise and pepper. It was very interesting to make something that I frequently buy but never really make at home. Once I go back to Singapore, I might try making different sauces by hand.
I had a great time in Japan, with valuable experiences cooking dishes I usually cannot cook in Singapore. I decided that even when I go back, I would continue stepping out of my comfort zone and try cooking unfamiliar dishes.
