We asked Phoenix chefs to share their holiday food traditions – past and present – along with recipes to try at home. Chef Matt Carter of The Mission, Fat Ox and Zinc Bistro shared his tips for decadent creamed spinach. Lori Hashimoto, of Hana Japanese Eatery, shares a recipe perfect for all of your holiday parties.
Cooking with chef Lori Hashimoto
While she owns and operates Hana Japanese Eatery, chef Lori Hashimoto's holiday meals growing up were loaded with turkey for Thanksgiving and ham for Christmas, with the occasional Prime rib.
“When my great-grandparents came here, it was to assimilate and fit in and we always did the standard, really American dishes,” Hashimoto says.
But when it came to New Year’s, it was a different story. Hashimoto has fond and vivid memories of celebrating at her grandmother’s house with an array of eye-catching dishes, like pink manju – a sweet Japanese treat of pounded mochi containing a sweet bean filling – along with sushi rolls, tofu rice pockets and sashimi.
The most distinct dish was Ozoni, a traditional Japanese New Year mochi soup. It contained gobo, a root vegetable that only her uncle, who brought it from California, could peel while wearing gloves. The word was that it made your hands itchy. Hashimoto thinks it was a rumor to discourage the kids from touching everything.
“That was always my favorite. We only had it at New Year’s, so to me, that was the signal for New Year’s,” Hashimoto says.
There were other signatures of the holiday season. For example, her grandmother’s giblet stuffing and her dad’s go-to mashed potatoes, made with heavy cream and lots of butter.
“My mom always said that traditions are imprinted in food," Hashimoto says, "and the memories of people that were there with you."
A holiday recipe that is near and dear to Hashimoto’s heart is her family’s fried wontons, which were reserved for big holidays and celebratory events throughout the year.
“It seems Chinese, but this is more of a Japanese-American dish-style wonton,” she says.
Lori Hashimoto’s Fried Wontons
2 pounds ground pork, beef or a mix¾-cup green onion
2 tablespoons ginger, grated or chopped
2-½ teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
½-teaspoon pepper
½- teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon sake
Wonton wrappers
Combine the beef or pork with all other ingredients except the wonton wrappers.
Cook the mixture in a pan over medium heat until the meat is cooked through.
Place a spoonful of the mixture in the middle of the flat wonton skin. Fold into a triangle using water to seal the edges shut.
Fry at 325 degrees until golden brown.
Lay on a paper towel-covered plate to absorb excess oil.
