Yokohama doria (Japanese shrimp & rice gratin)

For ➋
½ tbs butter
½ small onion, thinly sliced
4 white mushrooms, thinly sliced
8 - 10 medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
300 g steamed rice*
½ tbs butter
sauce**:
2 tbs butter
2 tbs flour
20 cl milk
½ ts salt
½ ts consomme powder
topping:
2 tbs grated Parmigiano cheese (optional)

Melt 2 tbs of butter in a sauce pan on low heat. Put 2 tbs of flour in the butter. Cook it, stirring well. When it bubbles, pour in milk. Constantly stir the sauce, using a whisk. Season with salt and consomme powder. Cook it until thickened. Set aside.
Melt ½ tbs of butter in a skillet. Saute onion on low heat until softened. Add mushrooms and shrimp and stir-fry until cooked. Pour in white sauce and mix with the ingredients. Preheat oven to 220°C. Warm up rice in the microwave if it's cold.
Melt ½ tbs of butter in the rice and stir lightly. Place the rice in baking dishes. Pour shrimp in cream sauce over the rice. Sprinkle Parmigiano cheese over the sauce. Bake in the oven for 10 -15 m until lightly browned.
Serve.

*Read the tip on steamed rice.
**Read the tip on a quick white sauce.

Doria was created by a Swiss chef in 1927 at the Yokohama New Grand Hotel, catering to Europeans. It was a variant of a Parisian Italian style dish. In Japanese doria, cooked rice is topped with sauteed ingredients, such as chicken or seafood in white sauce.
Postcard of blooming cherry trees in 1912 at Yokohama harbour.

Gratin dauphinois (French potato oven dish)

For ➍
1 kg potatoes
50 cl milk
25 cl cream
10 g butter
2 cloves garlic
1 sprig thyme
black pepper
nutmeg & salt

Peel the garlic and potatoes*. Chop a clove of garlic very finely. Cut the potatoes into slices of 3-4 mm, as regular as possible.

Bring the milk to a boil in a saucepan.

Add the potatoes, chopped garlic, thyme, pepper, nutmeg and a pinch of salt.

Cook 30 m over medium heat and then let stand covered for 10 m.

Preheat oven to 200°C.

Butter a dish. Rub it with a clove of garlic cut in half.

Arrange potatoes in layers in the baking dish up to 1 cm from the edge. Pour cream and milk cooking to cover the potatoes.** Place a few knobs of butter on the surface.

Bake for 30 to 45 m in preheated oven. Cooking is complete when the surface of the upper crust is evenly browned.

Serve with lamb or game.

*Do not pass the potatoes in water to avoid losing their starch.
**Add 2 tbs of mustard for a stronger taste.