Good for Your Health All Asian Cookbook (P). Marie Wilson

meal. If I had to choose one dish that I would be happy to dine on most frequently, this would be it. It is perfect for an outdoor cookout on a hot summer day or broiled indoors at any time. Chicken livers are often grilled with the chicken, but I have left them out because of their high cholesterol count (Three ounces of liver contains 372 mg of cholesterol as compared to about 75 in 3 ounces of chicken without skin and fat.) The liver is said to be one of the animal's chief production sites for cholesterol, but if you are not on a strict low-cholesterol diet, one or two chicken livers can be included, not only for variety but also for their very high nutritional content of vitamins and iron.

      36-40 bamboo skewers at least 8 inches long

      11½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken, all fat removed, cut into 1-inch cubes

      12 scallions cut into 2-inch lengths; use white part with some of the green

       6 small Japanese eggplants, about 4-5 inches long

      18 cherry tomatoes

      18 whole mushrooms

       2 tablespoons safflower oil for basting

      Powdered sansho (Japanese pepper), or black pepper

      Seven-spice mixture (shichimi togarashi)

      Lemon wedges

       4 green peppers, cut into 1-inch squares

      Basting sauce:

      ½ cup saké

      ½ cup mirin

      1 tablespoon sugar

      4 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce

      To prepare:

      1. Soak bamboo skewers in water for at least an hour. Preheat broiler or start charcoal fire.

      2. On each of 18 skewers, string 4 or 5 pieces of chicken alternated with 1-inch lengths of scallion.

      3. To cook the eggplants, prick them in 3 or 4 places with a fork or a toothpick. Skewer them whole. Hold 2 skewers in a V position and insert them sideways into each eggplant. This will allow you to hold the eggplant securely in one hand.

      4. String on skewers, in any order you wish, green pepper squares, tomatoes, and whole mushrooms.

      To cook:

      1. Start cooking eggplant first. Brush with oil and broil about 4-5 inches from fire until skin shrivels and eggplants get soft. This will take 15-20 minutes.

      2. Using a small pastry brush, baste chicken with sauce and cook about 3 inches from heat for 5-8 minutes, basting and turning several times until the chicken is tender and brown. Do not overcook.

      3. Brush the skewers of vegetables with oil and broil very briefly or just enough to lightly brown them and heat them through. If desired, you may brush them with the marinade.

      4. Sprinkle sansho or seven-spice mixture to taste. Serve yakitori with boiled rice (p. 48) and vinegared cucumbers (p. 21).

Yield: 6 servings, or 36 appetizers	Cooking time: About 20 minutes
Calories per serving: 420	Total fat: 12 g
Saturated fat: 2.2 g	Polyunsaturated fat: 5.3 g
Cholesterol: 100 mg	Sodium: 220 mg

      Variation: Chunks of beef or fish, or whole shrimps may also be cooked in this way.

      Soybean Curd with Miso Topping

      (Tofu no Dengaku)

      The soybean curd (tofu) in this recipe is traditionally grilled on skewers over an open fire and the white miso topping,is colored with ground green sansho leaves. But since it is fragile and difficult for the novice to handle, pan broiling or frying is suggested in this highly adapted recipe.

      Remember that miso is high in sodium—approximately 284 mg in 1 teaspoon. Normally, this recipe would be prepared with as much as Vz cup of miso, which would add up to 6,816 mg of sodium (24 teaspoons x 284 mg), or 1,704 mg per serving. That's nearly as much sodium as a person should have in a single day. For more on miso, see the recipe for Clear Soup with Soybean Paste on pages 13-14.