Today’s breakfast.
I made grilled salted mackerel, scrambled eggs, sweet and savory stir-fried carrots, and miso soup with lots of ingredients.
For the prep the night before, I cut the mackerel and put the ingredients for the miso soup into the pot.
ven that little bit of prep helps me a lot the next morning.
I usually make the sweet and savory stir-fried carrots the night before and just heat them up in the microwave in the morning, but please read today’s little story below to find out why I didn’t make them ahead this time.
Today’s Little Story
Yesterday, while I was doing my usual breakfast prep, the kids and I started talking about the Japan vs. Netherlands match the next morning.
I said, “Tomorrow’s kickoff is at 5 a.m. The Netherlands are strong, so I hope Japan can at least manage a draw. Big sis, can you set the recording?” Then my youngest suddenly said,
“Wake me up at 5. I’m going to watch it.”
Can you believe he said that?
In our house, we try to make sure the kids get at least nine hours of sleep, and they are pretty used to that routine.
At that point, it was already 8:30 p.m.
They hadn’t even brushed their teeth or finished getting ready for bed yet.
Honestly, I thought, “Yeah… that’s probably not happening.”
But I also didn’t want to just shut him down right away, so I agreed.
And of course, since I had to wake up at 5 too, I went to bed a little earlier than usual.
The next morning.
The alarm rang, and when I checked the time, it was 4:55 a.m.
That’s right.
The Netherlands match.
Alright, let’s cheer for Japan!
I turned on the TV and went to wake him up.
“It’s 5 o’clock. The Netherlands match is starting.”
And then, would you believe it?
There was absolutely no sign of him waking up. Haha.
Well, that makes sense.
My partner, who was sleeping next to him, said,
“You don’t have to force him to wake up.”
So I decided to watch the match by myself for a while.
Right after kickoff, Malen took a shot, and Zion made a super save!
“That was close!”
I couldn’t help saying it out loud.
As I was thinking that the Netherlands really did seem to have the upper hand, the bedroom door opened.
My youngest, who had just been deep in dreamland, came out.
“I want to watch too.”
So the two of us lay down on the sofa and watched the match together.
“Are Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi playing?”
“Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi are from different countries. Ronaldo is from Portugal, and Messi is from Argentina.”
Since he only knows the super famous players, conversations like this happen pretty often.
After watching and chatting for about ten minutes,
my son said, “I’m sleepy after all.”
It was still only 5:30 a.m. Of course he was sleepy.
“Go back to bed,” I said.
Then he grabbed my hand and said, “Come sleep with me,” so I went back to the bedroom with him.
I thought I would go back to watching the match after he fell asleep.
But the next thing I knew, I woke up to the sound of the alarm.
Oh no.
I fell asleep too…
It was 6:10 a.m.
I hurriedly turned the TV back on and started making breakfast.
The second half had just started, and the score was still 0–0.
Maybe Japan could end this with a draw?
Maybe thinking that was a mistake, because Van Dijk scored.
For now, I put the mackerel on the grill, turned on the pot of miso soup, and finished making the scrambled eggs.
I thought breakfast was probably good enough at that point. But then, while watching the bright orange uniforms of the Netherlands players, I suddenly felt like making sweet and savory stir-fried carrots. Haha.
So I quickly sliced some carrots into thin strips and started cooking.
“Goal!”
I heard the announcer shout.
Wait, did the Netherlands score again!?
I turned my eyes back to the TV, and it was actually a goal by Nakamura!
Now things were getting exciting!!
Still, I had carrots to cook.
I kept going.
I added sesame oil to the frying pan and put in the carrots.
And right at that moment, the Netherlands scored another goal…
I felt like giving up for a second, but I kept stir-frying the carrots and added some sliced chikuwa, a tube-shaped Japanese fish cake. If chikuwa is hard to find, thinly sliced sausage should work as a substitute.
Then I seasoned it with mentsuyu (a soy sauce-based seasoning with dashi) and mirin (a sweet Japanese cooking wine), and one more side dish was complete! If you don’t have mentsuyu or mirin, you can make a simple substitute with about 2 teaspoons of soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of sugar, and 2 teaspoons of water. Adjust to taste.
Then I plated everything, and today’s big breakfast was ready.
I kept watching the match while waking the kids up and washing the dishes. When the second half passed the 40-minute mark,
I thought, “Maybe Japan is going to lose this one.”
But then!
Kamada did it!
A priceless equalizer!!
The kids, who were watching while eating breakfast, were so excited.
This draw feels huge.
Fingers crossed that Japan makes it through the group stage!
And finally,
to the kids who were completely focused on cheering:
You’ve barely touched your breakfast.
It’s almost time to go to school, you know?
Please do your best and finish eating. Haha.
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