Panko, thank you.

I don't know why, but to me, "panko" sounds like someone having a hard time saying, "thank you". Or, maybe it sounds like a sneeze? Perhaps the correct response to the word should just be, "bless you".

Regardless, panko is Japanese bread crumbs. Available at most Asian markets, it is basically coarse white bread crumbs that are much lighter than traditional European or American bread crumbs.

Tonight, the Glass City Gourmet attempts to use Spiced Panko Bread Crumbs on salmon filets for a quick and tasty dinner.

The recipe for Spiced Panko Bread Crumbs comes from "Simply Ming" by Ming Tsai and Arthur Boehm. A list of ingredients follows:

4 cups panko

2 tbs. dried thyme

2 tbs. dried basil

1 tbs. powdered ginger

1 tbs. coarsely gound black pepper

1 tablespoon ancho chile powder or regular chile powder.

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well. Use or store.

I cut the recipe in half and stored the left over mix in an airtight plastic container. Hopefully, I'll come up with more and more uses. Tonight, I dredged salmon fillets through flour, dipped them in a beaten egg, and then coated them in the Spiced Panko. I placed them on a greased baking sheet and baked for 10 minutes at 325F. This left me with medium rare salmon fillets (my personal preference) and a lightly browned panko crust.

While the fillets were cooking, I dropped a half dozen frozen gyoza into my bamboo steamer and let the steam do the work. Then, I tossed a small salad of mixed greens and broccoli coleslaw with a soy ginger vinaigrette dressing (Ok, I cheated and used Newman's Own here). The Glass City Gourmet is not above buying prepared ingredients from time to time.

Arrigato. This meal looked great on the plate and tasted terrific. Total prep time: 20 minutes from start to finish. My very hungry husband got a little upset when I decided to photograph his plate for my blog. "Listen, Martha Stewart. A man's gotta eat!" Perhaps I'm taking this blogging too seriously. . .

“Glass City Gourmet” is a chronicle of one woman's attempt to cook, eat, diet and entertain with both flair and whimsy while based in Toledo, Ohio. I encourage you to read on as the "Glass City Gourmet" attempts grand recipes, samples locally owned restaurants, visits indigenous markets and humbly pursues her quest to be formally recognized as the official "Glass City Gourmet".