All posts by dragonlife

Robert-Gilles Martineau hails from Bourgogne/Burgundy, France and presently resides in Shizuoka/Japan

美食, 農業, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Halloween, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Kabocha, Recipes, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine

Halloween Kabocha Pancakes!

September 17, 2012 dragonlife 3 Comments

The Japanese love pancakes, be they American or European style!
Have you ever tried making some with pumpkin or Kabocha?
Here is a simple recipe for Halloween parties!

INGREDIENTS: (For 2~ people)

Kabocha: 250 g (without the seeds)
All-purpose flour: 250 g
Baking powder: 1 tablespoon
Syrup (or sugared water): 2 tablespoons
Salt: 2 pinches
Milk: 450 ml/2 cups and a quarter
Egg: 1
Salad oil: 1 tablespoon
Honey: 2 tablespoons

RECIPE:

Cut the kabocha roughly and cook for 3 minutes inside a microwave oven.
Check it is soft enough before mashing it.
It does not have to be mashed down to paste.

In a bowl pour milk, beaten egg, syrup, salt and beat the whole well.

Add all flour and baking powder and mix well.
Add kabocha and olive salad oil and mix well till you obtain a smooth paste.

Use a non-stick frypan if possible.
Oil the frypan with a piece of kitchen paper imbibed with oil to avoid using too much oil.
Pour enough paste for a pancake and cover with lid. Keep cooking over low fire.
Turn it over after 20^30 seconds and cook again for same length of time.

Serve at once if possible!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento,Adventures in Bento Making, American Bent, Beanbento, Bento No, Bento Wo Tsukurimashou, Cooking Cute, Eula, Hapabento , Happy Bento, Jacki’s Bento Blog, Kitchen Cow, Leggo My Obento, Le Petit Journal Bento & CO (French), Lunch In A Box,
Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, The Herbed Kitchen, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Cooking Cute, Timeless Gourmet, Bento Bug, Ideal Meal, Bentosaurus, Mr. Foodie (London/UK), Ohayo Bento,

Must-see tasting websites:

-Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World
-Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog
-Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in kanzai by Nevitt Reagan!
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Japan, Japanese Pottery, Kyoto, Tourism

Robert Yellin’s Newsletter: Minegishi Seiko Debut Exhibition

September 15, 2012 dragonlife 2 Comments

Minegishi Seiko

Greetings from Robert Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Greetings from Kyoto and we hope this finds all well as we enter into autumn here, surely one of the most pleasant times to visit this most amazing city.

Minegishi Seiko Debut Exhibition

We’re very pleased to announce the Kyoto debut exhibition of Celadon master Minegishi Seiko(b.1952). Minegishi is without a doubt one of the most graceful celadon ceramic artists in Japan today. He works out of the resort town of Nasu in Tochigi prefecture, not far from Mashiko. His works have been exhibited at major venues in Japan as well as the Nasu Queen Museum. At the Mingei Museum in San Diego a large charger is on display now as part of a fabulous exhibition on contemporary Japanese ceramic art, see more on that below. His work has also been acquired by the New Orleans Museum of Art and the Rhode Island School of Design. His research in celadon began in 1988, yet his career as a potter began in 1972. More about Minegishi can be read here: http://www.e-yakimono.net/html/s-minegishi.html All works are museum quality and come with signed boxes. Additional photos of any works will gladly be sent upon request, the exhibition ends on Sept. 28th

Celadon Tsubo-Jars, Large Hachi-Vessel and Vases by Minegishi Seiko

Celadon Flower, Persimmon, Koro and Flower Sculpture

Celadon Vases

Celadon Tea and Sake Vessels

Exhibition Schedule, Online Selection

Our exhibition schedule for autumn and into winter include Kitajima Shigemitsu’s Echizen Tsubo-jar exhibition from Oct. 25-Nov.8; Inayoshi Osamu’s Japan and World debut exhibition from Nov.16th-25th and Osaka’s Hiruma Kazuyo’s ceramic sculptures in early December.

Our online selection is continually expanding with new discoveries, such as Taniguchi Norimasa and Yoshitaka, from the famous Kyoto family of Taniguchi Ryozo, a Japan Ceramic Society Award winner in 1963 and inventor of a most wonderful blue glazing scheme that his son and grandson continue to use. We’ve also recently listed a handsome iron-glazed jar by Living National Treasure Shimizu Uichi as well as one by Kawai Kanjiro:

Tenmoku-Persimmon Glazed Jar by Shimizu Uichi

Kawai Kanjiro Henko-Jar

For those looking for a magical sake vessel then please have a look at this one by the late, great Wada Morihiro: Guinomi by Wada Morihiro

For those who want to visit the Taniguchi studio, such a visit has been planned as part of a ceramic tour of Japan commencing in October and arranged by Esprit Travel: Ceramics of Japan Tour

Other Exhibitions of Note

One highly recommended and unprecedented exhibition will be at the stunning Miho Museum not far from Kyoto showing Jomon period Dogu figures from across Japan; truly an exhibition not to be missed: 2012 Special Exhibition
Other exhibitions of note are two; one in Southern California and the other in Northern California focusing on two private collectors collections of contemporary Japanese ceramics. I was honored to give two lectures at the former, here: Nature, Tradition, and Innovation
…and hope to be able to see this one as well: Japanese Ceramics from the William Bayer Collection

Nishimura’s works

Nearby our gallery is a quaint and interesting temple call Honen-in that dates back to 1680. They often host art exhibitions, concerts and lectures that are always engaging. A few weeks ago Robert went there with a visitor and just happened to come across an exhibition by Osaka painter Nishimura Daiki, and he was immediately taken with Nishimura’s moody ‘dark and light’ paintings. Speaking with Nishimura, Robert arranged for some paintings to be displayed at the gallery and they make a perfect backdrop for any ceramic art; prices range from 30-80,000 yen. Coincidentally, Nishimura said that his work was recently shown in San Diego in Balboa Park at the Japanese Friendship Garden, where one person purchased all the paintings. We have ten to offer.

And with that we hope that the autumn brings much beauty and joy to your homes, we thank you so very much for all your support and interest in our gallery, and hope to see you here in Kyoto or online at www.japanesepottery.com Also, many updates about the gallery and ceramic news are updated on our Facebook page.

Okini from Kyoto,

Robert Yellin (Robert@e-yakimono.net)
Chihiro Yadokoro
Robert Yellin Yakimono Gallery
Ginkakuji-mae-cho 39
Kyoto-shi, Kyoto-fu
JAPAN 606-8407
Phone- Int’l: 81-75-708-5581, fax: 81-75-708-5393
Within Japan: 075-708-5581, fax: 075-708-5393
www.japanesepottery.com

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レシピ, 美食, 野菜, 農業, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Gratin, Halloween, Japanese Gastronomy, Kabocha, Pumpkin, 南瓜

Halloween Kabocha Gratin!

September 14, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

Halloween will be soon with us again this year!
Have you ever thought of cooking all these pumpkins?
In Japan Kabocha is the most popular pumpkin as it is very solid, therefore easy to prepare in many ways!
How about a Halloween Kabocha Gratin, then?
A great comfort food for the whole family!

INGREDIENTS: (for 2 people)

Kabocha: 300 g
Onion: 100 g
Bacon: 60 g
Garlic: 1/4 teaspoon, grated
Olive oil: 2 teaspoons
All purpose flour: 2 teaspoons
Pizza cheese: as appropriate
Dried chopped parsley (or fresh, then chopped): as appropriate

For the white sauce (Bechamel)
Milk: 250 ml
Consomme powder: 1 teaspoon
Salt: 2~3 pinches
Nutmeg: a little
White pepper: a little

RECIPE:

Cut the kabocha into 7 mm thick slices (cut them in halves after that if too big). Place on a oven dish. Cover with cellophane paper and cook in microwave oven for 3~4 minutes at 600 Watts
Slice the onion thin.
Cut the bacon into thin 1 cm wide strips.

In a large skillet pour olive oil and fry bacon first.
Add sliced onoin and grated garlic. Fry until onion has taken on a nice light-brown color.

Lower the fire to minimum.
Add flour and mix well. Add milk and mix. Add salt, consomme powder and white pepper.
Mixing all the time cook until the sauce bubbles up.
Add kabocha and cook for 3 more minutes.
During that time heat oven to 250 degrees Celsius.

Transfer the whole into a gratin dish.
Cover with pizza cheese.
Bke for 10 minutes at 250 degrees Celsius.

When cheese has become a nice color, take the dish out. Sprinkle parsley over the cheese and serve!

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笑い, 観光, Humor, Japan, Shizuoka, Tourism

Weird Japan (21): Super Mario Guitarist!

September 14, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

Just found this in Shizuoka City!

Although the Super mario has almost completely become obsolete in Japan, it sometimes reappears under different guises!

Note the winking eye!

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レシピ, 美食, 里芋, 野菜, 農業, Gastronomes, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Recipes, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine

Vegan Japanese Recipe for the coming Winter: Vegetables and Yuzu Casserole

September 13, 2012 dragonlife 2 Comments

I’m neither a vegetarian nor a vegan although I eat heaps of vegetables but many of my friends are.
It is always a problem for them to vary their food coming winter, unless they want to fill themselves with beans and potatoes all day long!
Here in Shizuoka we are blessed with a mild winter replete with citruses, winter vegetables and the like and it does become a paradise for such priorities.
Here is a very simple and very Japanese dish prepared with vegetables and yuzu/lime that you might often encounter in homes and restaurants.
This is the basic recipe you can expand at will.

Note that for better and more even cooking the use of Le Creuset-type pan/casserole is best!

INGREDIENTS: (For 2 persons)

Small turnips: as appropriate
Lotus root: as appropriate
Taro root/Sato imo: as appropriate
Cauliflower: as appropriate
Yuzu lime skin: 1/2 a fruit
Salt: as appropriate
Olive oil: as appropriate
Water: a appropriate

RECIPE:

Use a thick wrought iron pot (with lid such as a Le Creuset casserole).
Cut vegetables to size of your preference, but try to make them roughly the same size.
Place the vegetables inside the casserole.
Cut the yuzu lime skin in 1 cm long strips and place them evenly on the vegetables.

Pour the water gently on the vegetables. Cover with lid.
Steam for 3 minutes on a medium fire. Lower fir to minimum and keep cooking for 15 minutes.
Switch off fire.
Do not take lid off!
Leave as it is for another 15 minutes.

Open the lid.
Place vegetables on serving dish with natural salt and premium olive oil you will sprinkle or pour over the vegetables before savoring them!

Simple is best, isn’t it? (Well, most of the time!)

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Bryan Baird’s Newsletter (2012/09/12): Seasonal Release: Pacific Porter

September 12, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin

Seasonal Release: Pacific Porter

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

While fall has not fully arrived here yet, it most certainly is “in the air.” We are welcoming its arrival early, today, with the release of a fantastic seasonal brew: Pacific Porter.

New Baird Beer Seasonal Releases:
*Pacific Porter (ABV 7.7%):

This is the Baird Beer Pacific ocean version of a Baltic Porter (a strong dark beer fermented with lager yeast that has enjoyed historical popularity in Baltic sea region countries). The color is deep copper-brown, almost black. The aroma is soft, round and fruity with a hint of chocolate. The body is chewy but not thick. Subtly sweet flavors of caramel and milk chocolate are highlighted magnificently by an underbelly of nut and pit fruit character. The overall impression is one of smoothness and balance.

Pacific Porter is draught-only (no bottles this year). It is available for immediate release in Japan. It begins pouring from our Taproom taps tonight.

Cheers,

Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
HOMEPAGE

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Vegan Japanese Dessert: Kabocha, Sweet Potato and Apple Pound Cake

September 11, 2012 dragonlife 4 Comments

The Japanese seem to have a natural way to come up with vegetarian and vegan dessert recipes as they originally didn’t use dairy products in their traditional confectionery, although it has much changed recently.
But you still can find interesting recipes in their gastronomic lore!

Here is one suggestion for a solid dessert which should please any priorities!

INGREDIENTS (For 2 pound cakes)

Sweet potato: 250 g
Kabocha (or similar pumpkin): 250g
Raisins: 1/2 cup
Fresh apple: 1
Walnuts: 1/4 cup
All purpose flour of your choice: 1 cup
Salt: 1/2 teaspoon
Vegetable oil: 1/2 teaspoon
Apricot paste: 2 tablespoons

RECIPE:

-Oil the inside of the pound cake molds and sprinkle with sieved flour.

-Peel the sweet potatoes and kabocha (although you can leave a bit on the later for better design. Kabocha skin is edible!). Steam till the vegetables are 80% cooked. Cut into 1cm squares.

-Chop the raisins and wet them with a little water finely spryed on them.

-Cut one quarter of the apple small cubes. Grate the remaining apple. Crush the walnuts into small bits.

-In a bowl pour the sieved flour and salt and mix well.

-In a separate bowl drop all the other ingredients and mix roughly to your liking. Mix in the flour gently and evenly. try not to make blobs!

-Pour the ckae into the molds and bruch with apricot paste.

-Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and bake for 30 minutes.

-Let cool and serve at room temperature!

It is only a basic recipe. One can add spices and the like and decorate it!

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Japanese Recipe: Sauteed Vinegared Summer Vegetables (with vegetarian/vegan versions)

September 10, 2012 dragonlife 4 Comments

Summer, and the Fall in the case of Shizuoka. means an enormous supply of fresh vegetables and it would be a shame not to make the most out of it!
The Japanese love to use vinegar, especially rice vinegar and kuro su, black rice vunegar, with many dishes. It basically replaces the role of lemon juice in western cuisines.
Here is a simple recipe that should please all members of the family and also serve as a great snack!
For vegetarians and vegans just ignore the meat!

INGREDIENTS: (For 4 persons)

Meat (pork or beef thinly sliced) 100 g
Cabbage: 4~5 leaves
Carrot: a little
Onion: 1/2
Shishito/thin green peppers: 6
Cucumber: 1 (japanese style. If not use a small one)
Egg plant: 1
Zucchini: One 6-cm long piece
Mini tomatoes: 10
Edamame: a few

Vegetables for flavoring:
Garlic: 1 clove, chopped
Fresh ginger root: One cube (2x2x2 cm), chopped
Leek: 2 tablespoons, chopped
Red chili pepper: 1~2

Others:
Sesame oil: 1 teaspoon
Vegetable oil: as much as needed for frying

Sauce:
Water: 100 ml (1/2 cup)
Soy sauce: 5 tablespoons
Black rice vinegar (“kuro su”): 1 + 1/2 tablespoons
Sugar: 3 tablespoons
Slat: 1 pinch
Cornstrach: 1 tablespoon

RECIPE:

Cut/break cabbage leaves into bite size.
Cut the carrot into strips.
Slice the shishito peppers in halves or quarters lengthwise. Discard the seeds.
Slice the onion into 1 cm thick slices.
Cut the cucumber lengthwise into four strips and slice into bite size.
Cut the eggplant lengthwise and slice into 6 mm thick slices.
Cut the zucchini into 3 mm thick half moon slices.
Cut the red chili pepper in halves. Discrad seeds.
Boil the edamame (unless you can get them in cans) and take beans out.
Slice the meat into bit size.

Bear in mind that vegetables that cook easily should be cut into bits bigger than vegetables that take more time to cook.
Prepare everything beforehand for practicality, easy access and speedy cooking!

Mix the ingredients of the sauce well beforehand.

Pour 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok. drop the finely chopped vegetables for flavoring. When smell comes starting coming out, add meat and fry (skip the meat step if you are vegan/vegetarian and proceed to next step!)

Add and fry zucchini, eggplant and carrot first. If oil becomes insufficient add a little.

Add all the other vegetables and fry.

Add the sauce (stir it again to make sure that the cornstarch has dissolved) and pour over vegetables as oon as they are cooked to your satisfaction. Stir/sautee the lot for 5 seconds. Add sesame oil and stir only once. Pour the whole into serving dish.

Enjoy this Japanese-style Chinese food!

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Weird Japan (20): Upended Cleaners?

September 7, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

This glitzy cleaning (clothes) shop adevrtizes itself as “pros/professionals”…
I wonder why the “A” is upended…
New design or simple ignorance of English as somewhat indicated in the subtitles…

From another angle…
I still don’t catch it!

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観光, Fashion, Fashionistas, Shizuoka, Tourism

Japanese Ladies Fashion in Shizuoka 47: Ethnic for the Fall and Early Winter!

September 7, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

Bright colored patterns are coming back with a vengeance to Shizuoka City!
Especially patterns inspired by ethnic (other Asian countries) design.
They are very popular with not so young ladies and can be worn at any time of the day or night, and even at parties!

I don’t know why, but these patterns and colors remind me of photographs of tribeswomen in Northern Thailand!

As for these they remind me of Southern Pacific islands!

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Weird Japan (19): Kyoto Geisha Helping out Business in Shizuoka City?

September 7, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

Yesterday, as I was strolling downtown Shizuoka City in search of topics I suddenly heard a cacophony I had to investigate!

Now, what could three ladies, one less than plain and dressed as a geisha and beating a set a drums and bells, another one tall, young and beautiful “geisha” handing out leaflets and a third one (also nice-looking) dressed in festival garb and playing the saxophone?

it was tough work to take their pictures as people kept croosing the path in front of the camera!
But you can see that they were wearing placards advertizing a local (actually part of a cheap chain) unagi/eel restaurant!

And the suspicious-looking restaurant owner was not helping either!
I will have to change my strategy next time…

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Japanese Ladies Fashion in Shizuoka 46: Snow White?

September 7, 2012 dragonlife 1 Comment

Mo, although the skin of this young lady was incredibly white, she wasn’t an albino (very rare in Japan!)!
Her hair was not bleached but dyed as it had a nice lustre to it!

She was also incredibly fit, and I had a hard time following her from the other side of the street discreetly until I could take a pic of her even from the back!
Were I younger she might have been my type! LOL

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Weird Japan (18): Tsunami Capsule Shelter Pucapuca in Shizuoka!

September 6, 2012 dragonlife 4 Comments

It is the Japanese new invention!

Called Tsunami Capsule, Tsunami Shelter, Pucapuca, Runfun, etc, it is supposed to protect you from tsunami as it is devised to float atop any moving water without capsizing!

The cost: a whooping 1,000,000 yen!

And it is made by Ton Craft company in Makinohara City, Shizuoka prefecture!

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French BBQ: Japanese Hamburger Lunch at Brochette Restaurant in Shizuoka City!

September 3, 2012 dragonlife 6 Comments

Service: Very friendly and great explanations
Equipment and facilities: Great overall cleanliness. Superb Washroom
Prices: Reasonable
Strong points: Great use of local meats and Vegetables. Very healthy BBQ and brochettes. Excellent reasonable wine list.

Brochette means “Kushiyaki/串焼き” in Japanese. One could say they mainly serve BBQ-style meat and vegetables on skewers for dinner. But it is not limited to that. They actually serve very reasonable full lunches!

Located along a very busy street in Shizuoka City, it is actually owned by a Driving School Company! Talk about diversifying!

Especially at lunch have a good look at the menu board outside!
But it is always a good idea to reserve as the place gets full within 30 minutes!

Once inside you will be handed very practical menus with photographs and clear price indications!

They also a special bargain lunch for every day of the week!

Brochette is very much a bistro-style establishment with many tables, one private room and 2 seats at a counter.
And it is entirely non-smoking at lunch time!

Chef Yoshinori Yanagisawa/柳沢義憲 ably helped by Sommelier Tomohiro Sugiyama/杉山友啓 prepares food with carefully selected vegetables and meat mainly from Shizuoka Prefecture!

A single look at the refrigerated display will convince you!

I love Japanese-style open hamburgers! They call them “Hambaagu” here!
So I opted for the 100% beef home-made hambaagu steak lunch set at a very reasonable price!

Onion consomme soup and fresh vegetable salad.

French bread and olive oil.
You can ask for plain rice instead.

The open hamburger with a demi-glace onion sauce and three kinds of vegetables served sizzling hot on its thick iron plate!

Not only the Japanese, but any Westerner will love mixing the mashed potato with the delicious sauce!
And it is so reasonable!

Look forward to the dinner report!

FRENCH BBQ/BROCHETTE
Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, Ryogae-Cho, 2-7-12, Takinami Bldg. 1F (along the Egawa Street)
Tel.: 054-252-1700
Opening hours: 11:30~14:30, 18:00~23:00
Reservations highly recommended
Parties welcome (reservation requested from 4 people)
Cards OK (for dinner only)

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Shizuoka Sake Tasting: Sugii Brewery-Kin No Suke Junmai Natsu Shibori Nakatori Genshu Kimoto Shikomi

September 1, 2012 dragonlife Leave a comment

Sugii Brewery in Fujieda City makes nectars not only famous all over Japan but also comes with very detailed titles for them!
Alright, let’s go through some explanations:
Kin no Suke/きんの介 is the name of that particular series of sake.
Junmai/純米 means no pure sake alcohol was blended in.
Natsu Shibori/夏搾り means it was pressed in the summer

Nakatori/中取り means only the sake in the middle of the pressing was used.
Genshu/原酒 means that there was no pure water added to lower the alcohol level.

Kimoto Shikomi/生もと仕込み basically means that the whole process was done the traditional natural way.

Rice: Blended rice
Rice milled down to 70%
Dryness: + 6
Acidity: 1.7
Yeast: Association No 7
Alcohol: 18~19 degrees
Bottled in July 2012

Clarity: Very clear
Color: Golden hue
Aroma: Strong attack backed with pleasant alcohol. Fruity: Banana, vanilla.
Body: Fluid
Taste: Very dry soft attack in spite of strong and pleasant alcohol.
Disappears quickly on an even drier note.
Complex: Almonds, nuts, greens.
Varies little and stays dry with food. Dark chocolate appears later.
Very reminiscent of sake I used to drink a very long time ago.
Turns sweetish with vinegared foods. Dark chocolate and coffee beans appear with salty foods.

Overall: Another sake obviously conceived to enjoy food!
Although varies little with food, tends to show some very interesting facets depending on the dish.
Definitely takes on a sweeter note for a while just away from food.
Both straightforward and complex, a sake to enjoy with izakaya gastronomy!

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