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美食, 農業, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, sake, Sake Brewery, Shizuoka

Shizuoka Sake Tasting: Kokko Brewery-Kokko Ginjyou

October 14, 2011 dragonlife Leave a comment

Kokko Brewery in Fukuroi City holds a special place in the history of the sake of Shizuoka Prefecture as it was the first brewery to use the Shizuoka sake yeast which revolutionized the whole industry in Shizuoka and helped our Prefecture out of the doldrums (dregs) up to the very top in Japan!

Usually the brewery does not write information apart of that required by law.
Alcohol: 16~17 degrees (genshu/no water added)
Bottled in August 2011

Clarity: Very clear
Color: Transparent
Aroma: Fruity, dry, discreet. Bananas.
Body: Fluid
Taste: Very dry attack backed up by strong and pleasant alcohol.
Complex. Fruity: Bananas, coffee beans, dry almonds.
Disappears fairly quickly with dry apricots and coffee beans, warming up the palate.
Turns sweeter with food although makes a quick comeback to dry as soon as away from food again with more coffee beans and a note of dark chocolate.

Overall: Very dry, even by Shizuoka standards.
A ginjyou that marries beautifully with any food.
Very sophisticated although its sharp character will please people looking for a sake off the beaten tracks, that is, in Shizuoka Prefecture!
In spite of its ginjyou elevated status I would drink it with food, especially salads!

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With a Glass,
Clumsyfingers by Xethia
Adventures in Bento Making, American Bento, Beanbento, Bento No1, 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, My Bento Box, 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!
-Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery

Beef, 牛肉, 美食, 野菜, 観光, 魚, 農業, Fish, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Potatoes, Recipes, sake, Sake Brewery, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tomato, Tourism, vegetables

BBQ With Shizuoka Local Products!

October 9, 2011 dragonlife 2 Comments

In Japan and Shizuoka BBQ’s are taken very seriously!
Today, Sunday October 9th, I took part in the 2nd Shizuoka Products BBQ organized by Nagashima Wine Shop in Shizuoka City!
The event catered for no less than 50 people and certainly required some organization like the Japanese are so good at!

The event took place on the bbq space of Yamako/山幸 soba shop up in the Mariko mountains in Shizuoka City!

The BBQ was scheduled for 11:00 a.m. but I came early to give a hand and to be able to report on the whole day!
It certainly was hot for an October Sunday!

Plenty of hands needed, but organizing committee included some hefty guys!

We still took time to share a joke or two!

Let me introduce all the good people who made it possible!
Takahiro Nagashima/長島孝博/ owner of Nagashima Wine shop in Shizuoka City, the main organizer.

Kazutaka Takashima/高嶋一孝, owner and master-brewer of Takashima Brewery in Numazu City.

Yuusuke Tozaki/戸崎雄介, owner-chef of Hana Oto Chinese Izakaya in Shizuoka City.

Takao Shimura/志村剛生, owner-chef of Narusei Tempura Restaurant in Shizuoka City.

Shigeru Sano/佐野茂治, owner-chef of Kamoshibito Restaurant in Shizuoka City.

Ken-ya Yoshimura, owner-chef of Uzu Izakaya, the leader of the group!

I took a break to take a stroll in the natural surroundings. Beautiful but unfortunately inedible karasu uri/烏瓜!

Things getting ready!

Preparing the charcoal BBQ!

Washing the vegetables!
All the vegetables of the day, except for the mushrooms and the jumbo peanuts were organic and grown by Bio Farm Matsuki in Fujinomiya City!

Little beauties for the salads!

Organic tomatoes!

Butternut squash!

Oura burdock roots!

Yuzu Koshio and Basil Paste created by Ken-ya Yoshimura at Uzu!

Sauces/dressings for the BBQ!

All the sakes of the day were nectars called Hakuin Masamune brewed by Takashima Brewery!

Kazutaka Takashima makes it known all through his sake labels that the Suruga Bay has the largest number of edible seaweed varieties in Japan!

The water of the day all came from Takashima Brewery’s own well!

All the guests were provided a sake cup with a removable cap to make sure not a single drop would be spilled!

Rainbow trout from Kunugi Fish Farm in Fujinomiya City!

Preparing the rainbow trout sashimi plate!

Beautiful, isn’t it?

Boiled jumbo peanuts grown in Shizuoka City! Great snack!

Pick your tomato!

Gomadare/sesame dressing by Sanoman Company in Fujinomiya City!

Boiled mangenton pork belly slices, cucumber and boiled bean sprouts salad!

The star of the day: dry ageing beef (Holstein) by Sanoman Co.!

The star of the day on the charcoal grill!

Decorating the bbq’d beef tray with mushrooms grown by Mr. hasegawa in Fuji City! To be savored raw!

Cutting the beef sashimi style!

Placing the beef on the tray…

Almost ready… I wasn’t left any time for a last picture!

Mangenton pork sausages!

Red Moon potatoes tempura!

Oura burdock root tempura!

Preparing the butternut squash tempura!

Absolutely delicious!

Organic sweet potatoes!

Anchovy sauce potatoes!

The guest product of the day: mozuku seaweed brought all the way from Miyako Island in Okinawa!

The other star of the day! Toshiyaki Horie/堀江利彰, owner of Horie Chicken Farm in Shuzenji, Izu Peninsula, who came all the way tpo demonstrate the cutting of his Amagi Shamo Chickens!

An attentive audience…

Amagi Shamo is arguably the best and rarest chicken in Japan!

Charcoal-grilled Amagi Shamo Chicken!

Yummy!

Some very happy and contented ladies!

See you again next year same time!

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Mochi: Vegan home-made recipe (expanded)

October 6, 2011 dragonlife Leave a comment

WAGASHI-SAKURA-MOCHI
Wagashi/Sakura Mochi

Mochi is a traditional Japanese dessert with has the merit to not use wheat flour or any dairy products. It is fit for everyone, vene vegans!

Here is a simple way to make mochi.
Bear in mind that mochi can be eaten fresh as it is especially so with wagashi cakes and that it can be mixed with other ingredients for colouring. It can be also dried and grilled and also included in soups and other recipes such as mochi pizza!

INGREDIENTS:
Glutinous rice: 3 go (Japanese measure): 540 cc (2.8 cups)
Kinako (to taste)

Notes on kinako and glutinous rice:

MOCHI-KINAKO

Kinako (黄粉 or きなこ), also known as soybean flour, is a product commonly used in Japanese cuisine. In order to create the soybean flour, soybeans are toasted and ground into powder. Its flavor is commonly compared to that of peanut butter.

Kinako, being composed of soybeans, is a healthy topping and flavoring which contains B vitamins and protein. It can also be used as a drink;. For example, warabi mochi is a famous kinako-covered sweet

MOCHI-TRADITIONAL

Glutinous rice (Oryza sativa var. glutinosa or Oryza glutinosa; also called sticky rice, sweet rice, waxy rice, botan rice, biroin chal, mochi rice, and pearl rice) is a type of short-grained Asian rice that is especially sticky when cooked. It is called glutinous (Latin glūtinōsus) in the sense of being glue-like or sticky and not in the sense of containing gluten; on the other hand, it is called sticky but should not be confused with the other varieties of Asian rice that become sticky to one degree or another when cooked.

RECIPE:

MOCHI-1
Wash the rice and let it soak in water overnight.

MOCHI-2
Pour water in steamer. Bring to boil. Set a clean cloth inside. Drain rice. Pour rice inside cloth. Dig a “well” in the middle for better cooking.

MOCHI-3
Steam over a medium fire for 20~25 minutes.

MOCHI-4
Pour hot water inside pestle bowl and leave the wooden sticks inside water for long enough to have all of them well impregnated with water. Throw water away just before next step. This will insure a better mochi!

MOCHI-5
Check rice for an even cooking. No water should be left or the mochi will be runny. If you make a small quantity, softer rice than usual is better as it will tend to dry faster than a large quantity.

MOCHI-6
Now this is the hard part!
You will need three adults to press hard on the rice with the wooden sticks at the same time to crush the rice completely. It might take as long as 10 minutes.

MOCHI-7
Now that the rice has been softened, One can continue on his own or work in shifts. Pound the rice in the middle 10 times. Turn over the rice from outside to inside and continue always around the clock.
Important: always pound in the middle, never on the sides or you will break the bowl!

MOCHI-8
That is how it should look. Make balls by twisting rice out.

MOCHI-9
Roll mochi in kinako mixed with sugar to taste. They are ready to be eaten!
They can also be eaten with soy sauce and grated wasabi!

MOCHI-10
This is how they are served in Japan for children (and adults!)

MOCHI-11
If you want to preserve them for a while before eating, roll them in rice powder. Rice powder will come in useful if you want to fashion the mochi into thin sheets or else.

MOCHI-12
That is how they look grilled!

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Vegan Japanese Dashi/Soup Stock: The Basic Recipe (expanded)

October 6, 2011 dragonlife 4 Comments

So many times have I heard my vegan and vegetarian friends complain about the fact that most dashi/soup stock is not done according to their priorities in Japan, making it impossible for them to enjoy food in this country.
Fortunately, this is a big misconception. Vegan dashi exists and is very easy to make or request.
Now, to make sure that the same friends can savour Japanese food, either at home or with friends, here is the basic and simple recipe!
Please save or copy this recipe for future reference (I have more vegan soup recipes in store for you if you want them!)

Vegan Japanese Dashi/Soup Stock

INGREDIENTS: (multiply according to demands. This is the minimum quantity!)

Konbu as sold in Japan

Konbu out of its packaging

-Konbu/dried thick dark seaweed: ５ｃｍ×５ｃｍ piece (dried)
-Water: ４００cc/ml (2 cups)
-Japanese sake: 1 tablespoon (don’t worry, the alcohol will disappear upon heating/cooking!)
-Mirin/sweet sake (same comments as above!): 2 tablespoons
-Soy sauce: 2 and a half tablespoons

RECIPE:

Pour the water into a large pan. Drop the seaweed into the water.
Switch on the fire.
The moment bubbles appear on the surface of the konbu, the water will start sucking its essence out the seaweed.
At that time add soy sauce, sake and mirin.

Taste from time to time to decide when taste suits you best.
Switch off fire then and take konbu out.
Let cool completely, pour it inside a bottle. Seal the bottle properly and store inside refrigerator.
Use it as soon as possible.

The seaweed doesn’t have to be thrown away. It is edible as it is once cooked!
The Missus chops it and add it steamed rice or in finely chopped vegetable salads!

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Local Food at Cenova Department Store in Shizuoka City!

October 4, 2011 dragonlife 4 Comments

After 3 years in the making Cenova Department Store has been finished and went through a pre-opening gala today.
Formerly known as Shin Shizuoka Center, the crumbling store has been completely rebuilt into a brand new venture reminiscing better store in bigger cities.
I was curious about what local food they would offer and decided to investigate today since I had obtained an invitation, a rigmarole necessary for the day!

At least the entrance was grand enough and all the ceilings very high. No complain there!

I immediately went down to the basement solely dedicated to food and drinks. It certainly was as big as the other department stores in town and was divided into Shizutetsu Store, the building owning company’s own store and tenants.
I checked the tenants first!

Shizuoka Green Tea! Shizuoka Prefecture produces 45~50% of the total Japanese crops!

Cana, a great chiffon cake specialist from Yaizu City!

Korokuya Co. Is also a tenant at Shizuoka JR Station Parche Department Store.

Shizuoka-grown shiitake mushrooms!

Fresh wasabi roots from Izu Peninsuloa!

Shizuoka-grown “Akagara” satoimo/taro!

Shizuoka-bred Suku Suku Chicken!

Fish and seafood from Shizuoka Prefecture. The same company are also tenants in Parche!

Isaki/Chicken Grunt sashimi from Suruga Bay!

That was about as far as the tenants were concerned. Actually it was more than I expected.
I then moved to the Shizutetsu Store space.

Crown Melons from Fukuroi City!

All these vegetables come from Shizuoka Prefecture producers on contact with Shizutetsu Store!

The farm’s name and owner picture are all featured at this special stand. How about that for traceability!

Shizuoka Prefecture is also celebrated for its succulent mandarine oranges!

Not many people know that grapes were first grown in Shizuoka Prefecture in Japan!

The mushrooms grown by Mr. Hasegawa in Fuji City are famous beyond our Prefecture!

Shizuoka-grown Celebes Satoimo/taro!

Fish and seafood from 5 different fishing harbors in Shizuoka Prefecture!

Beautiful fish in the company of a whole wasabi, toot, stems and leaves. You won’t see that outside our Prefecture!

Shirasu/sardine whiting from Mochimune and Sakura ebi/cherry shrimps from Yui!

Katusobushi/Dry bonito shavings from Yaizu City!

Fujiyama Beef!

Shizuoka Aka Buta/Red Pork!

Nakata San Chi No Aijyou Buta/Nakata’s Love Pork!

Bioran Eggs by Mr. Shimizu in Shizuoka City are famous in Tokyo!

Now that’s nice surprise! Bayern Meister Beer Microbrewery Beer from Fujinomiya City!

Another boon! Tenjingura Microbrewery Beer from Hamamatsu City!

Plenty of sake from Shizuoka Prefecture!

A sake brand devised for the opening of Cenova by Hana no Mai Brewery in Hamamatsu City!

And more mandarine oranges!

All in all, I must admit I found more than I expected!
Next time I will investigate in more detail!

To be continued…
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Shizuoka Sake Tasting: Shidaizumi Brewery-Hiyaoroshi Futsushu Funeshibori

October 3, 2011 dragonlife Leave a comment

Shidaizumi Brewery in Fujieda City is not only celebrated for its great nectars but also for its research in all types of sake!
They explained me that they do have a local clientele who exclusively drink their sake as futsushu/”normal sake” (as opposed to premium sake)!

They also came up with this bright yellow label both in Japanese and English to appeal to local foreigners!

This sake is a Hiyaoroshi/ひやおろし, meaning it has been pasteurized only once!
“Funeshibori/ふねしぼり” means that is has been pressed in a large rectangular vessel filled with bags of sake taken out of the fermenting vats.
It is also a genshu/原酒 meaning that no pure water was added!

Now, this sake being futsushu/normal sake it is pretty well opened to experiment as you will see below:

Rice: Hyakumangoku 20% + normal rice (futsumai!) 80%
Hyakumangoku Rice milled down to 65% (absolutely extravagant!)
Yeast: Shizuoka Yeast N02
Dryness: + 6.0
Acidity: 1.3
Alcohol: 17~18 degrees (genshu)
Bottled in September 2011

Clarity: Very clear
Color: Light golden hue
Aroma: Strong, dry and fruity. Vanilla, almonds, apricots, alcohol
Body: Fluid
Taste: Fruity with pleasant big alcohol attack
Disappears fairly quickly with warmth spreading all over the palate.
Complex. Dry but very fruity: Apricots, macadamia nuts, almonds.
Very solid throughout. Varies little with food, except for an accentuated dryness with oranges.

Overall: If futsushu, so-called normal sake, were all like this, there would little incentive to taste or buy premium sake! But this is Shizuoka Prefecture where all sake are extravagant as a matter of course! A sake you can savor with any food or on its own although it was obviously designed to accompany simple everyday meals!

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Wagashi/Japanese Cakes at Mochi No Ie in Shizuoka City

October 1, 2011 dragonlife 6 Comments

If you happen to visit the Toro Ruins or the magnificent Serizawa Keisuke Art Gallery in Shizuoka City take the time to visit Mochi No Ie just inside the Toro Ruins Park!

You are in for a time slip!

The whole 180-year old farm house was brought piece by piece from Okkaizu/奥会津 City in Fukushima Prefecture some time ago!

It harbors a traditional Japanese restaurant serving local o-mochi/rice cakes and soba/buckwheat noodles at hours coinciding with the opening hours of the Serizawa Keisuke Art Gallery.

The watermill wheel was also brought all the way!

This is Japan!
Can you see the goldfish?

Beautiful noren representing a rabbit pounding rice cakes on the moon!
They have another shop inside Shizuoka City JR Station with the same noren!

Of course inside is all wood!

Traditional Japanese fireplace!
The whole house is a microcosm of country life in 19th Century Japan!

Green tea is served in cups with the design of the place!

The small shop inside the house where you can buy o-mochi and soba to take back home!

One can either sit at tables or on tatami straw mats.

They also serve soba (for another report) but they are famous for teir mochi/soft rice cake of various kinds.
The above is Karamimochi/からみもち, an appetizer version served with grated daikon and freshly grated wasabi!

You break the whole thing with your chopsticks and mix it before savoring it. Great with beer!
Moreover, it is vegan as they use only rice flour to make them!

A combination of two true Shizuoka wagashi/Japanese rice cakes: Abekawa mochi/安倍川もち made of rice flour covered with sweatmeats/anko/餡子, and Kinako mochi/きなこもち rice flour cakes served with dry soy beans flour.
Again these cakes are vegan!

For a closer view! A great healthy dessert!

The owners always kindly invite newcomers to visit the upper floor!

Up the wooden stairs…

A cute noren/curtain!

Upstairs is a real museum but you can eat there upon reservation and make it a wholy non-smoking private room!

Beautiful overview of the entrance garden!

Farm crop baskets!

Original drawings by Serizawa Keisuke!

I’d love to possess this fan painted by the same artist!

Many things to discover in dark corners…

I’m planning to visit their shop at Shizuoka Station soon, but I must come back here again soon to enjoy their soba!

To be followed…

MOCHI NO IE
Shizuoka Shi, Suruga Ku, Toro, 5-15-13 (Just inside the Toro Ruins Park)
Tel.: 054-263-1663
Opening hours: 10:30~17:00
Closed on Mondays

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Gastronomy and Art at Serizawa Art Gallery of Shizuoka City!

September 30, 2011 dragonlife Leave a comment

Serizawa Keisuke/芹沢桂介 was born in Shizuoka City in 1895. In 1956 he was certified as a Living National Treasure (Official title for an intangible Cultural Property Holder) on KATAEZOME dying works.
The City of Shizuoka completed the Keisuke Serizawa Art Gallery of Shizuoka City in 1981 3 years before the artist left this world.

Serizawa Keisuke was only a genius artist but an unbelievable collector of folk art. The Museum can show only one tenth of its whole collection at a time. I visited it yesterday again and found some interesting relations between gastronomy and art among his creations and collection!

The Japanese have always loved their crabs!

For a closer view!

Now, what is printed on this Edo Period noren (Shop entrance curtain)?

Isei ebi/伊勢海老/spiny lobster! Which just that the Japanese had appreciated it a long time before some other parts of the world!

Food and Spices in an Okinawan market of old!

It looks like a kirie/きりえ/japanese cut paper Art!

A stylized view of a dining room!

Again from Okinawa!

What were these Edo Period boxes used for!

The staff explained me these boxes were used to carry along the whole sake drinking set!

Enormous sake tokkuri/酒徳利/sake flasks!

What were all this lacquer ware from the Tohoku Region dating back to the Edo Period for?

This utensil was used to pour sake to very thirsty guests!

Hip flask to carry along water or sake!

Box to preserve ground chili pepper! The Japanese had been using growing the fiery condiment for quite some time!

Looking forward to the next exhibition!

Serizawa Art Gallery of Shizuoka City
Shizuoka Shi, Suruga Ku, Toro, 5-10-15
Tel.: 054-282-5522
Opening hours: 9:00~16:00
Closed on Mondays (except National Holidays)
HOMEPAGE

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Japanese Gastronomy: Katsuo Tataki at Waga!

September 29, 2011 dragonlife 2 Comments

Service: Very friendly and easy-going! Slow food!
Facilities: Very clean overall. Large and clean washroom.
Prices: Reasonable
Strong points: Great list of sake and shochu. Typical izakaya gastronomy with a personal touch!

Shizuoka Prefecture, thanks to its long shores along the Suruga Bay, the richest Bay in Japan, and around the Izu Peninsula is replete with fish and seafood all year round. Comparatively little fish is imported from other shores and people here keep to seasonal fish.
Katsuo/鰹/Bonito, also called skipjack tuna, is a very popular fish in Japan and probably the only sustainable tuna species these days. It is also extensively eaten in the Maldives, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, France and Spain.
At the beginning of the Fall large schools swim across the Suruga Bay and the quality of the fish in Shizuoka supermarkets, sushi restaurants and Izakaya is simply extraordinary!

Naturally, it is delicious consumed raw as sashimi or cooked as “nimono”, “teriyaki” or in curries, but my preferred cuisine is tataki!
Although the method is simple enough, timing is crucial!

Freshness is also crucial.
Instead of preparing it beforehand, the chef at Waga, upon receiving the order, will cut out a large chunk from a fresh skipjack filet and grill it directly over the flame just long enough to sear the fish a few mm deep. He will then plunge it into icy water to stop the cooking and wipe it dry. Simple? Yes, but try it, and you will find out a lot of little details have to be taken into account!
The chef will then cut the katsuo in large slices and serve them artfully arranged on a plate with a light cold sauce/dressing.

For a perfectly balanced and beautiful dish he will prop the fish atop plenty of lettuce and decorate it with finely cut white leek and a quartered large plum tomato, all grown in Shizuoka Prefecture!
Of course, the dressing is a secret but it is based on soy sauce, ponzu and lime juice with soft spices!

WAGA
Shizuoka City, Aoi Ku, takajyo, 2-1-20, Kuroyanagi Bldg. 1F
Tel.: 054-271-7121
Business hours: 17:30~23:30, 17:30~26:00 (on Fridays, Saturdays and National Holidays)
Closed on Mondays
HOMEPAGE (Japanese)

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Today’s Bento/Lunch Box (11/50): Tuna Meat Balls Bento!

September 28, 2011 dragonlife 4 Comments

I found myself in a hell of a hurry this morning and did not have the time to look at the Missus preparing my bento!
She was kind enough to bring it to my office before she went to work herself!

She was also kind enough to send me the pictures for my report!
Very colorful, isn’t it?

She tries to use only local ingredients whenever possible!
The rice is “Koshihikari” grown in Suntoh Gun, Shizuoka Prefecture!
After steaming it, she decorated it with fresh okra and home-made umeboshi! Italian bento?

She kept things colorful as usual but she did not include dessert…
She will probably reply that she has to keep in mind my expanding waist…

The vegetables consisted of boiled broccoli and carrot seasoned with gomadare/sesame dressing.
She added her specialty: onsen tamago/soft-boiled egg marinated in soy sauce and sprinkled with black sesame seeds.

The meat balls were made of fresh tuna surimi (tuna flesh grated from insde the skin, probably an albacore tuna) and minced shiso/perilla leaves. She pan-fried them in sauce. Beautiful and lighter than one might expect!
She included more vegetables with lettuce and home-pickled burdock root with chili pepper!

Very satisfying, tasty and colorful!

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Today’s Bento/Lunch Box (11/49): Gomoku Takigohan Bento!

September 27, 2011 dragonlife 2 Comments

The recent typhoon has created havoc in the local supermarkets with less vegetables available and at steep prices! This might continue for some time unfortunately!
“Gomoku Takigohan/五目炊きご飯” means a steamed rice (takigohan) cooked together with 5 ingredients (gomoku)!

So the Missus steamed the rice with two kinds of mushrooms, shiitake and enokitake, carrot and chicken and their juices as well as a little soy sauce and whatsnot. That accounts for 4 ingredients!

As a fifth ingredients she decorated the rice with boliled black beans!

As the rice box was quite copious she kept the side dish to the strict minimum!

The missus’ specialty: Tamagoyaki with parsley and cheese accompanied by some lettuce!

For the fibers and vitamin C: mini-tomatoes, lettuce, violet cabbage and marinated cucumber with fresh ginger and golden sesame seeds!

A very healthy and tasty bento considering the weather and the availability!

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Today’s Bento/Lunch Box (11/48): “What a pickle!” Bento!

September 21, 2011 dragonlife 6 Comments

No, for all the frightening Missus I was not in a pickle! LOL
It is just that we had been offered a batch of Kyoto pickles and the MOTH (Mistress Of The House) decided to combine them with her own home-made pickles!

They certainly made for great colors!
The Missus prepared the rice as sushi rice and mixed it with chopped shiso leaves, golden sesame seeds and her own home-pickled Japanese pepper/sansho seeds.

The white and dark daikon pickles are Kyoto pickles.
The pickled ginger sticks are the Missus’.

The pickled cucumber, myoga ginger and eggplant/aubergine are all from Kyoto.
They make for beautiful design and are very beneficial to health!

The side dish is more Shizuoka-like although some of it comes from Hokkaido!

The half-boiled egg was produced by Mr. Shimizu in Shizuoka-City. The celery leaves and tomato are also from Shizuoka prefecture, but the smoked salmon is from Hokkaido while the capers and avocado came from very distant shores!

The dessert was all from Shhizuoka Prefecture: Japanese “Nashi” pear and plum!

Very healthy bento typical of early Autumn/Fall when the typhoons are crashing around our necks!
Naturally very colorful and yummy!

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Today’s Lunch Box/Bento (’11/47): Talk of the Day Bento!

September 14, 2011 dragonlife 4 Comments

Why “Talk of the Day Bento”?
I actually did not eat it in my own office but at the office of a company I do work with!
And I was certainly asked many questions by the (Japanese) ladies present!

When I opened the box, the first comment was “I want some of this lotus root!”.
Quite understandable as it looked appetizing…

After having steamed plain rice the Missus mixed it with “chirimenjako”, deep-fried sardine whiting and home-pickled Japanese pepper/sansho/参照. This sansho actually adds a great zip to the plain rice.

As for the vegetables the Missus proceeded in two steps:
She pan-fried the sliced lotus root with plenty of chopped red chili pepper and other ingredients she agreed to reveal to the ladies at the office but not on this blog!
The other vegetables, eggplants/aubergines, red and green peppers were also pan-fried in olive oil and other “secret” spices separately as the lotus root took a lot longer!

The side dish included the only meat (there was some fish, too) in this bento and the Missus had not forgotten my dessert!

Simple, tasty and cute pan-fried bacon rolls containing okra or black pepper cheese with some celery leaves and French pickles.

Lightly boiled goya/bitter melon mayonnaise salad and freshly sliced fig!

Great balance again and yummy!

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Today’s Lunch Box/Bento (’11/46): Deep-fried Tuna & Avocado Bento!

September 13, 2011 dragonlife 2 Comments

Bentoes can become a great way to acoommodate some “errors”!
The Missus having cut an avocado which was not ripe enough and couldn’t be appreciated raw simply deep-fried them (my suggestion!)!

But when it came to preparing the rice she didn’t bother much about my suggestions, then!

She steamed the rice with finely chopped carrots and once cooked mixed the lot with freshly steamed edamame.
An Irish rice?

But for the side dish we did share suggestions!

She deep-fried the avocado as it was, cut into small bites.
As for the tuna she deep-fried cubes of it dipped into cornstarch. She later seasoned them in tonmato sauce.
She laid the lot on a bed of celery leaves.

She added her specialty, soft-boiled egg marinated in soy sauce and seasoned with black sesame seeds. She added freshly cut plum tomatoes for the vitamins C and completed the lot with a Japanese marinated salad of cucumber and fresh ginger.

Perfect for the ongoing heat, healthy and yummy!

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Today’s Lunch Box/Bento (’11/46): Deep-fried Prawn and Pork Rolls Bento!

September 8, 2011 dragonlife 4 Comments

The weather is still very hot although the humidity has somewhat abated. It is when people tend to drink more than they eat, forgetting that the human body needs as many calories in hot summers as in cold winters. Since bentoes are served cold or lukewarm at best they are perfect for the summer, although you do have to be careful about preserving the quality and safety of the food. The latter conditions add another reason for bentoes to be made at home unless you want to feed yourself with preservatives!

The Missus had some large prawns handy in the fridge. She rolled them in thin pork belly strips and deep-fried them with coarse panko/breadcrumbs. Once cooked, she let them rest on a grill to cool down and give out any extra fat.

She lined the bento box with plenty of rice topped with shredded vegetables. The latter will soak in any extra juice and sauce and add taste to the whole.
She then placed the prawns on top and seasoned them with sweet sesame and miso barbecue sauce. She added a small cornichon for the last touch.

Plenty of vegetables must balance the meat and the rice (the latter providing only carbohydrates and fibers).
The Missus served them both cooked and raw.

As for the cooked vegetables she stir-fried aubergines/eggplants, green and red peppers, all cut roughly to the same size for even cooking, in a piquant sauce. She put the finishing touch by sprinkling black sesame seeds on top.