Tag Archives: Japanese

Bento, 美食, 農業, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, 弁当

Today’s Bento/Lunch Box (11/53): Pre-Halloween Bento?

October 11, 2011 dragonlife 2 Comments

Now, why did I call today’s bento “Pre-Halloween Bento”?
Simply because the Missus used a local pumpkin called Red Kuri Squash or Uchiki kuri in Japanese! Other names include Japanese Squash, Orange Hokkaido Squash, Baby Red Hubbard Squash, Potimarron in French and Onion Squash in the United Kingdom.

Mind you, I could have called it a “Rustic bento” with all the mushrooms included in the sushi rice!

True to say, “rustic” might overdo it as the mushrooms involved, eringe, shimeji and enokitake, are all cultivated, not picked in the wild!
The Missus prepared a sushi rice and then mixed it with chopped parsley and the mmushrooms she had marinated in the fridge for the whole night.

Once again plenty of colors to remind me we are finally come into the Fall/Autumn.
This the longest season in Shizuoka, the most temperate region in Japan!

Smoked salmon and avocado salad decorated with mini tomatoes!

Baby corn with frilled lettuce.
And a salad of boiled Uchichi kiri pumpkin sprinkled with black sesame seeds for dessert!

A truly well-balanced and colorful bento! And yummy!

VRECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

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

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!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

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

Bento, 美食, 農業, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy

Today’s Bento/Lunch Box (11/52): Chicken Roll bento!

October 7, 2011 dragonlife Leave a comment

Today’s bento drew inspiration both from the land and the sea!

But before I start explaining the preparation of the bento, let me show you the new “furoshiki/風呂敷/Traditional Japanese cloth wrapping used to carry gifts, boxes, bento and so on” that I have acquired at the Serizawa Keisuke Art Gallery in Shizuoka City!

I bought it small enough to wrap around my bento box.
But I might need a larger one for the round boxes!

Very cute with its food motifs!

For the rice box, The Missus drew inspiration from the sea by steaming the rice with canned scallops she shredded beforehand.
Once cooked, she mixed the whole with sweet seaweed/konbu preserves and her own pickled Japanese peeper/sanshyou/山椒 seeds for plenty of zip!

Except for the grapes, the ingredients in the side dish are all local!

She stir-fried the eggplants/aubergines, green shishito peppers and red pimentos from her family’s garden in miso paste, soy sauce, mirin, spices and black sesame seeds, and placed them alongside celery leaves.

Before preparing the rolls she boiled carrot and burdock root/gobou/牛蒡 sticks.
She used Shizuoka-bred chicken sasami/filets for the rolls after having flattened them.
She then rolled them around the carrot and burdock roots and slowly stir-fried the rolls in sauce.
She let them cool before cutting and arranging them inside the box.

Imported Chilean grapes for dessert!

This bento was certainly great fun and really tasty!

VRECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

美食, 農業, Gastronomy, Japanese Gastronomy, Rice

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!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

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美食, 野菜, 農業, Gastronomy, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Vegan

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!

RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

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Bento, 美食, 農業, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products

Today’s Bento/Lunch Box (11/51): Beef Chirashi Sushi Bento!

October 5, 2011 dragonlife 6 Comments

“Chirashi Sushi” means “Decoration Sushi”. Contrary to what you might think it does not have to include fish or seafood.
The Missus can make a beautiful one with beef!

It certainly looked colorful and appetizing!
I couldn’t wait to break it in! LOL

The Missus first concocted the Chirashi Sushi rice as a normal sushi rice before mixing it with small pieces of beef and vegetables as well as chopped shiso and others.
She then covered it first one half with shredded beef stir-fried with sauce of her own (blending) making including soy sauce and black sesame seeds.
She covered the other half with soboro tamago/Japanese-style scrambled (sweet) eggs.
She drew a boundary with a mixture of shredded carrot and shishito/thin peppercorns seasoned with wasabi vinaigrette!

The side dish for all its colors required the Missus’ hand for all the ingredients!

The aubergines/eggplants and goya/bitter melon, both from her mother’s garden, were prepared as o-hitashi, that is, first steamed/cooked and then lightly marinated.

The renkon/lotus roots, also coming from her mother’s garden were prepared in two manners. They were both sliced and boiled first. Half were pickled in umboshi and umezu/sweet vinegar into a pink color, the other half was marinated in soft wasabi paste of her own making!

As for dessert, the Missus cooked apples in wine and grenadine!

Beautiful colors reminiscent of the Fall season! Beautiful in many senses!

VRECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES

Chicken, 玉子, 美食, Eggs, 酒, 野菜, 茶, 魚, 魚海の幸, 農業, Fish, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Mushrooms, Pork, sake, sashimi, seafood, Shizuoka, Shizuoka agricultural products, Shizuoka Cuisine, Shizuoka Fruit, Supermarkets, Tourism, vegetables, wasabi, 山葵

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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美食, 酒, 観光, 農業, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, sake, Sake Brewery, Shizuoka, Tourism

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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Uncategorized

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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観光, Gastronomy, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Tourism

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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美食, 駅弁, 魚海の幸, 農業, Fish, Gastronomy, Izakaya, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Shizuoka Cuisine, Tourism

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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Bento, 美食, Eggs, 農業, Gastronomy, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, 弁当

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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美食, Ekiben, 観光, 農業, Gastronomy, Japanese Gastronomy, Shizuoka, Tourism

Shizuoka Ekiben/Railway Station Bento:　Aki Chisen

September 26, 2011 dragonlife Leave a comment

Aki Chisen/秋千扇 measn the “Thousand Fans of Autumn”.
This is the third ekiben of a year-long limited series I already have introduced in Spring and Summer. I can’t wait for the Winter edition!

The ekiben as it was sold to me this morning at Shizuoka City Railway Station!

As usual Tokaiken has clearly written the contents on their wrap!

Some collectors will want this box!

As usual a film of rigid transparent paper protects the contents!

Now, what do we have?

Rice steamed with the juices of shiitake, shiitake mushroom, chestnuts and carrots. The Japanese love chestnuts with rice!

Chinese-style sweet and sour cashew nuts, chicken and red and green pepper. A small bottle of soy sauce and a small cup of wasabizuke/wasabi leaves and stems pickled in sake white lees.

Cucumber, fresh ginger and wakame seaweed marinade. Deep-fried sakura shrimps.

Taro/sato imo boiled and cut in the shape of a mushroom, tofu flower, steamed shiitake mushroom, Carrot, konnyaku jelly and gobo/burdock root.

Salmon deep-fried in cornstarch and lettuce.
Dessert consisted of a goma dango/sesame ball containing sweatmeat and mochi rice and rolled into sesame seeds before being deep-fried and a slice of kiwi fruit!

Nice way to learn about Autumn food!

Bento, 美食, Gastronomy, Japan, Japanese Gastronomy, 弁当

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!