Itadakimasu

Tsurunoyu Onsen

2011-11-21T16:15:00.000-05:00

When one envisions the quintessential winter scene in the snow-covered mountains of Japan, it might also likely involve soaking in an onsen (hot spring) watching the snow falling quietly around you. We had dreamed of enjoying this very experience and so we sought the picture-perfect onsen for our trip to Akita in late January/early February.

While researching the subject using an onsen guide (convenient!), Hiroko was taken with the milky white water of the well-known Tsurunoyu Onsen. The resort's ryokan (inn) had several rooms with a cooking hearth where your meal is cooked over glowing coals. Tsurunoyu is one of the country's most famous onsen and therefore a very difficult reservation to secure. Hiroko actually called the onsen to make our reservation in the Spring of 2010! Since we were going all the way to Akita, we wanted to stay in one of the more rustic rooms to enjoy the whole cooking-in-your-room experience. Fortunately for us, Hiroko was able to reserve one of these rooms.

When we arrived at the ryokan, it was so dark that we couldn't really see much of our surroundings. All we knew was that it was very cold and that we were in a place where there was more snow than we'd ever seen.

The ryokan was old and rustic and known to be originally opened to the public during the Genroku period (1688-1704). The roof of the main building is still made from straw and is replaced every 6 years!

The main attraction of the resort is milky water onsen. After dinner in the room by the sunken hearth, we headed to a konyoku (coed) outdoor bath. After you take off your clothes, you can wash and clean yourself in an adjacent indoor bath, then go outside to walk the path to the main bath. When we were in onsen, it was snowing and cold. The water was rather lukewarm, and we were getting too cold to be in the water. We were joined by a number of other bathers but it was dark and with the rising steam we couldn't see much of them. The water was very milky and soft, and it was a perfect setting to relax.

Next morning before the breakfast, we decided to soak more in onsen. This time there was no one else there...so quiet...with crisp air, and no snow, it was a relaxing morning bath.

We explored the grounds of the ryokan after the breakfast since we hadn't been able to see much of anything the previous evening when we arrived. The snow created an "authentic snow country vista" that was both beautiful and serene.

Visiting Akita Breweries

2011-11-17T17:31:00.000-05:00

Throughout our time in Akita we were told by locals that there had been more snow this winter than any since 1973! All of prefectures on the Sea of Japan side of Tohoku were being bombarded with continuous heavy snow. The winter had been so severe that during our time there, even the usually steady JR trains had stopped running due to the wind and snow. The best and most reliable means of transportation was by bus or automobile.

We were lucky to have brewers generously offer to drive us to their breweries. It was an Akita brewery relay of sorts. Saiya Shuzo's Saito-san picked us at our hotel in Akita city. He drove us from there along a coastal road from which we were able to view the beautiful and dramatic Sea of Japan in its turbulent winter fury, to Yuri Honjo, where we visited his brewery.

He then dropped us off at Asamai Shuzo, makers of Ama No To brand sake. There, after showing us his brewery, the famous toji treated us to his signature sake kasu dishes, and then we were off to Hinomaru Shuzo to see their kura and visit with the president, Sato-san. All of this while the snow kept falling the entire day with no sign of letting up.

We left the following day via local train to Akita Konno, one of few koji makers in Japan. From there we were picked up by Ito-san from Akita Seishu Brewery. We visited his brewery, and his parents historic home most of which was buried under the immense blanket of snow. Ito-san then drove us the two hours from his brewery to our final destinationTsurunoyu Onsen.

It was snowing heavily and getting dark, but like so many of the brewers who had driven us from kura to kura, Ito-san forged on effortlessly, zigzagging up the mountains, through blinding snow, on deep snow-covered roads with only a car-length of visibility in his headlights. But, finally we made it to Tsurunoyu Onsen, the finish line of our Akita relay!

JR is Not Running?!

2011-09-30T15:22:00.000-04:00

After some spirited drinking the night before with Aisawa-san, president of Take No Tsuyu Brewery in Tsuruoka (Yamagata prefecture), we set out the next morning for Akita. We were scheduled to visit Kodama Brewery outside of Akita city in the afternoon. At least that was our plan. Although everything was covered with snow, it was not snowing in the morning when we left our hotel and despite dragging a bit from our hangover, we arrived at Tsuruoka station before 9am.

"Due to snow, the train service from Tsuruoka to Akita is suspended."

"Wait? What do you mean? We need to get to Akita city now!" Hiroko begged. A station master said, "I am sorry, but the train service is suspended." Hiroko asked what she should do, and the station master told us not to go to Akita.

But, we needed to get to Akita. We had an appointment with Kodama-san, and we were determined to keep it. Trying not to be panicked, rude New Yorkers, we just sat and listened to what other people would do.

Then, as if our prayers had been heard, the JR announced that they would have a shuttle bus going from Tsuruoka to Sakata city, the next town. Without knowing what would happen when we got to Sakata, we boarded the bus around 9:30am.

Going slowly and stopping at every local station, we arrived Sakata station around 11:30am. Our hopes were again dashed when we learned that there was no train service from there to Akita. By that time, we gave up on visiting Kodama Brewery.

"How do I get to Akita city?," Hiroko asked. A young station man said, "you can't go to Akita." Hiroko asked again, "I know the train is not running. My question is HOW do I get to Akita." He said, "you can't go. Don't go to Akita."

That was not the answer that we were looking for. Why was it that, for them, a "how" question became "yes or no" question? We didn't want to go back to Tsuruoka again if possible, and we didn't just want to wait at the station for a shuttle bus that might or might not run. Since circumstances had landed us in Sakata city where we had not planned to be, it was a perfect opportunity to explore a new city.

Hiroko said to the station attendant, "Can you keep our luggage?" Ours are too big to fit in a coin locker." , "What are you going to do? Where are you going?" he replied. Hiroko answered that we were hungry and would love to tour the city since we had nothing else to do. With a puzzled look the attendant asked, "Are you coming back?" We couldn't figure out why he thought that we might we abandon our luggage.

We stopped at the station's Tourist Information window to ask for a map of the city and recommendation of a place to go for ramen. Sakata is famous for its ramen, especially wonton ramen. He told us where to find the best place to try, so off we went.

It was a very chilly, but beautiful day, and we still couldn't quite believe that JR trains were somehow suspended. With 3-foot deep snow covering the sidewalks, we wound our way through Sakata, carefully navigated our way across a bridge, and found the ramen shop Mangetsu. Mangetsu is known for specializing in wonton ramen, and its popularity was apparent when we got there. Cars parked outside, people were going in and out, we arrived just in time to snap up the last table.

We ordered wonton ramen and spicy ramen. Since we were tired and hungry from our extended trip, we started slurping our noodles as soon as the steaming bowls were put in front of us. With the wonderfully delicate wonton skin and the ramen noodles done to the perfect degree of chewiness, the famous Sakata dish exceeded all expectations. Who could complain about inconvenience with a delicious, supremely satisfying bowl of ramen in front of you?

After our lunch, we visited the historic Sankyo Storehouses where rice was stored. It was a picturesque scene, with the blue sky, white snow, and dark buildings contrasting and emphasizing each others' colors.

When we went back to Sakata station before 3pm, the station man came running towards us. "There will be a shuttle bus scheduled to depart for Akita city at 3:30pm!" While we waited to board the bus, Hiroko updated Kodama-san, and we decided to meet him at the restaurant where he had made a reservation for dinner instead of at the brewery.

We boarded the bus and enjoyed the dramatic scenery driving along the Sea of Japan coastline. It was white everywhere, but it was not snowing. We were wondering why the JR had suspended service when we saw so many cars on the road. (Later we learned that since a train accident seven years ago that they would stop service for strong winds.)

Finally, at 6pm we arrived at Akita station! Our journey which had begun before 9am when we left the Tsuruoka hotel became a 9-hour adventure in getting to Akita city. When we finally saw Kodama-san, we were just happy to be in Akita with him enjoying his great sake together.

Where is Aisawa san from Take no Tsuyu Brewery?

2011-09-29T15:45:00.001-04:00

We left Sendai city early in the morning to take a bus to across a mountain range to visit Take no Tsuyu Brewery in Tsuruoka city, Yamagata. Sendai didn't have any accumulation of snow, but the scene began to change as we climbed higher in elevation. As the snow fell harder and harder, the scenery became whiter and whiter, and the limited visibility made us more than a little nervous about being in a bus on a winding mountain road in a blinding snow storm. We saw a snow plow ahead of us trying to clear the highway. Despite the threatening conditions, our driver maintained a deliberate, steady pace, without skidding which bolstered our confidence and made us realize that he'd done this many times before.

Aisawa-san from Take no Tsuyu Brewery had told us in advance where to get off the bus. When our stop was announced, we looked out the window expecting to see the bus stop, but the only structure that we could see was what appeared to be only a small hut that certainly didn't look like a bus stop to us. Despite our doubts, we got off anyway. Was this really a bus stop? Were we supposed to meet Aisawa-san here? How could he come to pick us up in all this snow? We no saw no sign of other cars or for that matter, anyone at all.

Finally after 20 minutes or so, Aisawa san showed up in his 4-wheel drive SUV. We couldn't believe how much snow there was and that he was driving as if it was no big deal.

Barely visible in the tundra-like setting, Take no Tsuyu Brewery sat in a grove of trees situated in the middle of a field. The brewery is a relatively old building, and when we arrived, the kurabito were taking a break after steaming the rice for a tank of Junmai Ginjo. As we were helping with the next steps of the brewing for the day, we were interviewed by three newspaper reporters from a variety of local media. Aisawa-san showed us the proper method for stirring the mix of water, yeast, koji, and rice using a wooden paddle while newspaper men took pictures of us performing various tasks at the brewery.

After lunch, we visited Kamenoi Brewery known for its Kudoki Jozu brand of sake which is also in Tsuruoka. Imai-san, son of the president (and former NYC student/resident) greeted us and showed us around the brewery. Kamenoi Brewery has a newly renovated kura with new thermal tanks and all the latest equipment and technology. Imai-san offered us a variety of freshly brewed sake to taste including some of the still fermenting moromi directly from the tank. It had a very distinctive banana aroma and creamy alcohol taste.

We will always fondly remember our time in snowy Tsuruoka, where we had a wonderful snow country experience!

Wasabi Farm in Nagano

2011-05-26T19:19:00.000-04:00

When Hiroko visited Miyasaka Brewery in Nagano, she made a side trip to Daio Wasabi Farm in Azumino, Nagano. Wasabi is grown in the very clean water of mountain streams and many of us in the US have not seen real wasabi. Most of us only know the wasabi that comes in a green tube that you buy from a grocery store (which is in fact, not real wasabi).

Daio Wasabi Farm is a family-oriented working farm, where you can watch the processing of wasabi, walk around to enjoy the beautiful scenic views, and eat soba or wasabi themed food including ice cream. Opened in 1917, the farm is one of the largest wasabi farms in Japan. The farm is fed by constantly running underground water throughout that is kept at a temperature of 50 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit (12-14 degrees Celsius). The wasabi is planted in sand and pebble trenches which act like soil. After allowing the plant two years of initial growth, it is ready for harvesting (removing one of the roots of the plant) year around.

It's hard to resist trying their wasabi ice cream. As Hiroko watched, a man at the service stand grated fresh wasabi and sprinkled it on wasabi soft serve ice cream. The ice cream has a hint of wasabi flavor, and with the fresh wasabi it was a perfect combination of spicy and sweet!

Koshu Wine

2011-05-24T17:58:00.000-04:00

Recent media exposure for Japanese wine made Hiroko curious about the taste of koshu wine. The only Japanese wine she had tasted previously was sweet and mediocre at best. Since she wanted to try koshu wine which had recently received some good reviews in the U.S., she took advantage of the opportunity when she was in Japan in late January to visit the Grace Wine winery which is located on the way to the sake brewery, Miyasaka Shuzo in Suwa, Nagano.

Misawa Winery is located in a hilltop of Akeno with a beautiful view of the nearby mountain range visible on a clear winter afternoon. Winemaker Masaichi Sodeyama met us at their shop/tasting room and gave us a tour of winery.

The vineyard was started in 2002 by Shigekazu Misawa, the managing director of Grace Wine, to expand and create a world class quality wine. He has planted French varietals including Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, along with the indigenous Koshu.

The Koshu grape, which came from Central Asia via China, was first cultivated in Japan about 1,300 years ago. We tasted Koshu wine from Triibira vineyard. It had a light and crisp taste with a lingering tartness and a very refreshing quality that Hiroko was surprised to discover. Mr. Sodeyama told us that their wine pairs well with lighter style Japanese food, and it seemed that sashimi and vegetable dishes might be a good match. We tasted a variety of white and red wine, and were surprised to find that they were very good. However, when considering the price, it may be a little too expensive for the simple wine that it is.

Sendai City

2011-04-12T18:44:00.003-04:00

We loved Sendai! It is the capital of Miyagi prefecture and the largest capital in Tohoku region. Sendai is very cosmopolitan, but not huge like Tokyo. It is famous for gyutan (beef tongue) and lots of drinking establishments.

We were shocked and saddened to hear that the city and surrounding area had suffered major damage from the earthquake on March 11, 2011. What happened to Isshin? What happened to Genji? What happened to Aguraya? We had wonderful sake and meals at these izakaya in Sendai, and we hope that the people we met there are safe.

Isshin Kagenkan, specialized in Miyagi sake and atsukan (warm) sake. A do-it-yourself sake warming device is found on each table.

Sendai's famous gyutan (grilled beef tongue) at Isshin Kagenkan. Isshin was not a gyutan speciality restaurant, but their thick-sliced gyutan was delicious.

Cute and knowledgeable wait staff Tomomi-san at Isshin Kagenkan.

Genji, which opened in 1950 is a Showa era retro izakaya at Bunka-Yokocho. After World War II, the area revived and thrived.

Okami-san at Genji. Tsukedashi (small dish) comes with one drink order. There is a maximum of 4 drinks (sometime more). We first ordered a beer which came with a small plate of Tororo (mountain yam) with raw egg. This first round cost 1000 yen. The raw egg was so fresh and sweet that it tasted like vanilla custard when mixed with the tororo. Second round was Aramasa Namazake paired with fresh homemade tofu. Cost was1000 yen. The tofu was so fresh and had great soy bean flavors. The beauty of this place was the drinks always come with food.

Owner chef Sato-san at Ajitsukushi Aguraya, in Kokubucho-Dori. The izakaya was recommended by Mr. Aoki of Kanetake Aoki sake shop which is just outside of Sendai city. The Kokubucho-Dori is a famous entertainment street where you can find izakaya and bars to night clubs.

Food, sake, and shochu menu are posted at the ceiling of Aguraya. They offer a wide range of sake and shochu.

Drinking Onumaya Tokubetsu Junmai, local Miyagi sake. Once pasteurized sake.

The entrance to Aguraya on the 3rd Floor of Abe Fort Building.

Isshin Kagenkan
3-3-1 Kokubu-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-0803
022-261-9889

Genji
2-4-8 Ichiban-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai,
022-222-8485

Ajizukushi Aguraya
Abe Fort Building 3F
2-1-10 Kokubu-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-0803
022-262-8684

Visiting Urakasumi Brewery

2011-04-11T17:09:00.026-04:00

When we heard about the earthquake on 3/11/11, our thoughts immediately went to Urakasumi Brewery. We had just visited them in late January at their location in the Miyagi prefecture town of Shiogama near the coast of Sendai Bay. Shiogama is famous for having the largest number of sushi shops per square kilometer in Japan (not Tokyo!), and as the largest tuna port in the world is quite proud of its fresh fish.

We were relieved to learn after the earthquake and tsunami that that the president Mr.Saura, his family, and his kurabito (brewery workers)were all safe. It was initially difficult for anyone to get in touch with them since there was no electricity and phone service was severely limited. More recently we've heard that they have fully resumed operation and shipping sake...hooray!

On the day that we visited Matsushima, we stopped by the sushi restaurant Shirahata which was right around the corner from Urakasumi Brewery to have a quick sushi lunch. It was early one afternoon on a weekday, and we were seated in front of sushi chef Shirahata. The master was cheerful and talkative, and we were so impressed by both his entertaining and sushi making skills. He loved to talk and laugh while his hand swiftly moved to slice and make sushi. Before you know it, he finished making a couple of omakase plates. We were short on time due to our appointment at the brewery, so we quickly enjoyed the sushi and his homemade pickles. Lunch was perfect! We sincerely hope that Mr. Shirahata and his staff are all safe.

We then headed up the street to the Urakasumi Brewery. The brewery was founded in 1724, and is still responsible for making sake for the Shiragama Shrine. It occupies a beautiful, well-preserved building where we met with brewmaster Mr. Suzuki.. (Unfortunately Mr. Saura was not at the brewery at that time. He came to visit our store in NYC a few weeks later.) He showed us around the brewery and explained their unique approach to sake making.

They still use old fashioned bamboo baskets to wash rice and strain the water. Workers were counting "one, two, three," swinging the basket right and left like pendulum to strain off the water from rice.

After the tour, we sampled several of their unpasteurized sake and then thanked Mr. Suzuki as we said farewell before returning to Sendai City.

View of Matsushima

2011-03-21T15:12:00.000-04:00

When we were awakened on the morning of March 11, 2011, we couldn't believe the news that we were hearing on the radio. There was a deadly earthquake on off the coast of Miyagi, and a tsunami devastated the coastal area. Hiroko is not from Tohoku, but we have a strong feeling for Sendai since we had just visited the area in late January. We were in Sendai! We spent half a day in Matsushima! We were there in Shiogama! We were there! We were horrified to see the disastrous images of Tohoku region that we had recently come to love so much on TV.

Since we learned on "60 Minutes" on Sunday, March 20 that this picturesque resort town was wiped out by the tsuami, we wanted to post some beautiful images of Matsushima that we remember. Matsushima was known for being one of "the three greatest views in Japan."

After traveling the short distance from Sendai City that morning, we were greeted by the scent of the ocean as left the train at JR Matsushima Kaigan station. Matsushima was a small tourist town with lots of omiyage shops, oyster restaurants, and cruise marina. We walked around Oshima, visited Godaido, worship hall, and walked crossed a long red bridge to Fuku Urajima covered by 300 kinds of trees and wild grasses. It was a quiet beautiful day with blue sky with little wind. It was chilly, but the sunshine was warm.

Here are images of beautiful Matsushima. We pray that most of people there are safe.

Homemade Pizza

2010-11-17T16:11:00.001-05:00

After discovering pizza dough at Whole Foods this year, we had made number of pizzas last summer using heirloom tomatoes.

Our pizza is nothing fancy. We usually make two kinds of pizza. One is basic fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, tomato, and sliced red onion. The other one is a "creative" pizza, for which the toppings are fashioned from whatever ingredients are available in the refrigerator.

Pizza are quick and fun to make, and goes great with white wine, red wine, and sake. Here are some of our efforts...

Meat sauce and tomato and mozzarella varieties

Mushroom, broccoli, and caramelized onion; tomato and mozzarella

Roasted fingering potatoes, portabello mushroom, red onion, and green beans; tomato and mozzarella

Steamed broccoli, mushroom, and caramelized onion; tomato and mozzarella

Sauteed eggplant, broccoli, Chinese cabbage, caramelized red onion; tomato and mozzarella

Beer-Can Chicken

2010-10-22T16:20:00.001-04:00

When we saw the recipe for Grilled Spice-Rubbed Beer-Can Chicken by Melissa Clark (NYT, 7/21/10), we had to try it. We've always been intrigued by the dish after hearing others speak of it and saw this as our omen. It was time for our first effort.

There was just one problem. As Melissa Clark inferred in the story, it might be a little problematic to use our small scale grill as opposed a gas grill, which is easier to control the temperature and heat.

We searched on the internet for others' experience and decided to try the recipe in the oven.

Choosing the beer was an important step as we realized that all of the beer that we drink comes in a bottle. Our search for the canned variety led us to one with the irresistible moniker of Porkslap Pale Ale. While prepping the bird, Hiroko treated herself to half of the beer, leaving the balance, as called for in the recipe, in the can to function as the "seat" on which the chicken "sits" upright. She slathered the chicken with mayo-curry mixture and popped it in the oven at 425 degrees F for 30 minutes. She then reduced the heat to 350 degrees F, and added an assortment of vegetables to the pan to cook for about 45 minutes. As the whole house began to smell like curry, we opened another beer while we waited for the chicken to be done.

When we removed the chicken from the oven, it was a beautiful carmel shade with perfectly crispy skin enveloping the moist, juicy meat inside.

We found the breast to be noticeably moister than with our regular roast chicken cooked in "prone" resting position.

As proprietors of NYC's only sake shop, we had to try pairing the dish with sake. Since the dish is a bit spicy and full flavored, we paired it with Yuho Junmai, a premiuim sake from Ishikawa Prefecture. Yuho has a full-bodied richness with hint of sweetness, that complimented the curry spice. The sake also went well with our side dishes of roasted potatoes and green been salad.

Our first beer-can chicken experience was so delicious, it had us asking ourselves the age-old question, "what took us so long?!!"

SAKAYA in The New York Times

2010-08-04T19:37:00.000-04:00

We are delighted to have been the subject of Eric Asimov’s column, “The Pour” in the Dining section of The New York Times on 7/28/10. Since the article appeared (initially on the Times' website on Tuesday), we've been "feeling the effect" of their bond with readers and couldn't be more excited about it! After 2 1/2 years, it is wonderful to be recognized and for sake to receive such positive treatment by a prestigious, well-respected news organization. Many thanks to Eric Asimov and to our supporters everywhere both new and long-term!

To read the article which also appears on the NY Times website, click here!

Photos were taken by the very talented David Goldman. He spent time with us taking photos of us, the store, and sake.

Okome Milk

2010-06-02T18:41:00.002-04:00

Recently, we had a visit at SAKAYA from Yageta-san from Fukumitsu-ya Brewery and he brought us an interesting Fukumitsu-ya product called Okome Milk that Hiroko wanted to try. It's made from rice, koji (koji mold affected rice), and water. The product does not contain yeast, which is a necessary ingredient for making sake. This Osake Milk has no yeast involved, so it hasn't been fermented and therefore has no alcohol content. The flavor of Okome Milk is similar to amazake, which is traditional sweet low alcoholic drink.

Fukumitsu-ya's Okome Milk has a cute package and there are four flavors including plain, strawberry, banana, and mango. The product does not use any artificial colors or preservatives, is filled with lots of nutrients including vitamins and nine kinds of amino acids.

When Hiroko spotted strawberries at farmer's market, she decided to make Okome Milk Strawberry slush. After chilling it overnight in the freezer, she put the strawberry Okome Milk in the blender to made slushy texture. Decorated with fresh strawberries, it made a delicious summer dessert.

Sake Kasu Cheesecake

2010-05-07T15:23:00.001-04:00

Last year, Kazuhiro Sakurai from Asahi Shuzo in Yamaguchi gave us his Dassai Junmai Ginjo sake kasu. Sake kasu is the sake lees that are left over after the mash has been pressed to extract the sake following fermentation. The kasu is filled with lots of nutritients including carbohydrates, proteins, vitamin B, fiber, and yeast, and has some valuable potential health benefit. Traditionally, sake kasu has been used to make amazake, a sweet sake by mixing it with sugar and water. Another use is to add it to miso soup or in making Japanese pickles. Lately, we have also seen sake kasu used in cosmetics such as facial masks. When we received the sake kasu from Mr. Sakurai, we made sake kasu nabe, mixing sake kasu with the soup in nabe (hot pot). Adding the sake kasu enriches the flavor of the nabe adding another flavor dimension to an ordinary pork or chicken nabe. We froze the left over sake kasu for future use.

Recently, Hiroko had the urge to bake something sweet. Struck by a bolt of inspiration, she suddenly announced, "I am going to make a sake kasu cheesecake."

She pulled the frozen sake kasu from the freezer to thaw the day before she was going to bake. A 300g package contains two sheets of sake kasu. We had one sheet remaining in the package. The first step was to break it into small pieces and mix it with warm milk to make a soft paste (about 1/2 cup).

While baking the crust, she mixed cream cheese, the sake kasu paste, and sugar together, and beat eggs into the mixture one at a time. She then tasted the mixture and added lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla to adjust the flavor. She then poured the mixture into the baked crust, and baked it for about an hour.

The kitchen was filled with the savory aroma of cheese and sake. The next day, she sliced it gently to taste her creation. It was very soft and moist, and it tasted almost like regular cheesecake, but sake flavor lingered long after each bite. Paired with a nigori zake, it made a delicious dessert.

Sake Kasu Cheesecake

Ingredients:
crust:
1/3 cup cookie crumbs
2 tablespoons melted butter

filling:
2 8 ounce packages of softened cream cheese (Hiroko used 1/3 less fat)
1/2 or less cup of softened sake kasu (sake kasu mixed with milk, soy milk, water, or sake)
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla

Direction:
1. Crust. Mix crumbs with butter and press onto the bottom of spring form pan. Bake at 350 degrees about 10 minutes.
2. Filling. Mix cream cheese, sake kasu, and sugar together until smooth. Add eggs one at a time to blend the mixture well. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla to taste. Pour over crust and bake at 375 degrees for about 1 hour.
3. Allow it to cool for about 15 minutes and remove the rim of the pan. Chill in the refrigerator.

Umenishiki Beer

2010-04-26T17:57:00.000-04:00

When Hiroko was in Japan, she didn't have time to visit her parents and buy sanuki udon in Kagawa. Her solution to not being able to get home, was to visit a prefectural store called an "Antenna Shop" in Tokyo. Even though Japan is a small island country, there are many different food cultures with unique products that can only be found in the prefecture of origin. Since each prefecture needs tourists visit their towns to revitalize their local industries, they have developed these "Antenna Shops" in Tokyo to promote their well known products as well as to provide travel information. This way you don't have to go to each of the 46 prefectures to buy their specialty goods.from each prefecture.

There seem to be number of prefecture stores that have popped up around Tokyo in just the past 5 years. Hiroko went to the Antenna Shop for Kagawa and Ehime prefectures (香川・愛媛せとうち旬彩館) in Shinbashi. After some browsing, she picked up couple of packages of sanuki udon and then spied some beer made from Umenishiki Brewery, the sake brewer in Ehime.

Umenishiki sake brewery was established in 1872. Their Junmai, Junmai Ginjo and Junmai Daiginjo are available in NYC through the importer, Japan Prestige Sake Association. Since 1995, they have also been making artisanal beer which have won medals in Japan's International Beer Competition. Among the five types that they make, their Bock, Weizen, and Blanse have won Gold, Silver, and Silver medals respectively.

Hiroko picked up one bottle each of the Pilsner and Aromatic Ale to bring home to Brooklyn. Shaken and tossed by luggage handlers, the preservation and condition of the beer might not have been the best, but nonetheless we decided to open and taste the beers made by the sake brewer.

We usually drink pilsners from Pennsylvania and ales from California where the style is very hoppy and aromatic. Umenishiki Pilsner was golden in color, very light and tasty with a light fruit flavor and peppery finish. Yet, there was something missing in the flavor. It's better than Sapporo or Kirin that we drink at Japanese restaurants, but we tend to prefer a more hoppy flavor.

We opened the Aromatic Ale next. With an alcohol level of 8.5%, it was deep and rich, with a hint of caramel flavor on the back end.

Perhaps had we drunk them in Japan, they would have tasted better. On our next trip, we hope to try their other beers. Still we enjoyed tasting something from Hiroko's family home that is not available in the U.S.

Cold noodle, Morioka Reimen

2010-03-30T15:50:00.001-04:00

Before I was to leave Nanbu Bijin Brewery (南部美人）, Kosuke Kuji, the 5th generation brewer, took me to eat the most famous noodle dish in Iwate prefecture.

Iwate is famous for Wanko Soba, when one finishes a small serving bowl of soba, a staff member will fill the bowl with fresh soba noodles. The staff will keep filling the bowl as long as you eat. It is more game than eating, but this is an unique soba eating experience.

But Kuji-san didn't take me to a Wanko Soba place. He took me to a restaurant specializing in Morioka style cold noodles. Morioka Reimen as it is known, is the answer to all-season lovers of hiyashi chuka, which is the quintessential summer cold noodle dish only available during the summer months.

The restaurant is Pyon-Pyon-Sha （ぴょんぴょん舎）, a Korean fusion or Yakiniku restaurant in a very modern building. Each table has a grilling station similar to that of Korean restaurants in NYC. When Kuji-san was parking the car in the restaurant's lot, I noticed a number license plates of cars parked there from outside of Morioka and Iwate prefecture, a clear indication of drawing power of this famous place.

Morioka Reimen is similar to the North Korean cold noodle dish Naengmyeon, except that the noodles are made from potato starch and flour instead of kuzu or buckwheat flour. The noodles are nestled in a cold beef broth with toppings like slices of beef, hard boiled egg, raw vegetables, and kimchi, and customers can add as much kimchi as they'd like to spice up the Reimen.

The Morioka Reimen style of cold noodle was created by a Korean immigrant named Aoki-san from Hamhung, North Korea. Nostalgic for the spicy cold noodle dish that he grew up eating, he created a cold noodle dish that he originally called Pyongyang Reimen which as it grew more famous became known by its Japanese place of origin as Morioka Reimen. It took long time for locals to embrace it since Japanese people weren't used to eating spicy kimchi. The name "Pyongyang" didn't attract many customers either. However, working hard and not compromising his taste and style, he built up fan base for his noodles. In 1986, at the Japan Noodle Summit, the current owner of Pyon-Pyon-Sha renamed the Pyongyang Reimen as Morioka Reimen, and introduced it as Morioka's specialty noodle. And, as they say, the rest is history.

When a server brought the Morioka Reimen, Kuji-san advised me to sip the cold beef soup. It has a light beige color and has a delightfully sweet, rich flavor that makes you just want to finish the entire bowl as a first course. After sipping the soup, we ate a few strands of noodle. It was a chewy glass glass noodle that was a great compliment to the soup. After a few slurps, we started to add more kimchi turning the soup bright red. It was so addictive, we couldn't stop eating until the red soup disappeared leaving only a white bowl.

Now, many Japanese enjoy eating the dish that was brought by a humble immigrant, who beat the odds of becoming successful in Japan. It was great dish and it was surely a great success story.

Mr. Kuji -- Nanbu Bijin Brewery

2010-03-24T13:33:00.000-04:00

Hiroko had never been north of Tokyo. When she mentioned to Kosuke Kuji　（久慈浩介）, the 5th generation of Nanbu Bijin Brewery (南部美人酒造）in Iwate, Kuji-san invited her to his brewery.

Nanbu Bijin Brewery is located in Ninohe （二戸）, Iwate prefecture in the Tohoku region about 3 hours from Tokyo by rail, and the second to last stop on the Tohoku Shinkansen before Hachinohe, Aomori prefecture. With a population of about 31,400 (in 2006) it is rather small city which still has the remains of the historic Kunohe Castle (九戸城） and the famous Kindaichi Onsen (金田一温泉). Among its restaurants is the legendary soba restaurant Maita Koubou Sobae-An (米田工房そばえ庵）, the hard-to-get-in yoshoku Restaurant Bonheur, （レストラン・ボヌール), and an extremely famous ramen shop, and several late night drinking spots.

Anyone who is familiar with Japanese language may get confused about the name Nanbu Bijin. Translated as Southern Beauty, one may wonder why the "Nanbu" or Southern when the brewer is located in the northern part of Japan?

"Nanbu" comes from the name of the Nanbu samurai clan which originated in Northern Japan, mainly in what was once known as Mutsu province (which now encompasses present-day Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate, and Aomori plus some parts of Akita). Descended from Emperor Seiwa (reign 858-876), Minamoto no Mitsuyuki (1165?-1236?) of Kai province (Yamanashi prefecture), took the name "Nanbu" from the town where he lived changing his name to Nanbu Mitsuyuki. He is said to have moved to Mutsu province around the time of the Oshu War in 1189. Over time, the Nanbu became the dominant samurai clan in the Mutsu area and built their castles as they established themselves in the area which is how the Nanbu name came to be associated with this part of a Iwate.

Nanbu Bijin Brewery is rather small, family-run operation. It has seven kurabito (people involved in the brewing process), all young men in their 20's and 30's. They also employ twenty staff members to run the operation. The brewery produces 2,500 koku of sake. (1 koku = 180 liters or 100 x 1.8 litter isshobin). It is considered a small to mid-sized brewery (those with production of less than 1000 koku are very small.)

Kuji-san is an energetic young man in his 30's whose ebullient personality casts sunshine on the sake world and beyond. He has been to New York City to promote his sake many times, and has enthusiastically encouraged many sake fans to become Nanbu Bijin lovers.

He is also a risk taker and revolutionary in terms of developing new products with a spirit akin to the samurai Nanbu Mitsukuni who made the bold move to very far north from where he was born. Seeing the popularity and trend of umeshu or plum sake/liquor, Kuji-san has created a non-sugar added umeshu.

The journey started when his wife Rika suggested mixing his "All-Koji Sake" with kiwi or strawberry to make a fruit cocktail. This all-koji sake was a early brainchild that he created in 1998, and it is now a staple of the Nanbu Bijin lineup. It is made from just three ingredients: koji (koji-mold affected rice), water, and yeast starter instead of the four ingredients usually used for making sake: rice, water, yeast, and koji. Koji-mold's job is to break down the rice starch into the simple sugar, glucose. Therefore, koji (rice innoculated with koji mold) has a high glucose level. This "All-Koji Sake" has a little sweetness that makes it a good mixer for a fruit cocktail.

After his wife's inspiration, Kuji-san had his "ah ha!" moment. He theorized that the all-koji sake could be infused with ume (Japanese plum) to make an umeshu that is naturally sweet. He tweaked his all-koji sake, and using the koji's natural glucose level, he successfully create the umeshu that needs no additional sweetener.

His search for the perfect ume for his product led him to a local farmer in Iwate prefecture. He also found a young local artist to design the label for the product. He patented the process in 2009, and his umeshu now sells briskly...his February released umeshu is almost sold out.

Look for it in the U.S. by October of this year. Kuji-san's samurai spirit inspired umeshu is sure to cast its spell on umeshu fans here too!

Famous Soba place in Ninohe

2010-03-18T17:36:00.001-04:00

While Hiroko was visiting the Nanbu Bijin Sake Brewery (南部美人） in the town of Ninohe in Iwate prefecture, Ono-san from the brewery took her to an out-of-the-way soba place located in the middle of the town.

After parking the car in what looked like someone's backyard, he said, "this way." Seeing nothing that looked like a restaurant, Hiroko followed him along a muddy path through a field over ground that was soggy and slippery from melting snow. "This is it," he said. At that, she looked up and saw someone's house.

The soba place called Maita Koubou Sobae-An (米田工房　そばえ庵） was run by Kayo Yoneda-san. What is special about this Sobae-an is not its location in the middle of a field, but rather Yoneda-san's belief in eating local. She may not know the current "locavore" trend but she follows the old way of life in Japan. Food self-sufficiency was at about 73% in 1965 and is now hovering at around 40% in the last 10 years. To put in different perspective, the US food self-sufficiency rate is around 130%.

Yoneda-san grinds her own soba (buckwheat) flour. She even makes her own soy sauce for soba dipping sauce. To make her soy sauce, she also grows soybeans and wheat! I told her that she was super-woman, and she was modest telling me that she doesn't know anything else. She promotes local cuisine giving lessons on how to make soba. She is a well-respected, well-known figure in the area.

Her soba is made from 100% soba flour, whereas many soba noodles contain some amount of wheat flour. Since soba flour does not contain gluten, some wheat flour helps to bind the dough together. Nihachi Soba, which is 20% wheat and 80% soba flour, is a highly regarded specialty soba noodle. Many of the dried soba noodles sold at supermarkets contain more than 50% wheat flour. (Look at the ingredients listed on the back of package. If the first ingredient is soba flour, then it contains more than 50% soba flour in the noodle.)

Her soba were sliced very thin and long, had a pale soba color, and looked very delicate. Once it is put into the mouth, it has a resilient and firm al dente texture. It was hard to believe that the soba was made only from soba flour. Once she had started, Hiroko found it hard to stop eating and she soon found herself looking at an empty plate.

After eating the soba, Hiroko was lucky enough to join with locals (old and young) for the soba making class given by Yoneda-san.

She casually placed soba flour and cold water together in a large bowl, then mixed and rubbed the mixture together with her hands. While she was talking, the dough began to form. When it became the texture of an ear lobe, it was time to roll the dough.

She placed a handful size of round dough onto a big square cutting board. Rotating the dough as she rolled it out, before you know it, the round dough had become a square the same size as the cutting board.

She then folded the dough carefully and started to slice it very thin. The entire process took only 10 to 15 minutes! Everyone was mesmerized by the way in which she had so casually yet expertly, created her soba noodles.

It was a priceless experience see Yoneda-san's soba making method and eat the resulting delicious noodles. Also it was nice to see local people of engaging with the local cuisine and learning to carry on their tradition to the next generation.

Maita Koubou Sobae-An 24-2 Jumonji Shimotomai Ninohe-shi, Iwate 028-0611
tel: 0195-23-8411
11am to 5pm
Closed on Friday

米田工房そばえ庵〒028-6100　岩手県二戸市下斗米十文字24-2
電話：0195-23-8411
11時から5時まで
定休日：金曜日

Fuki-no-Tou

2010-03-15T16:48:00.005-04:00

It has been a while since we updated this blog. Now that Hiroko is just back from her trip to Japan, we'll be adding some more new posts soon. Meanwhile, we wanted to share our first taste of the joy of spring. In Japan, when people begin to see sansai (mountain vegetables) such as fuki-no-tou (butterbur sprout), bamboo shoots, fiddlehead ferns, and udo (mountain celery) in markets and/or vegetable shops, they know the spring is near. Sansai are foraged in wooded areas as the snow melts toward the end of winter.

When Hiroko was in Tokyo, she found fuki-no-tou at the vegetable stands. Unable to resist, she brought some home with her. The most familiar way to serve fuki-no-tou is as tempura. The farmer from whom she purchased it recommended this method as the best for serving but, he added that it could also be pan sauteed or blanched and then cooked in soy broth.

When the fuki-no-tou are removed from the package, their fresh, green, earthy aroma reminds one immediately of spring. Once opened, the debate ensued on how to cook them. After some initial reluctance about deep frying and a long discussion over several glasses of sake, we decided to prepare them two ways; Western i.e. sauteed in olive oil and garlic and of course, the "classic" tempura.

Version #1: After first heating the pan and sauteeing the garlic, the fuki-no-tou was added with sprinkle of salt. After just a few minutes, it was ready eat. This vegetable has a pleasantly bitter taste (bitter like broccoli rabe but not the same flavor). Although there is some similarity to each, it's flavor is not like celery, nor shiso, nor green pepper. It has its own distinctive sansai flavor. Since it was so delicious, for a moment, Hiroko thought the she didn't need to go the tempura route. But after some pleading from Rick,she did.

Version #2: Hiroko whipped up some tempura batter in no time, and after dipping the fuki-no-tou, lightly fried it in canola oil. The tempura version was absolutely delicious! The bitter taste of the fuki-no-tou cut the oil from the tempura batter, and it made for a very fresh and savory dish. A sprinkle of some "sakura salt" that we received from someone in Japan added just the right element to make for a perfect tempura. We really enjoyed the fuki-no-tou both ways.

It's a different, less familiar style of vegetable, but we found it to be a delicious taste of early spring. And, since we had the batter, we used it to enjoy a few of our local vegetables tempura-style, joyfully eating them with some fresh soba that Hiroko had also brought back from Yamagata-ken.

Golden Pepper

2009-11-11T10:16:00.004-05:00

Recently, we received an inquiry about Ogon pepper, a golden pepper which we brought back from our first trip to Japan and wrote about a couple of years ago. The reader asked what kind of pepper it was and how to get seeds, so we decided to research the Ogon pepper and share our findings.

The Ogon pepper (ogon togarashi 黄金唐辛子 or ogon bansho 黄金蕃椒) is known to be the spiciest pepper in Japan. Its shape is like that of a bird chili with a yellow color. Some Japanese websites postulate that Kento-shi, the Japanese envoy to the Tang Dynasty, who brought it from China in the year 809. This theory is not widely believed however.

The more widely accepted belief is that the chili pepper originated in Central and South America and that most likely, no chili peppers existed in China or India until some time after Christopher Columbus found the species in 1492 and brought it back to Spain. It was from there, through trade with the East, that it spread throughout India and then Asia.

Japanese historians believe that chili peppers were introduced to Japan by Portuguese merchants. Another story is that a Portuguese missionary introduced the chili pepper to Otomo Yoshishige, a daimyo (feudal lord) in Kyushu in1542.

From that time forward, the Japanese people cultivated the the chili pepper for use as medicine. It is recorded that 100 kinds of peppers were grown in the mid-18th century and that during the Meiji period (1868 -1912), there were 52 types of chili pepper in cultivation. At that time, Japanese chili peppers were of high quality, highly valued, and exported overseas. However, as greater industrialization in Japan began a migration to the cities in the1960's, farming became less attractive, and cheaper peppers from overseas took the place of those that had been grown domestically. Today, most of the chili's in Japan come from China.

So, when did the Ogon pepper come to Japan? We couldn't pinpoint the exact date but there is record of the Ogon pepper in an historical text called "Bansho-fu" (chili pepper category book) written by Hiraga Gennai (1729-1779). In "Bansho-fu," Gennai compiled information on 72 varieties of chili pepper along with beautiful illustrations of each. He referred to the Ogon pepper as "sashiage" in his book.

Hiraga Gennai was a kind of Japanese Renaissance man. He was a pharmacologist, student of western medicine, physician, inventor, and author. Gennai was born into a low-ranking samurai family in Kagawa-ken. His interest in natural science started while working in the medicinal herb garden of his lord. He went to study Rangaku (Dutch medical studies) in Nagasaki, then to Osaka to study herbs and finally to Edo (Tokyo). There he met a group of doctors and scholars studying empirical science. His inventions include the Erekiteru (electrostatic generator), Kandankei (thermometer), and Kakanpu (asbestos cloth). His most important book is "Butsurui Hinshitsu," the book on the classification of various materials published in 1763. As was often the case with enlightened men of genius, his ideas were thought to be eccentric. After being largely unappreciated for his intellect, his life took a fateful turn when one day, he got into argument with one of his pupils and accidentally killed him. Gennai spent the rest of his life in prison and died there.

Back to the original question of where to buy Ogon pepper seeds. From looking at various websites and blogs, it seems that they can be purchased in Japan at any home center or garden store (places that sell seeds and plants). If you'd like to bring the seeds to the U.S. however, it takes a bit more time and planning.

Bringing seeds to the U.S. is not simple. Many countries have strict rules on which plants or plant products can be brought in or out. The reason is that each country wants to protect their own native plants from new disease or the spread of pests. An example of this is the Asian long-horned beetle infestation which was discovered in New York City in 1996. Officials believe that wood packing material from China in 1980's carried the beetles, and that they then spread quickly within the U.S. Although a number of fruits and plants are prohibited from being brought into the U.S., seeds are usually permitted.

To bring the seeds into the U.S., one must visit a Plant Protection Station (PPS), which are located throughout Japan and submit them for inspection after which the PPS will issue an Official Phytosanitary Certificate. So, it is possible for the Ogon pepper to make its way to America.

We can only hope that sooner or later, we may be able to buy Ogon pepper in the U.S!

Sake with Friends

2009-11-03T16:02:00.003-05:00

The evenings throughout the week in Tokyo were reserved for delving into the multitudinous opportunities to indulge in drinking sake and eating some of the best food made to accompany it. Fortunately (and not coincidentally), my Tokyo-based friends share this passion (three of them being bloggers on the subject, and one a world-renowned sake guru) so choosing places to go to partake were not an issue. On separate evenings, Melinda and her husband J.P., Etsuko-san and her husband Ted, Hitomi-chan and sister Hanayo-chan, and John all led me to extraordinarily fine sake and drink. The photos will attest to it!

Etsuko-san and Ted took Hitomi-chan and me to Yoshimoto in Shinjuku where we ordered flight after flight of jizake to drink with Chef Ohara-san's exquisitely prepared sashimi and his own sake-friendly creations. The Kishi sisters and I discovered Ishii, a restaurant specializing in the cuisine of Yamagata prefecture where we ate the tenderest, most flavorful, crispy, and light tonkatsu (pork cutlets) imaginable.

My final day with John Gauntner was a tour of sake "through the drinking glass" (as our friend Melinda has perfectly named her blog about eating and imbibing in Tokyo). After attending a tasting of the sake of about twenty breweries from Shimane prefecture, John and I made a brief stop at the Hasegawa Saketen in Tokyo Station to pick up a bottle of Izumo Fuji Ginjo, an artisanal sake discovered at the tasting, then hopped back on the train and set out for my sake purchasing Mecca, Ajino Machidaya. Two trains and a zig-zagging twenty minute hike later, we reached our destination. It was all that I had hoped it to be and more with all sorts of small production premium sake to bring back to enjoy with our nihonshu-loving friends in NYC. Kimura-san, the owner and shacho, introduced us to two of his recent koshu finds and generously offered a package of wonderful organic mugi (barley) miso.

After an hour of fascinating conversation and drink, he drove us to the railroad station and sent us on our way back to Shibuya for an izakaya dinner by Chef Kawanairi at Nakamura that put the perfect cap on the perfect day.

Sawanoi Brewery

2009-10-31T15:50:00.003-04:00

The following day’s brewery visit took me in a completely different direction, to Ozawa Shuzo in scenic Sawai, nestled among verdant mountains about two hours west of the city, but still in Tokyo prefecture. This time, a pleasant five minute walk through the picturesque village led me to my destination, the kura that brews one of my favorite sake, Sawanoi Kiokejikomi Iroha Kimoto Junmai. My guides Kubo-san and his assistant were gracious and informative, making sure that I saw the cedar tank (kioke) used in making the aforementioned brew, the underground springs that are their two water sources, and a wall of koshu (aged sake) vintages dating back 20 years.

Another highlight of the visit was a perfect lunch at their fabled tofu restaurant perched serenely just above the rapids of the Tama River. As my server presented each in a series of delectable tofu dishes, I sipped from the flight of four Sawanoi sake that I had pre-selected while gazing at the natural beauty of the tableau spread out before my windowside table. Even as rain began to fall, it only enhanced what couldn’t have been a more peaceful and relaxing experience!

The Wonder of Wataribune Rice

2009-10-23T15:46:00.003-04:00

Accompanied by our friend Melinda, I set out early the morning following the SSI awards event for Huchu Homare Shuzo in Ishioka, a small town in Sonoma-like Ibaraki-ken, about an hour and a half north by train from Shinjuku station in Tokyo. On our arrival at Ishioka station, we were greeted warmly by the smiling shacho-san (brewery President) Takaaki Yamauchi. As he drove us to his family-owned brewery, we discussed the local effects of the typhoon which had made landfall in eastern Japan the day before, destroying several older buildings nearby. Fortunately, no harm had come to any of the inhabitants! (Aside from high winds which temporarily shut down rail service, the much-anticipated typhoon had been a non-event in Tokyo).

Following a welcome of tea and sweets in the ancient reception room, Yamauchi-san led us on an intriguing tour of the kura. We then tasted the full line of Wataribune nihonshu as he described the history of the brewery and how he had come to use the unique Wataribune strain of sakamai (sake rice varietal) to make his sake. It seems that a former high-ranking Ministry of Agriculture official who had retired to the locale, about twenty years ago suggested that Huchuhomare consider resurrecting the long-ago used pure strain. Only problem was that all they could find was about 15 grams of seeds in the seed bank. Not a lot to start a rice field with! Nevertheless, they planted it, collected the seeds each year and eventually cultivated a sufficient supply for sake brewing.

The story came to life quickly as our next stop was that very rice field itself which surrounds our lunch destination, the homemade tofu and soba restaurant owned and operated by, you guessed it, the gentleman who brought Wataribune to Yamauchi-san!

Kikizakeshi

2009-10-19T15:48:00.011-04:00

Earlier this month, I traveled to Tokyo to receive The Sake Service Institute’s (SSI) Honorary Master Sake Sommelier Award (Kikizake-shi) on behalf of SAKAYA. Since it was the 10th Anniversary of these awards, there were a number of luminaries from the worlds of sake, journalism, and Japanese hospitality in attendance at the three-hour event which featured a Shinto ceremony, awards presentation, and dinner.

As one of three America-based honorees along with True Sake's Beau Timken and T.I.C. Restaurant Group's Bon Yagi (owner of Sakagura, Decibel, Robataya, and a number of other Japanese restaurants in NYC), I was thrilled that our efforts to promote enthusiasm for sake and its linkage to Japanese culture were recognized, and honored to have been included among such distinguished (and far more accomplished) company.

Accompanied by Hiroko’s dear friend Hitomi, who met me at my hotel dressed in a beautiful pink kimono, I found the event to be a curious mix of glitz and traditional ritual. At one moment we’d be bathed in swirling lights from a mirror ball with blasting disco music, then a few minutes later, silence would be broken by mournful chant from a Shinto priest. It was truly East meets West. We shuttled back and forth between a reception room where we met and conversed with the other honorees, SSI dignitaries, and their friends and family to photo sessions, and the ballroom where the Shinto ceremony and awards dinner took place. During the dinner, we were called to the stage to accept our awards, traditional scrolls bearing our official kikizakeshi plus a medal of honor which would put a military commendation to shame, while those in attendance ate or watched (or both).

What I found interesting was that although it was a sake event, the beverage was but a bit player in the grand scheme of things. It was available in the reception room during our down time between shuttling and a small glass was at each of our seats during the ceremony. I purposely didn’t drink it as I anticipated a “kanpai” at the conclusion of the proceedings which never came. For dinner, there were four sake servings of about 2 oz. but no refills offered. Odd, I thought for an event dedicated to promoting service of the brew!

What there was in abundance were appeals for money. Each of the honorees had been responsible for a “donation” to the Shinto shrine from which the priest had come to perform the ceremony. There were also envelopes and forms given to each person soliciting donations for the SSI foundation. Finally, after the awards were given and as dinner segued into dessert, there was an auction of sake, shochu, and other donated items to raise money for the same(?) foundation. I couldn’t help but get the feeling that fund-raising, may in fact, have been the point of the event.

The balance of the trip was devoted to: visiting sake breweries Huchuhomare Shuzo and Ozawa Shuzo, the makers of Wataribune and Sawanoi respectively, a sake yeast focused tutorial tasting at Japan Prestige Sake's Okanaga Club with sake master Dr. Koichiro Mori, exploring the Tokyo food and drink scene with friends Hitomi and Hanayo Kishi, Melinda Joe, J.P. Mudry, Ted O’Neill, Etsuko Nakamura and a day of tasting sake from Shimane prefecture, sake shopping, and izakaya drinking with friend and mentor John Gauntner.

Recognition from SAVEUR

2009-10-19T15:05:00.012-04:00

We were delighted to receive an email from Saveur magazine, that Itadakimasu been selected for our post about our experience at Araki (a sushi place in Tokyo) as as one of their "Sites We Love."

Many thanks to SAVEUR for the recognition and support! If you haven't had a chance to read the post, please check it out at your convenience.

Summer Surprise: Heirloom Tomatoes and Yamahai

2009-08-19T14:32:00.020-04:00

August is the height of tomato season so we've been indulging ourselves at every opportunity. Due to several factors including a wet June and July, there has been much discussion and angst about a blight affecting much of the tomato crop in the Northeast this year. The result has been a surge in price, particularly with heirloom tomatoes. Current prices at the Union Square Greenmarket range from $6 to $8 per pound. Because we look forward to this late summer treat so much and want to support the farmers in their hour of need, we continue to buy them but are more careful about weighing them before we buy.

However, even the high price has not discouraged us from purchasing our beloved summer favorite heirloom tomatoes. This year, we experimented with pairing our tomatoes with different types of sake. Since tomatoes have an abundance of umami, we thought that there would be a natural affinity for an umami-laden Yamahai junmai sake. For our choice of Yamahai, we decided on Kuro Obi Do Do Yamahai Junmai from Fukumitsuya brewery in Ishikawa prefecture. Usually, we like to warm this sake to further awaken its earthy, rich, creamy character. But this particular food pairing, coupled with the August heat and humidity suggested that giving this brew a slight chill in the fridge was the way to go.

We were delighted but not surprised to discover that the Kuro Obi Do Do and tomatoes were a sensuous, palate-pleasing match. The pairing of the sweetness and slight acidity of tomatoes and the earthy flavor of Yamahai danced a seamless tango in our mouths. The mozzarella we had added to the salad also played perfectly off the lactic elements that are the hallmark of Yamahai sake.

So don't wait for the fall or winter to drink Yamahai (or its cousin Kimoto) sake, its umami makes it a wonderful complement to some of summer's best produce, locally grown tomatoes!

(For a complete selection of Yamahai and Kimoto sake please visit SAKAYA.)

Kelly Choi at SAKAYA

2009-06-12T16:19:00.012-04:00

We were thrilled to receive a phone call from Kelly Choi, the host of WNYC’s "Eat Out New York" telling us that she wanted to come to SAKAYA to do an interview about “how to navigate a sake shop.”

As agreed, she arrived with her camera crew at 11AM on May 20 and two hours later, we had wrapped the session which was to be distilled down to a two-minute segment. It initially aired the following week (and may still be running…we’re not sure). Please click here to check it out for yourself.

Our hope is that we were able to create some new interest in premium sake and that we offered some advice to help make it a bit easier for viewers to explore and indulge themselves in the pleasures of this intriguingly complex beverage.

Wedding Anniversary

2009-06-11T16:46:00.018-04:00

Our biggest question of the month of June is "what do we eat at our wedding anniversary?." Trying to save money due to the bad economy, we decided to stay home and cook for our special night.

We celebrated 4th year anniversary of our wedding on June 10. For this special occasion, Hiroko spent few days preparing the dinner for the night. We started with slices of seared beef tong, followed by two slices of homemade tofu accompanied by nice cold "Victory Prima" beer from Pennsylvania.

Now the dinner starts! Soup de jur was Spanish style Almond soup. Made with almond, cumin, saffron, it has mysterious flavors.

The dinner was followed by beef carapacio. She purchased beef from Japanese butcher on Great Jones Street. They have a machine to slice beef thinly for the sukiyaki beef, so they sliced the less marbled loin butt. She placed the beef on the plate and pour a hot consomme over the meat so that the meat will slowly cook from the liquid. She drizzled the sesame dressing for an additional flavor.

Our main course was two style of marinated tuna. Inspired by Maguro Zuke Don (marinated tuna on the rice) she read in Oishinbo comic book and red wine marinated tuna from a cookbook by Japanese wine sommelier Shinya Tazaki, she prepared the two type of tuna, one is marinated in soy sauce, and the other is marinated in wine and soy sauce mixture. For Japanese version, she made simple sushi rice, and for wine version, she mixed the rice with red wine reduction and red wine vinegar.

Lastly, our dessert was Green Tea Tofu Jelly. Using the soy milk Hiroko made for tofu and green tea powder she bought from Kajitsu, the Japanese vegetarian restaurant on 9th street, she mixed the soy milk, green tea powder, and sugar with kanten (agar agar) and gelatin. The green tea powder is such a good quality that the result of the jelly is very aromatic and intense.

Rick on Japanese TV

2009-06-09T14:51:00.010-04:00

We were finally able to get the video of a Japanese news program on sake produced by TV Tokyo Network. It's about an 8-minute segment in Rick appears as a sake specialist in New York. The response to the show from people who saw it air in Japan was terrific. We received emails from several Japanese brewers asking us to carry their sake at our store and were visited by some others whose sake is not yet available in the U.S.

It is exciting to be recognized as ardent supporters of nihonshu by those whom we revere for creating and producing beautiful beverage!

Day 4 ... The Rice's Tale

2009-03-13T12:37:00.007-04:00

Imagine if you will, a journey through time and space that begins with an intensive abrasion of your skin. While still smarting, you're jet-sprayed, dunked, and held under water until you've shed whatever residue remained from the abrasion. "Whew! Glad that's over with," you think as you lie down and rest for the night.

But early the following morning before you know what's happening, you're in the hottest Turkish bath you've never dreamed of. Ouch! With great relief you're allowed to cool off while being transported somewhere by conveyor belt. Suddenly, without warning, you're sucked into a hose and flying at warp speed until...splash! You've been shot into a tank of yeasty smelling liquid.

Such is the sakamai"s tale.

How do they sleep at night? VERY well thank you!

2009-03-11T12:49:00.002-04:00

How do they do it? There are so many tasks and so few kurabito. Our Mukune International Sake Brewing Program intern team of six has doubled the work force at Daimon Shuzo. The experience of the last day and a half has given me an immense appreciation for the efficiency of the operation of this sakagura. To say that the craft of sake making is arduous and demanding would be an understatement. But the real difference maker is the coordination, timing, and teamwork.

We've washed, soaked, steamed, and cooled rice for a variety of uses (and we'll do more). We've made and moved koji. Made boxes and labeled bottles. Washed and cleaned our equipment and the materials used in the process. We'll do that many times more as well. Along with the physical, we've also be given an inside look at the science and management of the process. It is astounding what the full time kura team accomplishes in creating and packaging a variety of different sake (each with it's own unique "recipe" requiring different logistics and timing). All is seamlessly integrated following a flow of steps that bends and turns according to time, temperature, and taste.

At the figurative end of the day, we've had a literal taste of the satisfaction that a toji feels as he samples the free run sake that is the first to flow out of the Yabuta (the machine that presses the fermented mash and yields the fresh undiluted, unpasteurized sake). At the literal end of the day, we've also experienced the blissful exhaustion that comes from a labor that produces such an exquisite beverage. I know that I've never slept so well.

Mukune Sake Internship, Stairway to Heaven

2009-03-09T16:05:00.006-04:00

Rick is at Daimon Shuzo, Osaka, Japan, participating sake internship program. Here is the report....

Within 10 minutes of our arrival at the Daimon Shuzo kura, we were immersed in the transfer of koji from wooden box-like trays to a burlap lined, wire mesh-based variety. We were smelling, smoothing, and yes, even tasting the almost styrofoam-like grains of rice that were now in a state of saccharine transformation due to the effects of exposure to their koji-kin invaders. With apologies for the lack of specific terminology, it was the experience of immediate entrance into the world and craft of sake brewing that was singularly exhilarating.

Our welcome from Shacho (President) and Toji (Brewmaster) Yasutaka Daimon was at the same time, warm, gracious, and enthusiastic. "Fasten your seat belts!" he exclaimed as he smiled at us from the top of the stairway. And then, there we were, up to our eyes in koji.

The subsequent exploration of our new home ultimately led to a steep, well-worn wooden stairway which led to our sleeping quarters. Looking straight up into the eaves of this ancient structure, I was struck by the feeling (realization?) that I was exactly where I most wanted to be. The stairway symbolized that point of entry from one world to the next.

Our Valentine's Day Heart Beet

2009-02-16T17:04:00.009-05:00

Since we've been married, we've had a tradition of beginning our annual Valentine's Day dinner with a heart-shaped beet rosti (shredded beet pancake) that we christened the "Heart Beet." .

Beets are a great source for folate, manganese, potassium, fiber, and carbohydrates and we enjoy eating them cooked, raw, and roasted. We also enjoy eating beet greens which Hiroko usually sautees with garlic, salt, and pepper.

For Valentine's Day, Hiroko quickly prepared the beet version of rosti with chopped rosemary. She grated a beet and mixed it with chopped fresh rosemary, salt and pepper, and flour which serves as the adhesive that bonds the shredded beet mixture. It is best to grate the beets in the sink as everything in the vicinity tends to end up red.

Once all ingredients have been combined, shape the mixture into whatever form you'd like and place it in a pan of hot "shimmering" olive oil. After a couple of minutes, turn and cook the other side.

Not only is it a romantic dish, it's simple and delicious too!

Duck Dumpling Nabe

2009-01-16T16:11:00.001-05:00

Our friend Harris Salat is working on nabe cookbook with Tadashi Ono of Matsuri. We volunteered to be recipe testers. What could be better work? Test the recipe and then eat what we've made!

We had already tested the recipes for Chicken Nabe and Lamb Nabe. Our assignment this time was to make Duck Dumpling Nabe. The recipe called for duck legs for making duck dumplings. When we went to our local butcher, who informed us that they don't sell that particular part of duck by itself. We had to buy a whole duck. Since we didn't want to buy an entire duck, we decided to make the dumplings using duck breast. We bought a piece of duck breast for the dumplings and a duck breast for slicing to cook in the nabe.

Hiroko put the chopped duck breast and seasonings in the blender to chop the meat. She then added buckwheat flour and eggs to the meat and then pulsed the meat into a gooey mixture.

When slicing meat thinly, we've found that freezing the meat beforehand is a great trick and we use it often. After freezing a duck breast she cut it in half, removed the fat, and left the fat on the other half. She then thinly sliced the both.

Next, she boiled the water, konbu, shoyu, and mirin in the nabe pot, scooped up handfuls of the blended seasoned duck mixture and dropped into the boiling liquid. Once these "duck dumplings" floated to surface, she added tofu, negi, hakusai, shirataki, and enoki mushrooms. It was then time to cover the pot with its lid and wait while everything cooked.

The last step was to add Shungiku on the top and the nabe was done.

Once we were at the table, we cooked the thinly sliced duck in the hot nabe and "chowed down." It was delicious! We tried two dramatically different sake with the dish: Denshu Tokubetsu Junmai and Narutotai Ginjo Nama Genshu. With the vegetables and duck dumplings, the Denshu was great match. With thin sliced duck with fat, Narutotai Ginjo Nama Genshu was the perfect match. While we were fortunate to be able to have both to enjoy with each portion of the meal, it isn't necessary to have two sake with this dish!

For shime (the carb of our choice in the end of nabe), we threw in soba and slurped it after it had cooked in the delicious duck-flavored broth. You couldn't find a better dish to have on a chilly winter evening! We can't wait to see this book on the market so that more people can experience the pleasure of eating nabe in their own homes.

Our Happy New Year Tradition

2009-01-07T17:11:00.021-05:00

When we awoke on New Year's Day, the weather was sunny, clear, and brisk. We decided that it was perfect for our traditional annual walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.

Although we knew it was cold outside, we didn't know HOW cold it was until we saw the thermometer on the Watchtower billboard adjacent to the bridge which informed us that it was 22 F degrees/ -6 C degrees. Crazy to be walking across the BB in those frigid temperatures you say? If so,we were by no means alone in our insanity! In fact, the bridge was crowded mostly it seemed with tourists eager not to miss this quintessential NYC attraction. Our cheeks were frozen and it became difficult to smile but we managed to muster our best grins for a snapshot taken by one of those friendly tourists.

It wasn't our original plan to continue on to Chinatown, but Hiroko insisted on going to our favorite 5 for $1 Fried Dumpling on Mosco Street. When we got there, the place wasn't crowded and the usual Chinese ladies were efficiently cranking out the dumplings. We purchased two steaming portions, found two stools and joyfully savored our first taste of the New Year.

Toshikoshi Soba (Year End Soba)

2009-01-02T17:37:00.012-05:00

Japanese people have custom eating soba (buckwheat noodles) in the end of year. It called Toshikoshi Soba, and eating long noodles will bring a long life. It is a bad luck to not to finish the soba before the New Year. In NY, some Japanese restaurants serve special Toshikoshi Soba and the restaurants are busy accommodating Japanese customers who want to finish eating soba before midnight.

In previous years, we bought dried soba noodle from the Japanese grocery store and cooked it 30 minutes before midnight, slurping the noodles while keeping one eye on the TV as we waited for the ball to drop in Times Square. This year, Hiroko decided to make the soba noodles herself. She studied a soba-making website to learn the ratio of soba flour to water, and how to kneed the dough into the proper consistency for noodles.

Around 11pm, she measured the soba flour and white wheat flour, mixed them together and then sifted the combination. After adding the water to the flour mixture, she quickly formed it into a ball, and began to knead. She wasn't sure how much kneading was needed, but as she looked at the clock, the time was reaching 11:45pm so she started to roll out the dough and cut it into noodle-width slices.

In the end, we found that the noodles were not cut thin enough in that when the noodle was cooked, it looked like a dark brown fettuccine. Nonetheless, we grated some fresh wasabi, and enjoyed theToshikoshi Soba just before the midnight deadline.

Merry and Busy Christmas Day

2008-12-26T18:09:00.011-05:00

As one might expect, we closed SAKAYA and took the day off on Christmas Day. Expecting a leisurely start to the day, we were surprised to receive a 10 AM phone call from Rick's mother and brother saying that they were heading across the Verazzano Narrows Bridge and would be at our home in Brooklyn shortly. The plan had been for them to arrive around noon, but the holiday traffic from Pennsylvania had been so light that they had made record time. We jumped out of bed, showered, and hastily made coffee to kick us into gear.

Rick took them to the East Village to show them our store since they had not seen it before. Meanwhile, Hiroko cleaned the house and prepare for the Christmas meal. We had planned to make a roast pork recipe we found on the Food & Wine website. After inserting slivers of garlic into the meat, Hiroko wrapped the pork loin and sprigs of fresh rosemary and thyme with slices of bacon; a simple and easy recipe.

Hiroko first baked the dessert, an apple pie, followed by some-lighter- than-air gougeres (parmesan and gruyere cheese puffs) for hors d'oeurves. It was then time to put the meat in the oven. Once that had been accomplished, we were able to have a sake toast and relax for a while.

Cooked to perfection, the pork was moist and succulent.

Along with a wild rice and mushroom pilaf and fennel and celery salad, Hiroko also made a quick and easy side dish of sauteed tomatoes with a touch of garlic. We were then ready to sit down to the first course, a celery root soup with a "surprise" of vinegar and maple syrup to be stirred up from its hiding place at the bottom of the cup.

The result of Hiroko's daylong efforts was a delectable, healthy, and comforting feast that made for a tasty conclusion to a memorable and enjoyable Christmas Day.

Roast Bacon Wrapped Pork

One 3-pound boneless pork loin
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
salt and freshly ground pepper
4 ounces thinly sliced bacon or pancetta
6 long rosemary springs
6 long thyme springs

Preheat the oven to 350°. Using a small knife, make 1-inch-deep slits all over the pork. Stuff each slit with a slice of garlic. Season the pork all over with salt and pepper and wrap with the bacon. Top with the herbs, tucking them under the bacon in several spots. Tie the roast at 1-inch intervals with kitchen string.
Transfer the pork to a roasting pan and roast for 1 hour, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the loin registers 130°. Transfer the pork to a cutting board, cover loosely with foil and let rest for 15 minutes. Discard the string and herb sprigs. Carve the loin into thick slices and serve.

Katsuo-bushi

2008-10-05T17:31:00.007-04:00

Katsuo-bushi or dried bonito is an indispensable ingredient in Japanese cooking. Today it is found in bags of pinkish brown flakes Kezuri-bushi (kezuri means to shave or shaven) in Japanese supermarkets. Traditionally, a large chunk of dried katsuo is shaved as needed using a wooden Katsuo-bushi shaver. Katsuo-bushi is used in dashi (the stock that is the basis for so many Japanese dishes) or as a garnish for tofu or ohitashi (boiled spinach). Its flavor is full of umami, the flavor that gives the dish a savory and satisfying taste.

Katsuo-bushi was created as means of preserving fish. The first step in curing the katsuo is to fillet the fish (a large fish yields about 4 fillets). The pieces are then arranged in sieves and lowered into water that is kept at about 90°C. After simmering for 2 hours or so, the fish is removed from the water. Any remaining bones are removed and the pieces are trimmed to form blocks. Next, the blocks are smoked for several hours and then cooled to room temperature. They are then smoked and cooled again for 2 weeks to 3 weeks.

After shaving off the natural tars from the surface and reshaping the blocks of smoked fish, it is time to cure the blocks. The blocks are placed in a room with tightly controlled temperature and humidity until a mold develops on the surface. They are then dried in the sun. The mold breaks down the fat in the fish and builds up the amino acid content which gives the katsuo-bushi its umami flavor. This fermentation will repeated about 4 to 5 times, the entire process taking about 4 to 6 months.

I had never thought of making my own Kezuri-bushi until I encountered a Katsuo-bushi shaver and some locally made Katsuo-bushi at Sunday market in Kochi. Since I don't have access to real katsuo-bushi in NYC, I thought, why not buy one and make authentic Kezuri-bushi?

I looked around the market and saw the traditional wooden shavers. One vendor showed me a more economical and an easy-to-use plastic shaver. The plastic shaver box was a little smaller in size, but it was easy to clean and you can put the shaver box in a refrigerator to keep the freshly shaved Kezuri-bushi. I liked the idea of it being easy to clean, so I decided to go for the plastic one instead of an authentic looking wooden shaver.

I opened the package with the block of Katsuo-bushi. The aroma was very strong and hit the nose immediately. It has the smell of a concentrated version of shaved Katsuo-bushi, almost similar to katsuo rice sprinkle smell. The Katsuo-bushi felt hard as a rock, and I had to press hard to shave it. I moved my hand back and forth couple times and saw the result of my shaving. I opened the box and saw thick ribbon-like Kezuri. The aroma was very strong, and I was surprised how aromatic the Kezuri-bushi was. I sprinkled the Kezuri on a prepared onion salad.

Onion Salad
1 Vidalia Onion
Sesame dressing (preferably)
Kezuri-bushi

1. Slice the onion using mandolin or benriner
2. Soak the onion into the ice cold water for 15 minutes.
3. Drain the onion, and place them in a bowl. Pour the sesame dressing or any other your favorite dressing and mix them.
4. Place the onion salad on a plate. And, sprinkle with Kezuri-bushi.

Understanding Umami

2008-09-18T17:52:00.001-04:00

While attempting to describe the flavors of a particular sake to our customers at SAKAYA, we sometimes use the word "umami." What exactly is "umami"? The four basic elements of taste are sweetness, saltiness, sourness, and bitterness. Umami is a fifth element, whose taste is somewhat of a combination of the other four. Often referred to as "savory," it is easier to give examples of foods that have it than to describe it directly. Some umami flavored foods include dried shiitake, bonito flakes, Parmesan cheese, beef jerky, tomatoes, pepperoni, chorizo, and fish sauce.

Umami has a global history and is actually incorporated into a variety of dishes throughout world. In Asia, umami is mainly found in dried seafood products and dried mushrooms. In the West, umami is found in cured meats and cheeses. The ancient Romans used a fermented fish sauce called garem, which is similar to the fish sauce used in Southeast Asian cooking. The use of garem died out, but umami is still found in dishes using anchovies in pasta sauce, on pizza, etc.,

This distinctive umami taste was first identified specifically by a Japanese biochemist Dr. Kikunae Ikeda in 1908. He had wondered about the distinctive flavor of kombu dashi (stock made from a form of seaweed), an indispensable part of Japanese cuisine. He believed that something in the kombu accounted for the unique flavor that the dashi imparted to the Japanese dishes in which it was used. He found that kombu was extremely high in glutamate, successfully isolated the component from kombu, and named the flavor of the substance "umami."

Umami is directly attributable to the properties of glutamate, a type of amino acid, as well as several nucleotides. Glutamate is abundant in nature, and is a natural component of protein-containing foods such as meat, fish, milk, and vegetables. Aside from glutamate, umami taste is also attributed to nucleotides such as inosinate, which is found in meat and fish, and guanylate, which is often found in mushrooms. Some examples of the high glutamate, inosinate, and guanylate content found in foods considered to have umami (100g each): Kombu (3190mg glutamate), Katsuo Bushi/bonito flakes (700mg inosinate), Oysters (137mg glutamate), dried shiitake mushroom (71mg guanylate), tomatoes (246mg glutamate), soy beans (66mg glutamate), Parmesan cheese (1200ml glutamate).

In sake or wine, it is hard to determine exact amount of glutamate due to alcohol content and also the lack of standardized method of measurement. The approximate content of glutamate in sake is 180mg/1000ml and wine is 20 to 60mg/1000ml.

In both East and West, the flavor of umami is nothing new to our palate. Its name might be new to many outside of Japan, but the world is now discovering more about this fifth element of taste and gaining better understanding of how it enhances flavor combination in all types of dishes and beverages.

Pom Juice Tirol Choco

2008-09-09T13:28:00.000-04:00

"10 yen attara Tirol (chiroru) Choco" (if you have 10 yen, you can buy a Tirol Choco)

That's the jingle that many Japanese people have grown up with. On my recent visit to Shikoku in July, I came across an interesting variation of this chocolate, Pom Juice Tirol Choco. Yes, it's a Pom Juice Chocolate! Does the idea of pom juice (made from mikkan, a tangerine-like fruit) chocolate sound crazy? Not to me, I brought back a box of fifty of this delicious bite-sized confection.

For those of you who aren't familiar with it, Tirol Choco is a square-shaped chocolate that came onto market in 1979. At only 10 yen per individually wrapped piece, many Japanese people of a certain age remember singing the jingle and popping one into their mouth. The name Tirol came from Tyrol, a state located in western Austria. The name was chosen for its evocation of theTyrolian, "Sound of Music"-like imagery; green grass-covered, undulating hills under an azure blue sky against a backdrop of the majestic Alpine mountain range. The idea was to associate the enjoyable experience of eating Tirol Choco with a nostalgia for the beauty and simplicity of life in the past.

A surprise awaits those who expect this to be a dark or milk chocolate. It is in fact an apricot-hued "white" chocolate with a Pom Juice jelly center. Not only is this Tirol Choco unusual in its appearance, it also bursts with mikkan flavor. I bought the box of the Pom Juice Tirol Choco to give to friends or our SAKAYA customers, but Rick found it so tasty that he has been depleting the supply by eating one almost every day!

Pom Juice

2008-09-04T17:02:00.003-04:00

Shikoku is a small island of four prefectures. Since the island was isolated from the main island of Honshu until the 1988 opening of Seto Ohashi (Great Seto Bridge), Shikoku has developed a strong sense of community and pride in each of its prefectures. Kagawa is the place of origin for Sanuki Udon of which its people are extremely proud (myself included). Tokushima is famous for Awa Odori or Awa Dance and Tai (fluke fish). Kochi is well known for drinkers and Katsuo (Bonito...see Katsuo no Tataki) and Ehime is known for mikan (Japanese orange/tangerine) and Pom Juice.

Pom Juice is the juice of the mikan that is extremely popular in Shikoku. I don't know about Kochi or Tokushima, but Pom Juice dominates the market in Kagawa and Ehime. As students, we were given a free 200ml pack of Pom Juice every week in school from kindergarten to high school. Even in my high school's school lunch, we had a Pom Juice Rice, where rice is cooked in Pom Juice. Sounds weird? I thought so, too. To make the matter even more ridiculous, there were a number of rumors that there are three kinds of faucet in Ehime: one for cold water, one for hot water, and the third for Pom Juice. To make the rumor into reality, the maker of Pom Juice created a Pom Juice faucet in Matsuyama Airport for three days in January 2008. The event was so successful that the maker decided to install the Pom Juice faucet on the third of Sunday from 10am to 2pm from June 2008 until March of 2009. If you happen to be in Matsuyama Airport during those times, check for yourself to find out if this is rumor or fact!

Pom Juice was born in 1952. The name "Pom" came from Nippon's "pon" (there is no distinction between "pom" and "pon" in Japanese). The mayor of Ehime Sadatake Hisamatsu at that time named the juice "Pom Juice," hoping that their mikan juice would become the #1 drink in Nippon/Japan.

For people grew up on Pom Juice like me, Pom Juice is not just the #1 orange juice in Japan, it is the only orange juice in the world.

Kuroson Browbeating Gives New Meaning to "Tataki"

2008-08-10T19:18:00.005-04:00

When I was researching on Katsuo noTataki in Kochi, I frequently came across the name of Izakaya Kuroson. Bloggers aplenty had cited Kuroson as serving the best tataki in Kochi. After eating some wonderful Katsuo no Tataki at Yairo-tei in Hirome Ichiba the night before, I was dying to try the dish at Kuroson.

The afternoon after eating at Yairo-tei, I visited Hamakawa Brewery the maker of Bijofu and Shintaro sake, in Tano-cho, in southern Kochi by the Pacific Ocean. The president (shacho) of the brewery was youngish looking man in his 50's, who took over his family business several years ago. He was a down-to-earth and easy-to-hang-out-with. After showing me his brewery and leading me through a tasting of their sake, he asked me what I was going to do afterwards. I told him that I made reservation at Kuroson. His voice changed as he asked me, "by yourself at Kuroson?" He continued, "the food is fantastic, but...." His manner had me curious. "What do you mean by... 'but..."?, I asked. He hesitantly described the nature of owner. Apparently, he barks and yells at customers. He said that even he was a bit scared by him. My face was half-frozen. "Should I go there?," I asked. He said, "I am sure you will be fine, but I will go with you anyway."

Kuroson is located a narrow alley behind a Mos Burger (a Japanese fast food chain). They don't have a menu. You eat what you are served. Their sake list consists soley of Hamakawa Brewery's sake. The taisho (owner) is in his late 50's or early 60's, with short peppery hair and with high energy and spirit. His wife works as a waitress and they have been in business for 20 years or so.

First, we were served a huge plate of sashimi with five or six varieties of fish including, snapper, sea bream, squid, and octopus. The sashimi was the freshest fish could possibly be, and the cut was very thick. It was neither gooey nor chewy, they had a springy yet soft texture, bursting with freshness. It was incredibly delicious and I enjoyed it but, the portion was beyond generous and I was beginning to get full before I'd even had the tataki for which I had come. I was eating slowly and chatting with Hamakawa-shacho when the taisho started to yelled at me. "Hayaku Tabenka! (eat quickly)!" I thought he was joking, but soon realized that it was no joke. He was dead serious.

Next came the tataki which was sliced very thick. With crispy skin and reddish pink meat inside, it was served with sliced garlic and wasabi. I bit into one of the huge pieces. It was heavenly! The fish was very fresh and texture was crispy outside and soft inside. The skin was so crunchy and flavorful that I could have been happy just eat the crispy skin for my snack. The skin was crispier and smokier than Yajiro-tei, and the slices were thicker and more tender. I felt the tataki was better at Kuroson.

As I was sipping my sake, savoring the tataki, and talking with Hamakawa-shacho we were accosted again by the owner, "Shaberazu tabero (don't talk, just eat)!" Trying to appease him, I looked up and begged him, "I am eating, I am trying."

I wanted to ask the taisho if I could take pictures of him and his restaurant, but I had become apprehensive about asking him anything. Sweating and waiting to be scolded by the taisho, I took a quick photo of the tataki.

It was then that I noticed that the couple next to me was also having trouble with the taisho. They had asked for a menu, a salad, and rice. It seemed that they were being a bit demanding and it was clear that the taisho and his wife were getting irritated. I spoke with the couple and learned that they were visiting Kochi from Hiroshima.

Suddenly, I heard the taisho yelling at me again, "Sassato tabenka (eat now)!" This time, it wasn't just him harassing me. His wife was also giving me a nasty look! My stomach had expanded to the point where I had no room for any more food. My dilemma was that the tataki was so delicious that I wanted to clean my plate, but the fish was so rich that I couldn't finish eating it. No matter how many times I was yelled at, my stomach was stubbornly refusing to accept any more food. No amount of barking and yelling could make my stomach accept more. Eating was no longer a pleasure, it had become a demanding ordeal. Kuroson was no longer a restaurant. It had now become a battle zone.

Hamakawa-shacho felt so bad for me that he started to help me finish the dish. I needed to drink more sake to wash down the sashimi and tataki, but the wife told me I couldn't order any more sake. Hamakawa-shacho and I were speechless. We felt so unwelcome that we decided to leave Kuroson immediately.

Hamakawa-shacho was very apologetic even though it wasn't his fault that we were thrown out. It was me who made them grumpy. No matter how nasty and abusive the owners had been, I still felt that it was the best katsuo no tataki I had ever had and was willing to overlook the browbeating that I had endured to eat it. I had never dreamed that the word "tataki" which can mean "to beat" would relate something about this experience other than what was served on my plate.

Afterwards, Hamakawa-shacho and I, joined by his wife and a co-worker, went to a nearby bar to drink more and to commiserate about the self-sacrifice that comes with eating the best katsuo no tataki in Kochi at Kuroson.

Kuroson
3-4-18 Honmachi Kochi City,
Kochi 780-0870
Phone: (Japan) 088-873-2624

Katsuo no Tataki in Kochi

2008-08-09T13:24:00.029-04:00

Katsuo is Japanese for bonito, a species of mackerel. When Japanese people hear "katsuo," they immediately think of Kochi prefecture. Annual consumption of katsuo in Kochi is nearly four times that of other prefectures. Between 2005 ~ 2007, the national average was 1351g/ 3 lbs per two person household, but in Kochi it was 5183g/ 11.4 lbs!

Before my recent trip to Japan, I was longing to eat the REAL Katsuo no Tataki in Kochi. The origin of Katsuo no Tataki is not well documented. Legend has it that Yamauchi Kazutoyo (or Katsutoyo) (b.1545- -d.1605), who became feudal ruler of Kochi in 1600, forbade eating fresh katsuo due to the possibility of food poisoning. To prevent illness, he ordered people to grill the katsuo before eating it. The origin of word "tataki" is also not well defined. The word "tataki" or "tataku" means "to beat," "to slap," or "to pad" in Japanese. Therefore tataki is known to be a cooking technique where a blade is used to pad the fish with salt to tighten the flesh giving it a desirable texture.

When I was daydreaming about Katsuo no Tataki while working at SAKAYA (our sake store), I had a customer from Kochi city. As soon as I learned that he was from Kochi, I asked him where to go to find the best Katsuo no Tataki. He recommended that I visit Yairo-tei at Hirome Ichiba.

Hirome Ichiba (market) is a kind of food court, but it is a place where there are about 65 shops including green market, fish markets, butcher, souvenir shops, sake retail shops, snack shops, takeout food shops, bars, and izakaya jammed into a huge building. It opened 10 years ago to promote local products and business. With its casual, down-to-earth atmosphere, you can order a dish from any of the vendors and then eat at the centrally located tables.

Yairo-tei is a small izakaya-style shop next to a takoyaki shop. When I arrived it was around 6pm, and people were already drinking and eating in front of Yairo-tei. I peaked inside and saw two salarymen sitting at the bar drinking. I decided to sit at the bar, so that I could have better view of the taisho (the owner chef) cooking the tataki. I then ordered a cold beer to keep from salivating too profusely while waiting for my tataki to be served.

I learned that in Kochi, Shio Tataki (salt tataki) is the norm. The more common or well known version of Tataki is the Tare version where the tataki is served with a special tataki sauce (soy sauce with vinegar and citrus). In Kochi, Shio Tataki is the more popular type, slightly grilled over a straw fueled fire.

At Yairo-tei, I ordered Shio Tataki. The taisho took out the katsuo and started to place the straw in the handmade grill box. Slowly the place became smoky and as my eyes started to burn, he placed the fish on the grill. He seared the fish quickly and placed it on a cutting board.

With quick and rhythmic strokes, he sliced the tataki, and served it on a plate with sliced daikon, garlic, sudachi (type of citrus), and wasabi. Without a moment's hesitation, I picked up a piece with my chopsticks and put it in my mouth. It was delicious! It was sublimely tasty; slightly smoky, meaty in texture and super fresh. I could imagine it as being popular alternative to tuna steak. Crispy on the outside and rare on inside, it was tender and toothsome with just enough fattiness to stand up to the garlic and wasabi condiments which added just the right amount of complimentary kick to the dish. I savored every piece, hoping to secure the experience in my sensory memory as how the best katsuo no tataki should taste.

Yairo-tei at Hirome Ichiba was just what the SAKAYA customer promised. It was casual, homey,inexpensive, and made great katsuo no tataki! When I left Yairo-tei, I vowed to come back someday with Rick to have the katsuo no tataki and try some of their other food. And, to drink more too!

Yairo-tei
Hirome Ichiba
2-3-1 Obiya-machi, Kochi
Kochi 780-0841
http://www.hirome.co.jp (Japanese only)

Kagawa Udon Crawl

2008-07-25T18:13:00.019-04:00

It has been over 7 months since we opened SAKAYA. And, since the business in the summer months has been a little quieter I (Hiroko) decided to go to Japan to visit my parents, relatives and some brewers in Shikoku where I am from.

The first thing to do on my list was to eat Sanuki Udon when I visited my parents in Kagawa Prefecture. As I mentioned in a previous post, udon shops are everywhere throughout Kagawa. Kagawa is the smallest prefecture in Japan, about 1876 km2 (724 square mile), and there are about 700 shops specializing udon. There are so many, we didn't know which udon shop to go to when driving down the street.

I will point out things to look for when you are driving around Kagawa to eat Sanuki Udon.

I met my father in Tadotsu station around 5pm which is a little late for udon shops. Point #1. Pay attention to the closing time. Usually, good udon shops close around 4pm or earlier. They close when they sell out their daily made supply of udon noodles. My father took me to the Kogane Noodle Shop near the station, the third Kogane shop in Kagawa. The place closes at 6pm, but we were not the only customers at that time. My favorite type of Sanuki Udon dish is Bukkake Udon, udon noodle with dash of dashi, sometimes grated daikon, ginger, and scallion. That's it. The simplest form of udon. Bukkake Udon here is 240 yen (about $2.30), and I heard that the price had gone up recently due to the increase in the cost of wheat. The Kogane udon was silky, chewy, and al dente, with a good dashi. I can see why the place is popular with a crowd eating at any given time.

For the next two days, we spent lunch hours eating udon, going from one place to another. I wanted to try the famous udon shop Miyatake which is located in the middle of rice field (most good udon places are located in the middle of a field). Miyatake has been included in many guidebooks many times, and I was curious to find out if the udon lived up to its reputation.

The udon at Miyatake was 180 yen. I liked the price, but was disappointed as it was not chewy and al dente as other places. The noodle is a little slippery, the sign of not washing the noodle well (it's important to wash the noodle well to take off all the slippery cooking water.) I was surprised to find the Miyatake was still famous. Point #2. Pay attention to the customers in the shop. I saw young customers with a guidebook, not local salary men, which might indicate the decline of the taste.

My father and I were very upset that we had to try another place to eat good udon. I didn't come to Kagawa to eat Udon from NY. So, we started to drive and saw a shop Ichiya with a parking lot filled with cars and trucks with Kagawa license plates. Point #3. Local salary men and truck drivers know the good places. We entered the shop. I looked around and saw salary men and truck drivers with tired eyes. They looked into the bowl of noddle and kept slurping without looking up. We got on line and ordered the usual Bukkake Udon. The noodles were super al dente with springy a chewiness and silky texture. The noodles had been washed well with ice cold water to tighten the outer layer of udon noodle. They were not too thick and not too long, but had just the right weight and a nice "slurpiness." It was the best udon we had tasted in 3 days. My father and I were in agreement, and we cleared the bowl with happy smile.

I left Kagawa for Kochi with the best udon memory in my heart.

Travel & Leisure

2008-06-07T16:12:00.013-04:00

We are tremendously excited about the "Destination: Sake" feature about SAKAYA in the June 2008 issue of Travel + Leisure. Thanks to the recommendation of our friend Lynn, we were selected by John HancockFinancial Services to be written about as part of their"Pivotal Conversations" campaign recognizing people who have achieved their dreams with the aid of a key advisor (in our case, our friend, sake expert John Gauntner).

If you’d like to read it and don’t have access to the issue, you can check out the piece here…. Travel & Leisure June 2008 Destination Sake. 　　 And, if you think that picture in the story was a quick snapshot, below are some pictures of the photo shoot that produced it!

An Interesting Cab Ride

2008-04-21T15:39:00.009-04:00

We usually write about our food and drink experiences but thought that this would be fun to share with you....

A few weeks ago we hailed a cab to take us to the fine Japanese restaurant Megu in Tribeca. No sooner had we told the driver our destination than without warning, we found ourselves surrounded by a frenzy of swirling, flashing lights....suddenly, we had become unwitting contestants in the Discovery Channel's urban game show on wheels, Cash Cab. Although the program has been on the air for three years, we had never heard of it. (Coincidentally, shortly after our experience, it was featured on The Today Show). After the introductory light show, our driver and host Ben Bailey explained the rules to us and off we went... Instead of paying the usual fare for our trip, we had a chance to win some cash. Our appearance aired about two weeks ago. How did we do? Take a look at the video!

"Whatever Nabe" and Atsukan...

2008-01-21T10:46:00.000-05:00

The coldest weather of the winter so far had arrived which immediately set us to thinking about eating something comforting to stave off the chill. As the temperature plummeted, we knew what it was that we craved... a nabe (Japanese hot pot) dinner with atsukan (warmed) sake. Surrounded by sake in the store all day, Rick had his eye on a particular brew specifically suited to this very purpose....Kamoizumi Shusen Tokubetsu Junmai , a robust, big-boned sake from Hiroshima practically screamed "drink me!" from its top shelf perch.

As we closed the store and headed home with our Kamoizumi Shusen in hand, we speculated about the inventory of items our refrigerator might yield for our nabe. To our delight, Hiroko found some frozen gyoza (Chinese dumplings) and fish cakes in the freezer, and Rick uncovered some daikon, burdock, shiitake, and tofu in the fridge to go with some leftover hakusai (Chinese cabbage). We had the ingredients for our "Whatever Nabe!"

As the nabe was cooking on the tabletop burner, we warmed our sake in a Mini Kansuke (a contraption made specifically for the purpose) and decided to try the Kamoizumi Shusen at room temperature in the meantime. Not a sake for the die-hard delicate daiginjo drinker , this bold nihonshu had a sharp, earthy aroma with gamey, mushroom-like flavors. How would these aromatics and tastes change once the Mini Kansuke had performed its magic? We didn't have to wait long to find out...As the thermometer in the warming sake reached 110 degrees F, we poured it into bizen ceramic cups made by our friend John Ray and immediately were struck by the intense aroma of shiitake. The flavors had opened up and the sharp earthy sake had been transformed into a rich, mellow, nutty potion of glowing warmth that was the perfect match for the contents of the steaming pot before us.

In the thrall of the warm Kamoizumi Shusen, the mingling aromas of the pot's ingredients magnetically drew our chopsticks into the bubbling nabe. Carefully scooping up the soft dumplings, tofu, and vegetables we dipped them into Hiroko's homemade ponzu sauce, and savored our "Whatever Nabe" with the atsukan sake, by this time completely oblivious to the temperature outside.

Hiroko is not big fan of shiitake (and mushrooms in general) and although she didn't enjoy the sake as much as Rick, she didn't let that stand in the way of drinking this particular nihonshu. In fact, it was so deliciously mellow and complimented the food so well, that it was gone before we finished our "Whatever Nabe!"

Homemade Ponzu (Citrus Flavored Dipping) Sauce
1 cup Sake
4 inch length Kelp
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/2 tablespoon or more Yuzu or citrus juice

1. Place kelp and sake in the pan and cook in low heat until the alcohol is evaporate. Remove from the stove and take out the kelp, and let it cool.
2. Combine the soy sauce, rice vinegar and Yuzu juice. Taste it, and put more Yuzu juice if needed.

Christmas Holiday Dish with Sake

2007-12-28T19:21:00.001-05:00

It has been long time since we've updated our blog....but we have a very good reason. We've been a bit preoccupied with the launch of our store, SAKAYA, NYC's first sake-centric shop which opened December 8. The reception has been phenomenal and we've been extremely fortunate that New Yorkers have so enthusiastically embraced it.

After a busy Christmas Eve, we were grateful to have Christmas Day off to relax and cook at home. Although we were not in the store, Hiroko was still thinking about new ideas for pairing sake with food. We would like to share her one of her inspirations, a carmelized onion tart which paired perfectly with Hatsumago Kimoto Junmai.

Carmelized Onion Tart
in 8 inch tart pan

2 onions
1 tablespoon of butter or olive oil
1/2 cup Madeira
1/2 cup shredded Gruyere
salt and pepper

Pie Dough for 8-inch tart pan
1 cup flour
5 tablespoons butter
3 to 5 tablespoons ice cold water
salt
Make the Dough:
1. Cut the butter into cubes. Wrap in plastic and freeze. In the large bowl, sift the flour, and combine the flour and salt. Put the flour mixture into a freezer to chill.
2. Dump the cold butter into the cold flour, and cut the butter using pastry cutter.
3. When the mixture gets coarse like oat meal, sprinkle the ice cold water 1 tablespoon at a time to incorporate the mixture, using fork or hand. As the dough begins to form clumps, you need to test it. If you can gather it up to form a ball, it is ready.
4. Gather the mixture into one ball, and wrap it in plastic wrap to chill for at least 1 hour.

Assembly:
1. In a large skillet, met the butter or oil. Add the onions, and cook over moderate heat until softened about 10 to 15 minutes. Uncover the skillet and cook until the onions are very soft and browned about 45 minutes or longer. While the onion is caramelizing, add the 1/4 cup of Madeira. When the onion is caramelized, add the rest of Madeira and cook until the liquid is evaporated. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Roll out the dough and place it in a tart pan. Prick the bottom of the shell with a fork and freeze it until chilled.
3. Line the tart shell with foil and fill with dried kidney beans (or pie crust weights). Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, and remove the foil and beans and bake it another 10 to 15 minutes, until the shell is golden color.
4. Sprinkle the Gruyere into the baked tart shell and spread the onions on the top. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the tart is browned. Let cool for 15 minutes.

SAKAYA Opens!

2007-12-10T18:31:00.001-05:00

It has been nearly two years since we returned from our first trip to Japan together with the commitment to our dream of opening NYC's first shop dedicated exclusively to sake. On Saturday, December 8, we finally opened the store! It was hard to believe that the day had finally arrived...the time had come for our dream to be realized. Since that day, we have experienced an enthusiasm for sake that has exceeded all that we had ever imagined. The days have flown by and have been filled with eager-to-learn visitors, not only from NYC, but from all over the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Italy, Russia, and yes, Japan. We've even been honored by a visit from the Japanese Ambassador to the UN!

For more information about SAKAYA, upcoming events, and media coverage of the store opening, please visit www.sakayanyc.com and click on "visit our blog."

Paella with a new Accent

2007-10-27T14:01:00.000-04:00

Every country has its own rice dish. Italy has risotto, Middle Eastern countries have their pilafs, India has biryani, China has fried rice, Japan has takikomi gohan, and Spain has paella. Paella was traditionally considered to be a working man's dish, a way to use up leftover ingredients. The word Paella means "pan" in Valencia originating from the Latin "patella," which means "pan." Traditionally in Valencia, paella was cooked over a fire in the field and usually included chicken, duck, rabbit, and snails, not seafood a rarity in Valencia.

On recent rainy day, Hiroko wanted to make a one-pan meal and decided it was time to make her first paella. And so following the original working men's dish tradition, we used whatever remained in the refrigerator...a reflection of Hiroko's flair for economizing. Rick searched through the crowded refrigerator and found some homemade chicken stock, a chicken breast, Spanish chorizo, tomatoes, and a half dozen or so unused fresh shrimp from previous day. Hiroko consulted Mark Bittman's recipe for paella, and set to work sautéeing the chicken. Once it had browned, she added minced garlic and onion, and cooked this mix until the vegetables were soft. She then added the chorizo, along with tomato paste, saffron, smoky Spanish pimenton, and....."just a bit more" paprika (Nigerian in this case) than the recipe called for. In fact, as Hiroko shook the paprika container (accidentally using the large rather than the smaller shaker-holed opening), a huge amount of the spicy powder spilled into the pot. The saffron tinted mix had morphed into a fiery red! "Whoops!" Suddenly, it had become an entirely new dish, paella a la Lagos!

Regaining her composure, Hiroko added the arborio rice, sautéed it until shiny, then added the stock and shrimp, and stirred all to mix the combined ingredients. Next, she placed tomato wedges on top of rice and put the pan in the oven to roast for 30 minutes. When the rice was done, she turned off the oven, leaving the pan of rose-tinted paella inside to "rest" (and steam) for another 10 to15 minutes. Meanwhile, Hiroko prepared a salad while Rick selected a wine to accompany the meal. Just before serving, a sprinkling of chopped parsley was added and... it was time to eat.

The dish was wonderfully smoky and of course, spicy! The amount of Nigerian paprika didn't ruin the dish as we had feared, but it actually added a new dimension to it. The edge of the pan was nicely caramelized and resulting "burned" rice was toothsome and tasty. Rick chose a Licia 2006 Albarino from Galicia which offered a great balance of minerality, acidity and green apple fruit to compliment the acidity of the tomatoes and the smoky pimenton-influenced spicy flavor of rice.

We love spicy food and often seek it out both when we travel and at home. However, little did we expect that an "accidental overdose" of a spicy seasoning would result in the delicious discovery of a new way to make and enjoy an traditional, time-honored dish like paella!

Sake Day with Friends

2007-10-02T10:45:00.000-04:00

October 1st is Sake Day or Nihonshu no Hi in Japanese. Sake Day originated in 1978 when the Japan Sake Brewers Association declared it as a day to celebrate and promote the enjoyment of sake. The Chinese character for Sake is 酒, which is very similar to the Chinese zodiac sign for the Rooster, 酉. This Rooster sign is the 10th sign. Hence, as the beginning of the tenth month, October 1st became Sake Day.

There are a number of sake tasting events taking place in NYC around Sake Day. Some are solely for the restaurant and retail trade but there are also several open to consumers. The largest and most comprehensive sake tasting opportunity for sake professionals, devotees, and neophytes was the annual Joy of Sake on 9/27. Created by Chris Pearce, the founder of World Sake International Imports based in Hawaii, the New York version of the event was held for the fourth year at The Puck Building in the East Village. This year, an amazing total of 302 sake from 142 breweries was presented. Of this total, about 100 were not yet available in the US. Confronted with this "surfeit of riches", we decided to first focus on the floor featuring the non-available sake. Even though this reduced our tasting universe by 67% we were still faced with a serious sake sampling challenge....how to strategically approach this and gain the learning that we were seeking? We paced ourselves by segmenting our efforts to first taste the "gold award" winners (judged by a panel of experts prior to the event) and intermittently chatting with friends and new acquaintances who share our enthusiasm for nihonshu. We were delighted to see them and be in the company of so many other New Yorkers tasting and embracing sake for over three hours on a beautiful fall evening.

Coincidentally, our friend Melinda from Tokyo Through the Drinking Glass was visiting New York during the same week and we were fortunate enough to spend time with her. Along with recently annointed Sake Samurai Tim Sullivan from Urban Sake, we headed to Sake Bar Decibel for a midnight drink after dinner one evening. Even with full stomachs and a well fueled buzz, we still had the thirst to drink sake like salarymen in Tokyo. The fact that he had to work the next morning didn't dissuade Tim from joining us in the late evening hours for some of his favorite brews! Otsukare, Tim!

On the last evening of Melinda's visit, we had a dinner party for her at our favorite Greek restaurant, Snack Taverna in the West Village. Along with several of Melinda's other New York friends including Tim, we enjoyed the restaurant's gracious hospitality and an abundant feast of food and drink. Our most grateful thanks go out to our friend Adam Greene, the owner of Snack Taverna, who generously arranged the delicious assortment of mezedes, Greek salad, saganaki, and country sausage, followed by the restaurant's uniquely Greek style preparations of branzino, roast chicken, leg of lamb, stuffed peppers, baklava, sheep's milk yogurt, and rice pudding. As you might imagine, no one left hungry!

With or without sake, sharing drinks with friends is the spirit of Sake Day. We were fortunate enough to have the best of both worlds in celebration of Sake Day 2007!

Kewpie

2007-08-13T14:18:00.001-04:00

Hiroko's love for Kewpie mayonnaise is no secret to anyone. She loves it so much that she will eat Kewpie on and in almost anything. In fact, as far as she's concerned, it doesn't really need a "delivery system"...straight from the bottle is fine too!

Last week, we celebrated Hiroko's birthday. She is pictured here wearing her favorite gift...a special custom made Kewpie T-shirt sent by a good friend of ours, Tim from Urban Sake.

Thank you, Tim! You are the BEST!

Our Sake Shop, "Sakaya"

2007-07-26T11:47:00.000-04:00

We're tremendously excited because we recently received the NY State Liquor Authority Board's approval of our liquor license application for our sake shop, Sakaya, which will be on E. 9th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues in the East Village. Our goal is to be open for business in early October. Please visit the Sakaya website homepage for a link to our pre-opening blog where we will post regular updates on our progress.

Yuba

2007-07-19T18:04:00.000-04:00

What is yuba? It is the membrane-like skin that forms when soy milk is warmed. It is then eaten warm or dried (like pasta) for later consumption as a wrap for spinach for example. It is fairly common in Japan but very difficult to find in the U.S.

As you may know, baking is quite different from cooking. It is a combination of science and the test of one's patience. Yuba making is the same way. It is very important that the soy milk should not reach the boiling point however its temperature should kept at a constant 165 degree F. The best method for achieving this delicate balance is through the use of a double boiler. Bring the water to a boil, gradually warming the soy milk until it reaches the desired temperature. When the yuba begins to form on the surface, you'll be tempted to immediately scoop up the sheet. But, exercise restraint because the membrane will initially be too thin and soft to successfully be able to lift it. Wait.....until the surface becomes thick enough to form a perfect sheet.

The key to making yuba as we said is patience. On one hand, we were excited and ready to scarf down own homemade yuba, yet at same time, we knew that our palates would be amply rewarded by holding off for just a few minutes more. As we said at the beginning of this post, this is the toughest part of making yuba (aside from making the soy milk from soaking dried yellow soy beans). We don't know if we'll make it again anytime soon, but when we do, it will most likely be a special occasion. And believe us, this special treat is well worth the wait!

Virtual Sake Tasting

2007-05-20T17:15:00.000-04:00

About two months ago, our friend Melinda who we met at John Gauntner's Professional Sake Course in Tokyo in January, very kindly invited us to participate in her second "virtual sake tasting." Since then it has taken some time to pick sake that all in the tasting panel (particularly we in the "deprived" part of the world) could purchase that allowed us to meet the objective of comparing sake of two different (rice milling)classifications by two brewers . Ultimately, we were all able to acquire the Hananomai and Suigei offerings that came close to conforming to our goal. The panel's participants are Melinda, Etsuko, and Robert-Gilles from Japan, with Valerie, and Tim, joining us from the U.S. Check in with each of their blogs too to get the full global perspective on these sake and then, go try them yourself! Here are our notes and overall conclusions....

Hananomai: Junmai Ginjo vs. Junmai Daiginjo

The Junmai Ginjo had a pale straw color, with a nose of toasted rice and faint notes of roasted meat. Its flavor profile was dominated by lactic acid combined with a bit of sweetness on the mid-palate and a fairly rich texture. The flavors didn't linger in the mouth too long, but it had a richer finish than the Daiginjo.

In contrast, the Junmai Daiginjo had a hint of sweet vanilla aroma with more lactic acid induced vanilla yogurt flavors than the Junmai Ginjo. The finish wasn't particularly long nor was it short either, but strawberry flavors filled the whole mouth at its conclusion. While just a tad rich, it was a surprisingly simple and straight forward sake.

Suigei: Tokubetsu Junmai vs. Junmai Ginjo

The Tokubetsu Junmai had a faint aroma of mushroom and an anise flavor. It was richer than the Junmai Ginjo, and had a dry, slightly longer finish with a hint of caramel vanilla flavor.

The Junmai Ginjo's nose reminded us of fruit blossoms and its taste of fruit matched that promise. Its acidity and tartness were prominent, but well balanced and the overall character was rather dry. It was not as complex and multi-layered as the Tokubetsu Junmai, but it did have a very clean finish with sweet strawberry flavors that linger in the mouth.

Overall, we liked Suigei's high acidity level, which delivered a pleasing balance of sweetness and dryness. Hananomai to us was a little flat in the flavor department.

Our overall rankings:
Hiroko: 1. Suigei Junami Ginjo 2. Suigei Tokubetsu Junmai 3. Hananomai Junmai Daiginjo 4. Hananomai Junmai Ginjo

Rick: 1. Suigei Tokubetsu Junmai 2. Suigei Junmai Ginjo 3. Hananomai Junami Ginjo 4. Hananomai Junmai Daiginjo

Just for a fun experiment, we paired these sake with three cheeses: (a very inexpensive) fresh goat cheese from Spain, an Australian cheddar (mild), and Roncal, a sharp sheep's milk cheese from Spain.

These cheeses were not necessarily the "perfect match" for the sake that we were tasting but we like to subject all sake that we taste to the "cheese meter." The overall best match was the Australian cheddar with Hananomai Junami Ginjo and Suigei Junmai Ginjo. This Australian cheddar is not a sharp cheddar, but it paired well with both Junmai Ginjos. The creaminess of the cheese found its compliment in the acidity and tartness of these two breweries' JG offerings. The Roncal was a bit sharp for the sake, but if we had to pick one, our vote would go to the SuigeiTokubetsu Junmai, which had the tartness and body to stand up to it. With the goat cheese, the sharpness was well matched with the Suigei Tokubetsu Junmai.

Well, that's it for the moment but it's now time for dinner and we still have lots left in the bottles to try with our Asian tuna ceviche, kanpachi sashimi, ginger sauteed green beans, and daikon with mentaiko sauce....

Australian Sake

2007-04-30T15:34:00.000-04:00

Australian sake?

Our sake friend Trevor from Australia, who we met in Tokyo while there for John Gauntner's Professional Sake Course, came to NYC for the Asian Art Fair recently. He works for Japanese art dealer, Kehoe Art Gallery, and he introduced us to Australian sake, which he was serving at his booth.

The sake is Goshu 40 Ultra Premium Genshu Junmai Daiginjo made by Sun Masamune in Australia. Sun Masamune was founded by the Japanese company Konishi Brewing in 1996. Currently the head brewing master is Hirofumi Uchiyama, who used to work in the Nada district (famous for sake brewing) for 30 years. Their sake is made from Australian Japonica rice and their own special yeast.

Trevor offered us a choice of sake cups from their display. All were colorful egg-shapes made by Kiyomizu Studio in Kyoto, and most of what they had brought had sold for $95 apiece.

We tasted the Goshu 40 which is milled to 40% and had a moderate alcohol level (particularly for a genshu brew) of 16%. There was a hint of the yogurt-like flavor of lactic acid combined with a smooth, round finish. While it didn't have the sophistication of the Japanese Junmai Ginjo sake we have tasted, it still possessed some lovely light rice aromatics, filled the mouth with its richness and lengthy finish. As the flavors danced on our tongues, all agreed that it was perfect experience to brighten the early spring afternoon, served up in a whimsically designed, colorful cup!

Laos -- Luang Prabang, March 5 &6, 2006

2007-03-24T17:32:00.000-04:00

From Vientiane we flew north to Luang Prabang. Surrounded by mountains and nestled between the Mekong and Khan rivers, it was the capital of Laos until the Communist take over of the country in 1975. Designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1995, its colonial legacy, French influence, and Laotian tradition, have been woven into the fabric of a town that is a perfect reflection of the Lao culture. Luang Prabang is small, and just about everywhere worth checking out can be reached on foot.

"So pretty!" was our first reaction when driving into town from the airport. Seemingly frozen in time with its quiet beauty and tranquility, Luang Prabang is both relaxing and serene. The entire town is the epitome of "zen," no surprise since the town center is dominated by about 33 temples, home to nearly 1,000 monks and novices. They are so ubiquitous that it is nearly impossible to go anywhere without the sighting the familiar saffron robed devotees of Lord Buddah strolling or sitting by the temples.

Mornings begin very early in Luang Prabang, where locals are awakened by the bells and gongs from the temples, and a procession of monks and novices circuits the town to collect rice for the daily meal. The first gongs sounded at 4AM waking the normally somnambulent Hiroko . When they resumed their call at 6AM from the Wat Xiengthong, Hiroko was already standing on Sakkarine Rd. to witness the endless stream of saffron.

Hiroko's return and Rick's hunger motivated the early morning trip to the morning market by our guest house. By sunrise merchants had lined Manthatoulat Rd along the Mekong River, their intricately designed hand-loomed textile cloths spread before them filled with vegetables, fruits, chili, fish, and meat. There were numerous stands offering cooked food too. Flies were everywhere, particularly attracted to the meat and fish however, this seemed to bother no one... the merchants simply make a practice of waving their hands to keep them from alighting on the food. We were very tempted to try some of the delicious looking sandwiches or grilled chicken, but we had another mission in mind for our breakfast....kao soi noodles!

So we set off in the intense morning sun from the town center to visit a famous kao soi noodle place. It was about 30 to 40 minutes walk from our guest house, and even before 8AM, it was quite hot. The road leading out of town, although relatively empty, was still quite dusty and once outside of central Luang Prabang, there were only a few small guest houses along the way. We finally arrived at what we hoped was our destination, a shop where the tables were filled with people slurping away their faces buried in bowls of spicy noodles. There was no sign (which we wouldn't have been able to read anyway but this sight confirmed for us what we knew without asking....that we had reached our destination!

We sat and ordered "kao soi," but weren't certain that our server understood us. But a few minutes later, we were thrilled to see her arrive with two bowls of kao soi noodles and a plate full of local basil and bean sprouts. We squeezed the juice from the accompanying limes, added a copious quantity of basil and bean sprouts, and immediately began to eat the noodles before they cooked too long in the broth. The Thai version of Kao Soi has coconut milk in it, but the Lao variety instead uses a sort of local spicy miso-like paste similar to that used in pho, the Vietnamese beef noodle soup. It was so addictively spicy that our faces remained buried in our bowls until nothing remained.

After breakfast, and visit to a nearby wat, we picked up the sandwich at the market for a picnic lunch at Kuangsi Falls. These gorgeous waterfalls are about 16 miles (a one hour drive) from Luang Prabang. We hired a driver who adroitly navigated the dirt road to the waterfall. It was extremely hot, and the van's air conditioner hadn't worked in years. And, as badly as we wanted to open the windows, the "dust storm" kicked up on the dirt road was so severe that we didn't dare open the windows for fear of asphyxiation.

Having survived the sweltering drive, our joyful foray into the wooded area near the falls brought us face to face with several young tigers which were kept in a fenced-in area. We were told that this was a sanctuary for tigers which are still illegally hunted. Following the signs to the waterfall, we came upon a clearing where the silky water of the river flowed into a beautiful turquoise pool. Too inviting to resist, we took off our shoes and waded in. The water was cool and refreshing and a welcome relief after the ordeal of our "sweat box" van experience. We just sat on the rock and luxuriated in the tropical paradise-like surroundings as the cooling effect of the pool reinvigorated us. Refreshed, we picked up the trail again and followed the stream uphill where in another clearing we encountered the majestic waterfall directly in front of us. We found a bench nearby and unpacked our lunch. As we sat there in the spray of the falls eating our freshly made sandwich we drank in the surrounding scene which was as idyllic as anything in our previous experience .

After returning to town, we strolled the streets, then climbed Phusi mountain to view panorama of the surrounding countryside from its peak. It was a breathtakingly beautiful view in the dusky haze of twilight. Sunset was near, so we strolled down by the Mekong River to enjoy the spectrum of blazing color as the sun seemingly dipped into the river.

Laos, as experienced in Vientiane and Luang Prabang, was our favorite country of all that we visited on our month-long trip to Southeast Asia. Because of its rural economy and lack of industrialization, it was the country that seemed most untouched and unspoiled. We loved its tranquility, warm, friendly people and of course, the amazing food!

Laos--Vientiane, March 3 & 4, 2006

2007-03-22T17:00:00.000-04:00

Last year, we traveled to Southeast Asia. Since we have fallen a bit behind in posting our trip, and before it disappears completely from our "rearview mirror," we wanted to post some pictures and report on some of the highlights that we failed to get to when we returned last Spring .

Among our most memorable experiences was the capital city of Laos, Vientiane. Laos is a socialist republic in Southeast Asia bordered by China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Burma, and Thailand. In its more recent history, it gained independence from France in 1949, but civil war continued until the Communist party took over the country in 1975. Private and foreign enterprise started in 1987, but the country is still among the poorest in Asia.

Located along the banks of the Mekong River, the old colonial city of Vientiane is the capital of Laos. With dusty streets and crumbling sidewalks, it feels as if it has been in a sort of suspended animation since the early '70's. Yet, it has a distinctive charm about it because of its rusticity and lack of urbanity. It can easily be covered by foot (or better by bicycle) in a day.

One of our first stops was Pha That Luang, the Great Stupa, the national symbol of Laos. The construction of the stupa is known to be started in 1566 on the site of former Khmer temple. A Thai invasion followed by a Chinese invasion in 19th century severely destroyed the temple until France took the control of Laos in 1893. With the help of France, in 1930 the temple was rebuilt.

We rented bicycles for a day for 20,000 Kip, approximately $2 ($1=10,600kip) to visit temples and shops. Since the climate was very hot and humid, we kept our sightseeing activities to a minimum during the midday hours and took the opportunity to rest at a cafe, eat, and drink some of the delicious freshly squeezed local fruit juice.

We found a wonderful sandwich shop, Nampou Coffee near our hotel. During breakfast hours, local people were eating a noodle dish like Vietnamese Pho, which we decided to give a try. We also found that in Laos people eat Vietnamese Banh Mi like sandwich as well. The sandwich was filled with pork, cucumber, and sauteed onion and carrots with mayo and was perfectly matched with Beer Lao. We tried three different sandwich shop, and concluded that Namphou Coffee's sandwich was the best.

For dinner, one evening we feasted at a small family run place, Vilayluc, which we found via a Japanese guidebook. It looked like someone's home turned into a restaurant. The proprietor was very friendly, and we ordered her recommendation of laap (like laab in Thai), spicy curry and a dish she called "waterfall beef" (also similar to aThai dish). Since their history is so intertwined it is no surprise that Lao food resembles Thai, though like Vietnamese food, not as spicy. Lao dishes are filled with herbs and fresh vegetables, and you eat them with sticky rice. Khao Niaw, as it is called , is eaten with your fingers, molded into a ball and used to mop up the juice of the dish. We still remember the dinner at Vilayluc as one of the best that we had in all of Southeast Asia.

Namphu Coffee
57 Pangkham Rd., near the corner of Samsenthai Rd.

Vilayluc
behind Wat Ong Teu

Other Restaurants & Sandwich shops:

Soukvimane
turn left on Samsenthai Rd. on the road to That Dam

POV
344 Samsenthai Rod.

Nabe

2007-03-15T12:00:00.000-04:00

"The Nabe pot is here!" These were the words we've been anxiously waiting to hear (or say) for two months since our return from Japan. Although we had purchased it at a shop in Denenchofu, Tokyo when we were there in late January, because of its weight and size, we asked Hiroko's parents to ship it to us via sea, the least expensive (and slowest) postal option.

Nabe is the quintessential winter Japanese dish, which is prepared in a hot pot at the table. It is sort of like a healthy fondue in that the cooking medium is not oil, cheese, or chocolate but a type of Japanese stock made from water, kelp, and/or dashi depending upon the type of nabe. Popular types of nabe include the familiar Sukiyaki and Shabu Shabu, as well as lesser known (to U.S. eaters) dishes that are enjoyed in the various regions and families of Japan. The only rule for nabe is that you cook anything that you like in the pot at the table and that it be shared with your family and friends.

A nabe pot can be anything from ordinary to artistic. The "ordinary" variety can be easily found at Mitsuwa Marketplace in New Jersey or other Japanese grocery stores in New York area. We wanted something unique and special, so we waited until we were able to buy the beautiful black one that we had fallen in love with while looking through The Nabe Cookbook (purchased in Matsuyama on our winter '06 trip). Hiroko's always expert research located Doraku, the small family run pottery shop where it could be purchased.

"This is it!" we exclaimed after walking into the charming shop that was the first place we visited after our arrival in Tokyo. The Denenchofu area of Tokyo is an affluent neighborhood modeled after a similar section of London. Run by the Asami family, the shop was small and a little cluttered, and focused on artisan yakimono. Mrs. and Mr. Asami love yakimono and are quite proud of their shop's selection.

Mrs. Asami excitedly showed us the nabe that was the object of our visit. It is made by Shiro Yoshii in Kyoto, and is surprisingly light weight. She explained to us that this nabe was individually handmade and that it needs to be well cared for. She was ecstatic when we told her that we were from NYC and had learned about her shop and the nabe from the Nabe Cookbook. We happily purchased it, and told her how much we adored it. Our excitement made her even more excited so much so that we were thanking each other until we left the shop (in fact, they followed us out of the shop while continuing to thank us!).

Remembering our visit with the Asamis at their shop, we opened the long-awaited package from Japan. The nabe was wrapped meticulously and with lots and lots of padding. There was no damage to our nabe, no scratch or broken pieces, it is as beautiful as the first time we saw it. We were so excited to see our NABE finally sitting on our dining room table, and wasted no time in inviting friends over to put it to use immediately!

Junmai Ginjo Sake Tasting

2007-03-10T18:03:00.000-05:00

Since we began keeping a record in 2004, we have drunk over 150 different sakes. But "drinking" and "tasting" are dramatically different activities. "Drinking" is done for pure enjoyment, usually (but not always) involves eating, and social interaction and/or camaraderie. "Tasting" is a more serious, scientific/analytical process requiring concentration to identify the characteristics of sake e.g. it's aromatics, flavor profile, etc. The first time we seriously "tasted" sake was during John Gauntner's Professional Sake Course in Tokyo earlier this year. The experience was eye opening for us, and we vowed to do more "tasting" when we returned home.

The limited selection offered by NYC wine shops defined the bounds of our comparison, but undaunted, we settled on three Junmai Ginjo sakes available in 300 ml bottles....Hakkaisan from Niigata, Tenryo Hidomare from Gifu, Meisousui from Miyagi. All three met the minimum (seimaibuai) qualification of having at least 40% of the outer shell of the rice used, milled (or polished) away and had similar levels of acidity. Each had been brewed using different rice strains and yeasts (for more details, click on the link at the end of this post).

The findings: (1) Hakkaisan had a rich woody and nutty flavor with hint of yogurt, which matched well with foods that have a salty and/or miso component as well as with a peppery green like argula. (2) Tenryu had a bright floral flavor with a hint of strawberry, which goes well with creamy flavors like mayonnaise or risotto, and tuna confit. Mustard flavors in food brought out the sweetness of the sake. (3) Meisousui had a very light and bright flavor. As the name suggests(Meisou means meditation), this sake was a very relaxed, quiet sake (in contrast to the boldness of the Tenryu), and it matched well with tomatoes and mayo flavors, but an even better pairing was braised daikon. The sake is very delicate that it maybe the best to drink it by itself or with a light dashi-flavored dish.

More detail on the tasting, click here for the tasting note.

Gougeres

2007-03-09T15:25:00.000-05:00

Our friend recently told us how much he enjoyed eating at Eleven Madison Park, one of Danny Meyer's famous restaurants. When we think of Eleven Madison, our first thought is the delicious gougeres that we were served in lieu of bread on our last visit (which sadly was some time ago).

Rick excitedly suggested trying to make them "ourselves" at home. Hiroko's reply was "WHO will make them?" Of course, we knew the answer... Rick went to buy the cheese and Hiroko whipped up the choux...

Gougeres

makes about 20

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 eggs

1/2 cup or more freshly grated Gruyere, or sharp Cheddar cheese

1/2 cup or more freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Combine the water, butter, and salt in a saucepan; turn the heat to medium high and bring to a boil. Cook, stiring, until the butter melts. Lower the heat, and add the flour all at once and cook, stiring constantly, until the dough holds together in a ball, about 5 mintues.

Remove from the heat, and add the eggs one at a time, beating hard after each addition. Beat the mixture until the dough is glossy, about 3~4 minutes. (This is a little bit of work if you are mixing by hands.)

Using a melon scoop or a teaspoon, drop the mixture onto the baking sheet and bake until light brown, about 15 minutes.

Cha Ca Fish

2007-03-03T16:34:00.000-05:00

Lately, we've been doing a lot of dining out so, deciding that we needed to go "light and lean" for a day or two, we visited Fish Tales, our favorite local fish store. There on display we spied some basa, or Vietnamese catfish. Sparking our sensory memory, we thought that a Vietnamese dish would be a perfect for our spice seeking palates! We then recalled how much we had loved the dill, tumeric, and fish sauce-perfumed dish, cha ca fish, prepared by diners at their tables at the eponymously named Cha Ca La Vong in Hanoi last winter. With the key ingredient in our possession, our subsequent search led us to a recipe on the Washington Post website.

With Hiroko's skillful preparation, we found the result to be so thoroughly authentic that we were momentarily transported back to the dingy but festive, smoke-filled restaurant in Hanoi. Only the owners' faded family portraits on the walls and 16 oz. bottles of Ha Noi beer on our table were missing!

Cha Ca Fish with Dill

Dipping sauce

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon chili-garlic sauce

3 tablespoons fish sauce

3 tablespoons water

Juice of 1 lime

For the fish

2 tablespoons fish sauce

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 tablespoon finely minced ginger

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 pound firm fish fillets cut into chunks

8 ounces thin dried rice noodles, softened in warm water and drained

2 cups coarsely chopped dill

5 scallions, cut into 2-inch lengths

3 cups shredded lettuce leaves

1 cup mint and cilantro leaves

For the dipping sauce: In a small bowl, mix the garlic, sugar and chili-garlic sauce to make a coarse paste. Add the fish sauce, water, and lime juice, stiring to dissolve the sugar. Set aside.

For the fish: In a bowl, combine the fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of oil, the ginger, turmeric, and salt, and mix well. Add the fish and toss to coat. Set aside.

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the remainig oil and heat, and add the dill to the pan to sizzles at once. Add the fish and cook on one side for about 2 minutes. Turn and cook 1 minutes. Add the remaining dill and the scallions and cook for another 1 mintues.

Divide the noodles among the serving bowls. Add the lettuce and mint and cilantro. Top each bowl with pieces of fish, and drizzle with the dipping sauce.

Kappabashi Dori

2007-02-24T12:15:00.000-05:00

We just received the package from Japan containing the bowls and plates we purchased in the Kappabashi neighborhood of Tokyo. We were as excited as children on Christmas Day when opening it to see what we had actually bought three weeks prior. Kappabashi-dori is known as the "kitchen street," where more than 170 restaurant and kitchen supply shops line an 800 meter stretch between Ueno and Asakusa. Anything you can think of (and much more) relating to the kitchen and food is found there in an almost infinite variety of sizes, colors, fabrications, etc. Looking for those plastic examples of food for your restaurant window? You can find them here. Chef uniforms, knives, pots and pans, plates, signs and banners, kitchen equipment of every imaginable type.. it's all found in Kappabashi!

We were looking for plates and bowls...something attractive, but not too expensive. Ideally speaking, we wanted different plates for different types of dishes. Unfortunately, the reality that we have to deal with is that like many other New Yorkers, we are "space challenged" i.e. where to store so many different kids of dishes?

Our first stop in Kappaboshi was Dengama, a discount yakimono shop for Japanese pottery like Arita-yaki, Kutani-yaki, Masiko-yaki, Mino-yaki, and Shigaraki-yaki. After brousing for about an hour, we settled on some noodle bowls, small plates, and large platter...all for one-half their original price. Fortunately, shipping came via the generosity of Hiroko's father!

We've enjoyed a number of ramen lunches in the bowls (which can also be used for serving), served hors d'oeurves to guests on the platter, and have found the small plates to be perfect for....well..."small plates."

Sushi at Araki

2007-02-08T14:52:00.000-05:00

Since we rarely eat it at home, we wanted to indulge ourselves with a special sushi experience in Tokyo. We asked our friends living in Tokyo for their recommendation and without hesitation they replied, "Araki." Araki is not in Tsukiji or Ginza where there are a great number of sushi restaurants which open their doors to customers from all over the world. Rather, it is off the beaten track in the residential town of Kaminoge, about 20 mintues west of Shibuya station by train, where its devotees must travel to prove their desire to eat the very best . Our friends warned us that Araki would not be easy to get to via public transportation. But, from our dining experience, that's usually a good sign. The more remote, the more interesting the place tends to be.

After getting off the train from Shibuya, we left Kaminoge station at 5:45PM with map in hand. Our reservation was promptly at 6PM, so we had little margin for error. We walked for about 10 minutes, winding our way through a network of dark, quiet residential streets. At about 5:55PM, we arrived at the location where the restaurant was SUPPOSED to be. We looked around, but saw no sign of Araki. Hiroko asked a couple who appeared to be waiting for a bus, if they knew where Araki was, and they pointed to the door directly behind us!

At 6PM, the door opened. By that time, the 10 people who had congregated outside practically stampeded through the door and quickly claimed their seats at the counter. We took the two remaining seats at the end and we all sat and waited for our chef to emerge from behind a curtain....After our drink orders were taken, he took his place behind the simple wooden counter. A serious, stern-faced man in his late 30's, he was assisted by an equally stoic, extremely adept young woman in her 20's.

The atmosphere was somewhat solemn, and we felt a bit like we were in a karate dojo where the sensei demonstrates his moves and the pupils observe in silence. Noticing a few exchanges of familiarity between the other customers and chef, it became obvious that they were all regulars. We were the outsiders, and though the staff was cordial (and spoke English to Rick), it was clear that this was to a certain extent, a club. The master chef would allow himself a slight smile now and then, but he never laughed. When he spoke (infrequently) it was curt phrases uttered in a soft voice. He was a man of a few words who was completely focused on his craft.

After painstakingly careful preparation, each offering was individually presented. We started with a variety of sashimi including hamachi, abalone, uni and iIkura, and aji (horse mackerel). The hamachi was so fatty and tender that Hiroko couldn't contain herself and after putting it in her mouth, broke the reverential silence with an exclaimatory "oishii!" The uni was sweet like panna cotta or custard, and it was the perfect compliment to the slightly salty ikura that it was paired with.

Following the sashimi we were served a succession of sushi; three different grades of tuna (maguro, chutoro, and otoro), river fish, shirako (everyone's favorite, codsperm), shrimp, squid, and at last anago. Everything that we put into our mouths was sublimely delicious, perfectly prepared and proportioned. And the shari (sushi rice) was the best we've ever tasted!

Alas, at precisely 7:50PM our "shift" was over. And, as the 8PM reservation group arrived and we prepared to retrace our path back to the station, all we could do was agree that Araki was without question, the perfect sushi experience we had sought.

Araki
Kaminoge Little Town 102

4-27-1 Nakamachi Setagaya-ku Tokyo

03-3705-2256

あら輝

東京都世田谷区中町4－27－1　上野毛リトルタウン102
（03）3705－2256

Ramen in Ebisu

2007-02-07T17:01:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, we have yet to find a ramen place in NYC that meets Hiroko's standards. So, of course we were determined to eat ramen while we were in Tokyo. While exploring the Ebisu area, we headed for one of its most famous ramen-ya's, a place called Chorori. Spartan in its decor (or lack thereof), Chorori is extremely small with just a couple of communal tables. With its reputation, as you might expect, it was packed with hungry lunch patrons! We found two seats next to two young women who were clearly savoring their ramen. On our other side, a young man was waiting for his order, while across from him an older man was smoking his post-ramen cigarette. The atmosphere only exacerbated our anticipation of what lay ahead for our noodle-craving stomachs.

We ordered a shoyu and a shio ramen (which we were advised to be the standards) from the manager, a 40ish man was busily running around taking orders and clearing tables. Within 5 minutes, our ramen arrived, and before the noodles could soften (horrors!) , we joyfully dug our chopsticks into the bowl to capture and slurp the first few strands of noodle. The noodles were medium thin, a little curly and white, with a perfect chewy, al dente texture. The shoyu ramen soup delivered a deep, rich mouthfilling flavor. In contrast, the shio ramen soup was light, yet also flavorful and loaded with "umami." Toppings were simple; a slice of roast pork, crunchy fresh bean sprouts, and snowpeas. The belly-soothingly hot ramen made our noses run and caused us to break a light sweat as we happily slurped away until sadly, we caught sight of he bottom of the bowl.

Chorori

4-22-11 Ebisu Shibuya-ku

03-3444-7387

ちょろり

東京都渋谷区恵比寿4－22－11

（03）3444－7387

Yuba Udon Noodles

2007-02-07T16:48:00.000-05:00

As we were walking around the Shirokane area of Tokyo, we found an old house just off a main street that had been turned into a restaurant named Sakura Sakura. The restaurant specializes in Kyoto-style dishes serving "yuba udon noodle" during lunch hours and kaiseki for dinner. It was just after 1pm on Sunday, and since both of us love and cannot get enough of yuba in any form, we immediately jumped at the opportunity.

We sat at a corner table with a space heater conveniently situated at our feet to keep our seat warm. The menu was a "build-your-own" style with a choice of noodles served either hot or cold, in soup or with dipping sauce. Plus, it also offered their special dish of noodles in sesame soup. There was also a long list of toppings to choose from, about 15 or so, ranging from scallion to tempura to slices of duck. Each order was accompanied by a bowl of mushroom rice and Japanese pickles.

Hiroko ordered the noodle in soup with scallions. Rick ordered the special noodles in sesame soup with scallion. Made from a mixture of yuba and flour, the noodles were thinner and not as springy as sanuki udon. They were delicate and soft and the soup broth was rich and aromatic...ub a word (Hiroko's) "beautiful." With hints of bonito and kelp flavors, the soup was light on salt and shoyu but delivered an abundance of dashi flavor. This "light flavored" soup is what Hiroko calls "Kansai style" (versus Tokyo or Kanto style which relies more heavily on shoyu).

Not to be overlooked, their rice was delicate and tasty as well. We devoured our lunch and then sat and savored it for a while longer over a nice cup of green tea. Through our visual sense, we had discovered a beautiful old house which yielded an equally beautiful sensory experience for our tastebuds, a bowl of yuba udon.

Sakura Sakura

5-15-10 Shirokanedai Minato-ku Tokyo

03-3440-7316

さくらさくら

東京都港区白金台5－15－10

（03）3340－7316

Soba for Breakfast?

2007-02-06T17:10:00.000-05:00

When you were a child, did your parents always tell you that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day?" If you want to see what people on the go eat first thing in the morning, the best place to in Japan is the train station. In NYC, it will most likely be coffee and bagels or muffins. In Japan...well, let's just say that we would never have guessed that what we found would far and away be the most popular breakfast...

At about 6:30AM at Shinagawa station in Tokyo, we searched for a bakery to buy our breakfast. Bakeries are as ubiquitous in Japanese rail stations as hot dog vendors on NY street corners. But at this hour, no kissaten (coffee shops) or bakeries were found to be open at such an early hour. At first our sole choice seemed to be a convenience store selling onigiri, sandwiches, and juices. Not thrilled with the prospect, we decided to take one more look around. It was then that we spied a soba stand that was not only open for business, it was packed with early riser salarymen. Well, nothing beats a bowl of steaming hot soba noodles in cold morning! Sleepy eyed salarymen were busy slurping the soba, their concentration focused inside of their closely held bowl. We bought the coupons at the door, and waited at the table to be served. Service was quick, we wordlessly and happily slurped our order, and we were out the door on our way to our train in 5 minutes.

We had learned the salaryman's secret for starting the day...soba is the "breakfast of champions."

Hida Beef

2007-02-01T16:24:00.000-05:00

Last year, thanks to our friend Yoshiko, we had the opportunity to enjoy our first Kobe beef (check previous post) "experience" in Osaka. On our most recent trip to Japan, we had the opportunity to taste Hida's variety in Takayama, Gifu prefecture, which is also famous for its beef. There, steers are raised in the meadows of the Hida plateau for more than 14 months. As with the product from Kobe, Hida beef is known for its fatty tissue and rich flavor (although from our limited experience, it isn't quite as rich or buttery as its Kobe counterpart).

In Takayama, we went to a small izakaya, and ordered Hida beef sashimi. The ultra-thin slices of fat-marbled raw beef were served with both salt and soy sauce for dipping. Tender and very fatty, the taste was not unlike chu toro, medium fatty tuna.

The following day, just before leaving Takayama, we came upon a shop selling Hida beef sushi. How could we not try it?! Each piece consisted of a slice of beef cooked briefy with a blowtorch and carefully placed onto sushi rice. It was a simple yet unbelievably delicious treat..the buttery fat perfectly mingling with the vinegar flavored sushi rice.

Needless to say (but we will anyway), Takayama left a great taste in our mouths!

Ainokura -- World Heritage Site

2007-01-31T17:08:00.001-05:00

Ainokura is in the Gokanyama district where villages of centuries old-style houses are scattered along the main route through the mountainous region of Toyama prefecture in north central Japan. Here in the village of Ainokura, nature is preserved and time is as frozen as the ground beneath the two-foot deep snow in winter. We found the village to be extremely authentic and well preserved owing to its status as a World Heritage Site declared by UNESCO in 1995. The style of houses found here called Gassho-zukuri, comprises an "A" shaped thatched roof made from straw. Currently there are 21 Gassho-zukuri houses nestled in Ainokura village.

Getting to Ainokura was quite a challenge. It required two trains and two buses from Tokyo to Nagoya, Nagoya to Takayama, Takayama to Shirakawa-go (another World Heritage Site), and finally from there to the remote village of Ainokura. Since it is an especially small village, Ainokura has very limited bus service. If we were to miss one connection in the chain, we would miss the only bus available to get us there. Knowing the precision needed in making our connections on time, we left Tokyo at 7am by the Nozomi Shinkansen (fastest bullet train in Japan) and transferred to the train from Nagoya to head north to Takayama, the largest city in the middle of Gifu prefecture. The Nagoya train to Takayama was delayed by 30 minutes, which nearly gave Hiroko a heart attack. Fortunately, the first bus that we needed to get us to Shirakawa-go waited for our late train (unbelievable for Japan). Fortunately for us, we were then able to successfuly make the transfer to the bus from Shirakawa-go to Ainokura. It was almost 2:30pm when we stepped into the gassho-zukuri house in which we were to stay the night.

We stayed in one of the oldest houses, Yusuke, which was built 1868. Now inhabited by the 5th generation of the same family. Shigeru Ikehata, a well-traveled professional photographer, runs the inn with his wife. As we were the only guests for that night, Ikehata-san regaled us with his fascinating stories, making our experience more of a homestay than that of just typical ryokan customers.

It was about 32 degrees outside, with 2-3 feet of snow covering the ground, so the house was cold. In Japanese houses past and present, there is no central heating system and in this rustic case, the only heat source was from Irori (fire in a central hearth). After our explorations outside, all we wanted to do was sit by the fire, drink hot tea, and bask in our before-dinner ofuro (Japanese hot tub, to simplify things tremendously).

That evening, dinner was served in front of the Irori. We were treated with dishes filled with different combinations of mountain vegetables, koi sashimi, and a river fish called Iwana. When futon-time came, we were handed bed warmers and retreated the refrigerator-cold room with freezing cold futon. We quickly got into the bed and hoping that the bedwarmers would do their job...which they did!

When morning came, the room was even colder. Hiroko (somewhat) jokingly said that her hair was covered with frost. We tucked our clothes under the covers of the warm futon to warm them up before putting them on our bodies. And, we quickly dressed and headed for the irori. After a breakfast of warm tofu, miso soup, rice, tsukemono, it was time for us to leave. We thanked our gracious hosts for their generosity and headed off into the early morning mountain mist for the bus stop to catch the bus to Shirakawa-go.

Our Sake Journey

2007-01-31T17:07:00.001-05:00

Almost exactly one year later, we returned to Japan. This time, our primary reason was to take John Gauntner's Professional Sake Course, an intensive 3-day affair of lectures, tasting, and eating dinners accompanied by a number of different sake.

Sake is very much a reflection of Japanese culture, where "aimai" or ambiguity is deeply woven into lives and personalities. Vagary rules. When it comes to gastronomy, anything goes as long as it sounds and tastes good. That's what we deal with in the world of Sake when it comes to both tasting and understanding the industry.

Junmai-shu (sake) has its own specific general aromatics and flavor profile characteristics, but there are always exceptions to the definition, which we all seek to make it easier for us to grasp and understand. To understand Sake is to understand Japanese culture. John taught us not only the technical side of sake brewing, classification, and tasting, but also the cultural aspect of sake drinking in Japan.

Tasting sake requires an immense amount of focus and concentration. There are aromatics, flavor profile, and texture to consider. With acidity, sweetness, bitterness, umami, aimami, and koku to ferret out with each experience, we had to focus on our tongues and mouths to isolate each quality and identify the flavor. Light and "feminine" or sturdy and "masculine?" Intensely fragrant or delicate? Viscous or etherial? Notes of mushroom, rose petal, banana, strawberry, apple, or pear? Simple, dry, or complex? As with wine, there is no end to the subtleties, nuances and the the adjectives to describe each uniquely created sake!

We tasted by yeast type, rice type, brewery, by classification (i.e. yamahai, honjozo, junmai, ginjo, daiginjo, etc.), age, serving temperature, and geographic region of origin. What we found fascinating was how variation in serving temperature can produce a transformation in aroma and flavor. A perfect illustration of this was a particular kura's Yamahai (a sake made by an ancient labor intensive method), which seemed to be everyone's favorite. Chilled, this sake was very strong with a nose of dried mushrooms. (Hiroko who hates dried shiitake mushrooms could not truely enjoy it). Remarkably, after warming, its flavor was transformed from the shiitake mushroom to that of a less intense (and for Hiroko, preferable) enoki mushroom. Although we'd read about the enjoyment of heating premium sake to various temperatures, this was our first actual tasting experience and it was definitely an eye opener!

Sake styles and types are as diverse as Japan's 47 prefectures, multiplied by the approximately 1,400 brewers, and compounded by the specific water of the brewery locale, yeast and rice types used, and proprietary brewing methods, just to name a few of the factors...you get the idea. If you're interested in learning more please either write us or check John's website for the most comprehensive resource on sake!

Sake World by John Gauntner

"No Knead Bread" from NYT

2006-11-29T15:12:00.000-05:00

Baking your own bread is difficult and time consuming, right? No longer! Mark Bittman shared his simple bread recipe in 11/8/06 issue of NYT. Hiroko was thrilled to try it and yes indeed, it is very easy...

After mixing the bread flour with salt, yeast, and water, let the dough rest for 18 hours. Then, wrap the dough in a corn meal-covered towel, and allow it to rest for another 2 hours or so. Heat a cast- iron pot with lid in the oven at 500 F for 30 mintues. Then, place the dough in the pot, close the lid, and bake for about 30 mintues. Closing the lid will create a steaming effect in the pot. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until the bread becomes a golden color and voila!

Bread was very moist with a chewy texture. Even our Italian friend Maria said that the bread is very similar to breads she used to eat at home in Modena. That's a huge compliment for an inexperienced bread maker! Thanks to Mark Bittman, anyone who is willing to try his recipe can now savor the joy of freshly baked homemade bread!

Salt Baked Fish

2006-11-29T14:56:00.000-05:00

One afternoon Hiroko exclaimed, "I want to cook a whole fish!" Being an omnivore who leans toward meat, Rick gave her a quick sideways glance, but he could see that she was determined to buy and cook a whole fish. For quite some time she had longed to try a recipe that she had found for Salt Baked Fish. For years we've heard that baking fish in salt is the one of most delicious and simple ways to enjoy fish. Rick surrendered to her wish and went shopping.

Since red snapper wasn't available that day, we chose pompano for the dish. After preparing a mixture of salt with egg whites, we placed the fish on the bed of the salt mixture and covered the fish with the rest, and then, baked the fish in 400 degree F oven for about 30 mintues.

When we cracked open the salt casing after 30 mintues, the fish meat was flavorful, moist, and tender. And as Hiroko had promised, it was a delicious way to eat a fresh fish.

Vacation in California (Yosemite)

2006-09-26T18:05:00.000-04:00

We just returned a hiking/food fest in California. After spending a few days hiking the breathtakingly vertical trails in Yosemite, we headed west for four days of diverse, delicious food in SF. Unfortunately, we lost our camera on our arrival in SF, so we have no pictures of our vacation! Too bad too since there was some spectacular scenery in Yosemite and equally gorgeous weather in San Francisco. Nevertheless, we have some great visual and sensory memories imprinted in our minds to carry with us (although it would be more interesting for you).

Our Yosemite visit was nothing less than fantastic! We had two full days in the park; on the first, we hiked short trails to Lower Yosemite Falls (a trickle at this time of year) and through the Mariposa Grove (of giant sequoias) and drove up to Glacier Point where we were to begin a more rigorous hike the next day. From that point overlooking the entire Yosemite Valley, the familiar glacial rocks, El Capitan and Half Dome, as well as the Nevada and Illiouette Falls, on day two, we hiked the 8.7 mile Panorama Trail. Half Dome is its signiture landmark, and it was majestic and beautiful. Shaped like a slice of watermelon, it is smooth and rounded on one side and sheer vertical cliff on the other. All along the winding Panorama Trail, we kept seeing the Half Dome at different levels (altitudes) and from new angles as we decended from 7200 ft. to 4000 ft. The final two mile segment of the Panorama, called the Mist Trail, runs along the waterfalls, and was by no means easy going. Following the near vertical drop of the falls is an unending trail of rock "steps" (and that is a VERY loose use of the term). In reality they weren't much more than what looked like a jumble of rocks and more rocks left by the last glacier of 3 million years ago. Given the strenuous demands and mental exhaustion (from having to focus on not twisting and ankle or falling) that we experienced we found it difficult to conceive of climbing the trail that we had descended. Hiroko became dizzy looking down and walking down the steps and the front thigh and shin muscles in my legs ached for the ensuing two days as if I had just made my first visit to the gym. In the end, it took us about 6 hours to finish the trail, we began the trail around 10:00 am and finished around 4 pm. Needless to say, we slept VERY well that night!

Sandwiches in San Francisco

2006-09-26T14:14:00.000-04:00

We walked around San Francisco looking for great eats. After reading blogs and reviews, we realized that we had to try the subs at Marina Sub.

Marina Sub, a non-descript sandwich shop owned by the same Asian man who makes an array of overstuffed submarine sandwiches (hero, grinder, hoagie...call it what you will) is located at the corner of Union and Steiner Streets in the Marina section of San Francisco. When we arrived at about 1PM, there were only a few customers waiting on line with a handful seated at one of the sparse tables, eating their sandwiches. What we discovered was...the man sure knows how to make sandwich! Of particular note, is the impressive way in which he peels and slices an avocado. The man was a finely tuned machine; taking orders, making and toasting sandwiches, and then wrapping them with no wasted effort. It was the fusion of art and efficiency!

There are 3 sizes to choose from: small (5 inches), medium (7 inches), and large (10 inches). After having some time to observe while waiting, we opted for sharing a large "Italian" on which he first put mustard on one side the large Italian style baguette (we almost stopped him but are glad that we didn't), to which he then added cappicola, salami, mortadella, and provolone. He then put them in the oven to toast. While he was building our sandwich, he also prepared several phone ordered sandwiches and took orders from the next customers in line. When the sandwich was toasted, he added mayonnaise, shredded lettuce, tomato, and Italian dressing, then using his long knife closed the bread tightly and neatly wrapped it.

The sandwich was as tasty as we had anticipated from observing its construction. The bread was soft and lightly toasted, and the contents blended perfectly with the flavors of the mustard, mayonnaise and Italian dressing. It was well worth the walk there and we enjoyed the rare good fortune of a relatively short wait. Because, by the time we left, the line was out the door and around the corner!

Banh Mi in San Francisco

2006-09-22T14:43:00.000-04:00

Our passion for banh mi is no secret. As our blog profile proclaims we look for this delicious Vietnamese sandwich everywhere we go. Aside from our favorite local shops in NYC (Saigon Banh Mi, and Hanco's), our global search has led us to sample them in Seattle and Portland as well as in Hanoi and Vientianne (Laos). Most recently on a trip to Yosemite and San Francisco, we had the opportunity to add a new favorite to our list. Hiroko's usual exhaustive research led us to the consensus choice for best banh mi among San Francisco's eating enthusiasts...Saigon Sandwich. So, of course, we had to try it.

The shop, located on Larkin street in Mission, is small and simple. When we got there, no line was formed and only one man was eating his banh mi at a, make that THE small counter, in the front window. The proprietor, sweeping the floor, without missing a broomstroke, took our order for the special banh mi, i.e. doc viet.

Without a doubt this is the best we have eaten so far. Yes, even better than the hallowed Saigon Banh Mi on Mott Street, we thought. With a generous amount of the tasty mix of pate, grilled seasoned pork, pickled carrot and daikon, cilantro, and price was $2.75! While we were savoring the sandwich, the line grew longer and longer. We seemed to got there just in time!

Chocolate cake

2006-09-10T16:08:00.000-04:00

A cake is not Hiroko's favorite dessert to make. She is scared to make sponge cake because she doesn't own an electric mixer (which is a most useful gadget to have when whipping and mixing butter, egg, and sugar). That's her excuse not to attempt baking cakes. However, she realized that if she never tries, then she will never improve her skill, either.

After avoiding her loan baking fear for many years, she was moved to face it when Rick requested a chocolate cake for his birthday. At first, she didn't really want to make it, but then she decided it was time to take on the challenge.

Instead of the plain and typical chocolate sponge cake, which required her to whip egg and whites, Hiroko discovered a recipe for the cake using buttermilk, which didn't require whipping the eggs.

This recipe from December 2005 issue of Food & Wine uses coffee and butter milk to create a moist, rich and fudgy cake. She used Scharffenberger's bittersweet chocolate for her frosting and it was very dense and VERY chocolatey. As you can see in the photograph above, it wasn't the most professional looking, but it was delicious and it completely satisfied our chocolate craving. It was Hiroko's first try and she was happy with the results for a first effort. And now that she has overcome her fear of baking chocolate cakes, her only remaining fear is maintaining her waistline...

Duck

2006-09-10T16:03:00.000-04:00

As Rick's birthday approached, Hiroko wanted to create something she had never prepared before. She went through cookbook after cookbook and found a relatively simple recipe for DUCK. It can be prepared in advance, which is allowed more time for the preparation of the other dinner dishes and dessert.

The aforementioned recipe is for Chilled Duck with Zinfandel Sauce from Food & Wine's 2004 Cookbook. After browning the duck breast in a cast iron pan, she placed it in a ziploc bag containing a Zinfandel, mirin, and soy sauce mixture. The following day, she cooked it in what trendy chefs are currently calling the "sous vide" method by placing the bag in a pot of boiling water for 10 minutes. Once cooked, the bag with the duck and marinade is plunged into a bowl of ice water and chilled for 45 mintues, and then popped it in the refrigerator to marnate overnight.

Just before the dinner, Hiroko warmed up the duck and sauce, and served it by placing the sliced duck breast on each plate and drizzling it with the warmed zinfandel sauce.

It was most and delicious...in a word, fantastic! Somehow, the picture we took does do it justice. You will just have to trust us and try it yourself with a few glasses of Martinelli Jackass Vineyard Zinfandel to simulate Rick's best birthday meal in memory!

Corpse Flower

2006-08-12T18:41:00.000-04:00

This is the infamous Corpse Flower, which is known to produce a stinky odor similar to that of decaying flesh (now you know where the "corpse" appellation comes from). First discovered in 1878 by a scientist Odoardo Beccari in Sumatra, and formally know as Amorphophallus titanum, it was thought by the local people to be carnivorous because of the powerfully pungent smell. In fact, the odor exuded by the plant was intended to attract carrion beetles and small bees that would spread its pollen. The Corpse flower last bloomed in NY in 1939. It's anticipated blooming has received extensive coverage in the New York press this week.

This particular flower, housed at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, bloomed on Friday, August 11. When we saw it on Saturday at around 11am, the noxious smell had (mercifully) dissipated. Although we arrived a little too late to experience the infamous odor, we were able to see the unusual looking flower, which blooms so infrequently and for such short duration (and has provoked so much controversy over time....women weren't allowed to view it in the Victorian era).

Berries

2006-07-18T17:42:00.000-04:00

Berries are in season now! In either supermarket or farmer's market, we are greeted by sweet aroma of berries. We've seen a one pound package of strawberries for $2.99 or 2 pound package of blueberries for $3.99.

Rick eats blueberries on his daily bowl of cereal in the morning but, never are they as tasty as they are right now. But with three pounds of irresistably fat, ripe, deep colored berries to eat, what to do with them before they spoil...what a travesty that would be! Solution? Make berry tarts!

Hiroko has been working on perfecting her tartmaking skills for a year. And the more tarts she makes, the better they get! Lately she has finally confessed (modestly) that she is finally comfortable with her tart shell.

She makes a sweet pastry shell from flour, butter, eggs, sugar, and ice water. And, for the filling....... lots and lots of berries! If you'd like to know her recipe, let us know. How can you resist one that has been a year in the making? Especially during berry season.

JR Pottery

2006-07-18T17:25:00.000-04:00

Since we returned from Japan, we've become fascinated by and interested in Japanese style pottery. We tend to go for unusually shaped and handmade "one of the kind" designs. Recently, Rick's Uncle Carl generously sent us beautiful Bizen-yaki plates made by American man named John Ray. He studied and honed his pottery skills in Okayama, which is reknowned for Bizen-yaki.

We love the organic, earthy shape, texture, and feeling of the plate. We were told that it is a sushi plate, but why just limit its use to sushi when its design makes any food presented look and taste delicious. We've use them for serving appetizers or salads (no sushi as yet).

Check out John Ray's website to enjoy some of his beautiful work!

Ugly Dumplings

2006-06-29T14:36:00.000-04:00

Our favorite quick and cheap lunch place is Fried Dumpling in Lower Manhattan. It is a small storefront and Chinese ladies handmake the dumplings on site. It is one of the best bargains in New York, $1 for 5 dumplings! You can eat them in the shop at a tiny counter with soy/vinegar and/or hot sauce supplied in recycled squeeze bottles or get them to go. A bag of 30 frozen dumplings, is a whopping $5!

After observing the ladies making the dumplings, Hiroko decided to make her own from scratch. She consulted dumpling/gyoza recipes from websites to cookbooks, and picked the gyoza recipe from one of her Japanese cookbooks.

She started by making the dough, mixing the dry ingredients with warm water. After pounding and kneading for 10 minutes, the dough reached the proper texture approximating that of an earlobe....this guideline courtesy of the cookbook. Now it was time to allow the dough to rest in the refrigerator for an hour. While the dough napped, she prepared the stuffing using ground chicken and pork and mixing the meat with minced ginger, scallions, and garlic.

So far, it seemed very simple and easy. The struggle began when she tried to roll out the dough into small individual wrappers. She rolled the dough into a log about 1-inch in diameter and then cut it into 1-inch slices. She then carefully rolled each out into a thin crepe-like sheet. The recipe made it look as if these would be easily rolled out into a round shape. However, everytime she rolled out the dough, it was neither round nor square. After awhile, her rolling skill improved a little, but the wrappers were still far from being a nice round shape.

She filled the wrappers with the seasoned meat stuffing, but they resembled ugly croissants more than dumplings. Rick suggested to cut the dough using a round cookie cutter, so that the wrappers will have uniform shape.

Hiroko fried the dumplings in grapeseed oil while Rick made the simple soy/vinegar dipping sauce. After tasting it, we realized that Hiroko had forgotten to add salt to the stuffing mix. Although the use of some salt is recommended we found that once they made contact with the dipping sauce and entered our mouths, our first homemade ugly dumplings tasted beautifully juicy and delicious!

Hiroko gained a new appreciation for the skill of the dumpling ladies at Fried Dumpling. Each return visit presents her with another opportunity to observe their technique and marvel at how they roll out the nice round wrappers.