Hiroyuki

Jason Perlow recently started this thread in the Japan Forum. According to this webpage, tonkotsu soup is similiar to baitan (白湯). Can anyone tell us how to make baitan (paitan)?

Anyone want to attempt to translate this to English? I think making homemade Tonkotsu broth is a worthy endeavor, if we can get a procedure locked down. ← OK, I'll see what I can do.

In her recent, fabulous foodblog, helenjp showed us her home-made hanabira-mochi. http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...dpost&p=1096189 My sister-in-law visited us yesterday, and kindly gave us this box of wagashi: Sho (pine), chiku (bamboo), and bai (plum) wagashi and rabit ones. Surprisingly, the box also contained several hanabira-mochi. It had white an in it.

In Japan, Sapporo, Kitakata, and Hakata Ramens are said to be the San Dai (Three Major) Ramens. Hakata Ramen is one of Kyushu ramens, which are said to originate from Kurume Ramen. Links to some websites you may find interesing: http://www3.city.kurume.fukuoka.jp/e-kurum...joy/index-e.htm http://r.gnavi.co.jp/fl/en/a384118/ Yes, it is. I'm not sure, but I think it's eaten in small towns as well.

I hope you get well soon, Helen. We still need you. But..., YOU bought pickles from Kuromonya?? How come? You don't make all pickles yourself? Wakeme... I remember you mentioned that your husband liked quality wakame from Hokkaido. Just out of curiosity, what characters did son1 write, acrobatically on the kotatsu? My son's calligraphy assignments for winter holidays were Bokushi (ぼくし, the name of a writer who was born here in Shiozawa in the Edo period) and Takeuma (竹うま, stilt). And, what did YOU eat for dinner, Helen?

Nagata? You mean Kurume? Tonkotsu ramen is said to originate in Kurume, Fukuoka prefecture. I don't think there are such serious ramen lovers in the Japan Forum. Did you contact BON for any information? Thighbone, often referred to as genkotsu (fist) in Japanese because the joint resembles a human fist, and other bones like backbone. Here's a recipe IN JAPANESE: http://www.mendo.jp/origin/040612/soup.html Use this site to translate the webpage into English: http://www.excite.co.jp/world/english/web/ Good luck, Jason!

I thought about commenting on how elaborate your 7-herb congee recipe was, but that would be insulting to a serious cook like you, so I didn't. I just boiled all the herbs in boiling water and some salt for a few minutes before cutting and putting them in the congee. I even found a recipe that says to finely cut the herbs and put them in the congee five minutes before turning off the heat.

Some of the foodstuffs you showed in your photos are quality ones, such as tokusen (choice) soy sauce, mutenka (additive-free) shinshu miso, and sake made from rice only. Do you use such quality foodstuffs regularly? How about mirin? Do you use real mirin for every recipe that calls for 'mirin'? As for me, I'm getting more and more indifferent to additive-free, organic, and other healthy products, now that my children are bigger (still 9 and 6, though). Don't blame me just because I use fake mirin for every purpose. I have to support my family on my meager income!

I know how he feels... Talking of exams, could you tell me what options are available to your sons after they finish high school? To keep this post food-related , I'll ask this question: Do you want to send them to culinary school after they finish high school?

I like that particular brand too, partly because it contains no preservative or coloring agent. I used to buy it often when my children were smaller, but not any more because it's rather expensive. Sorry you don't like gyoniku (fish meat) sausage; it contains no preservative or coloring agent, either. It's a favorite of every Japanese, including my family, and it's cheap! I didn't know you were going to make tsubu an too. I guess I better keep my mouth shut. Can't wait to see what you are going to do with the three types of an!

Your home-made koshi an looks good! Nothing like home-made an! Store-bought an is just too sweet for my taste. 200 g... Hmm, that's about right. Anyway, what are going to make with your delicate koshi an? Some sort of wagashi (traditional Japanese sweet)? I must say, however, that I still like tsubu an, which may be rustic but is much easier to make! As for the size of the kitchen, I think it's something that grows on you. The super-mini kitchen in my resort condo was much more efficient than my new, larger kitchen, requiring much fewer steps. I still miss the super-mini kitchen!

Can you get decent hegi-soba in your area? Is it greenish? I can't get decent dry hegi-soba even in my area. My family always go to a local soba shop whenever we want to eat hegi-soba. Did you buy all the herbs individually? I made 7-herb congee for lunch today, using a pack of herbs, which cost 350 yen . By the way, say hello to your toaster oven!! You know I have a new fish grill in my new kitchen, but I have never used it so far. I still use the toaster oven to grill a fish, etc., singing the song, "Old habits die hard...".

How often do you make takoyaki? Do you still have a liking for Kansai (Western Japan) foods? Name some of your favorite Kansai foods. As you know, takoyaki is mainly an Osaka thing, and I'm not a big fan of it or okonomiyaki. I'm a fan of pizza!

Oh ?! But I shouldn't be surprised. Kita Kogane was (and still is?) a nice place to live in, and that's one of the reasons why my parents and I decided to buy a house there when we were forced out of our house in Tokyo by a jiageya (land shark?) back in the economic bubble period. Another reason: One of my father's sisters lived in an apartment on that road! Interesting observation. Japanese do love to believe that their cuisine is the most healthiest in the world, except the high intake of salt. Take for instance the book published recently, titled "Japanese Women Don't Get Fat or Old." Oh, don't they?

OK, I see. I still have no idea what it is, so I just sent an inquiry to that restaurant.

Are you referring to the Taimeiken-style omuraisu? http://www.geocities.jp/backen_records/tra...kyo/taimei.html Access the site and position the cursor on the omuraisu to see what happens. Omuraisu thread on eGullet: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...ndpost&p=711025 Thank you for the photos!! No, the landscape has changed so much... SATY was still under construction when I moved from Matsudo. And the guy at Kuromonya... Yeah, I know him, I know him!!! In fact, he is the very person I wanted to see! He was a lovable man and a nodding acquaintance of mine. And I really liked Kuromonya's 'daikon no tamari zuke', 350 yen at that time, a little pricey but very tasty. After I moved to Shiozawa, I once craved it so much I phone the shop and ordered some. I got new year's cards from them for a few years. Never expected to see the man... on eGullet!! Thank you so much, Helen. YOU MADE MY DAY.

I really don't know anything about the cuisine of New Zealand. Can you make something peculiar to your country? Thanks for the photos of your yuubako and osechi ryori. They bring back old memories... It's surprising that your yuubako looks as good as new.

Kamaboko is basically a pureed fish paste. You can read more about it on this thread. ← At the risk of drifting slightly off-topic: could anybody tell me why kamaboko is always packaged on those little wooden boards? I'm assuming they're traditional, but I was wondering if they had a functional purpose. ← The primary purpose is to remove excess water in the steaming and cooling processes. Helen: As for ibaraki, I knew you were going to say something like that. How about this one: Akihabara or Akibahara? Akihabara! Some girls here also refer themselves as ore (not oRE but Ore) . Could I have some pictures of Hondoji temple (also known as Ajisai Dera), the two pickle shops called Kuromonya and Akamonya on the approach to that temple, and the recent developments around Kita Kogane Station?? Do you remember that I lived in Matsudo more than a decade ago? I'd like to see how things have changed...

According to today's Yomiuri Shimbun, at least seven people, all elderly, died choking on mochi in the Kanto area alone. In Japan, everyone knows this risk, but these fatal accidents are repeated each year...

The correct pronunciation of that prefecture is ibaraki not ibaragi. Sorry for nitpicking . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibaraki_Prefecture As a native Japanese, I didn't realize that a kotatsu could be topic of such great interest. We have one in our house, but we use it as a low table, with no covering. My wife sometimes says she misses a kotatsu and wants to use ours as a kotatsu, but every time she says so, I talk her out of it because I'd hate all the mess around the kotatsu. Besides, we have a powerful, commercial FF type kerosene fan heater. Who wants a kotatsu then? Could you tell us a little bit more about the osechi ryori you had for oshogatsu?

Not that I know of. A slice of lemon is usually attached next to shredded cabbage, though.

It's nice to see you blogging again, Helen. Wow, I can see a bag of rice, and that's koshihikari from Niigata! Did you go on a splurge because it's oshogatsu?? And the bag of rice cakes... I usually buy much cheaper ones. Who is going to have the Pocky? Does the konkun milk taste better than other brands?

I got no clue from the website you provided a link to. Are you suggesting that the 'yakiniku no tare' you tasted there is not the same as regular ones??

Nothing special... Like you did, my wife soaked it in water to remove the salt, cut it into manageable sizes, sprinkled katsuo bushi (dried bonito flakes) and put store-bought men tsuyu (noodle soup).

First of all, I'm not a big fan of osechi ryori. They are meant to be preserved foods and are heavily seasoned with salt, soy sauce, and sugar. I asked my wife to buy the osechi ryori that she wanted to have, and she bought kuromame, tazukuri, kamaboko, and konbu rolls with salmon in them. My wife made chikuzen ni (not an osechi ryori), and I simmered chestnuts with some sugar instead of making kurikinton and made atsuyaki tamago instead of date maki (store-bought date maki is just too sweet for us and is rather expensive). *** Forgot to say we also had kazunoko (herring roe) that we had received as an oseibo (year-end gift).