Hiroyuki

3 gou (540 cc) regular rice (1 gou = 180 cc) 1 pack hiratake mushrooms (buna shimeji or maitake mushrooms) 1/2 carrot 1 aburaage 45 cc soy sauce 30 cc sake 5 cc mirin 1. Wash rice and leave it in a sieve for at least half an hour. 2. Rinse hiratake mushrooms and drain. 3. Finely cut carrot. 4. Cut aburaage horizontally into two parts and then cut them vertically into pieces of about 5 mm (1/5 inch) in width. 5. Put rice in a rice cooker and add soy sauce, sake, and mirin. 6. Add hiratake, carrot, and aburaage. 7. Add water up to the 3-gou level and stir the ingredients. 8. Turn on the cooker. My wife often skips the "leave it in a sieve..." part of step 1, but the difference is not discernable.

My son likes all kinds of mushrooms. Yesterday, hiratake (oyster) mushrooms were sold for 298 yen per pack, so I bought one and made hiratake takikomi gohan for tonight's supper.

Thank you for your very informative reply, BottomBracket. >How long did you rest your coffee after roasting? I made the first brew right after the roasting. I should have known better. I made the second brew one day later. >Anyway, freshly roasted coffee when brewed right away is still superior to any store-bought bean, in my opinion. That relieves me. >You can use a cheap candy thermometer, ... I'll ask Nakagawa of Flavor coffee how I can possibly attach a thermometer to the milk can roaster. He is my mentor now. >I use a West Bend Poppery hot air popcorn popper, I found this site: http://www.spacestar.com/users/dwaterfi/equip.html Very interesting. >Finally, have you read the book Home Coffee Roasting by Kenneth Davids? I think you'll like it a lot...... I'm sorry I haven't. I don't think I can purchase that book unless I go to a large store in Tokyo. I live in such a small town... phaelon56, >Very nice Hiroyuki - good to see such progress! Was tghat ablend of beans or all one varietal? Mocha only. I know what you are talking about. Uneven roasting! That's due to my lack of experience. Nakagawa has already informed me that there are two ways of shaking – one to heat the beans and the other to prevent uneven roasting. I want to do another roasting, but the recent earthquake and subsequent aftershocks have kept me from doing it.

So what's it like? ← GOOD QUESTION! My wife doesn't care for dry wine, and I don't want to drink sweet wine. This one is perfect for us; not too sweet and not too dry. Well-balanced.

I don't spend 3000 yen or more on a bottle of wine. I used to buy imported wine in the price range of 500 to 1000 yen per bottle. Now that I am stingier, I rarely buy imported wine, either. Currently, I am a fan of Echigo Shiozawa, 1,210 yen per bottle, which is produced by Echigo Winery and can be purchased in Shiozawa town only. I only buy it for a special occasion. My wife and I drank a bottle on our wedding anniversary, October 10. Now, the bottle is my avatar.

All victims were 1) Above their 50s, 2) Had kidney ailments, and 3) Ate angel's wing mushrooms before they died. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is currently investigating this matter. I'll report on the findings as soon as they become available. In the meantime, those who have kidney ailments are advised not to eat angel's wing mushrooms. Angel's wing mushrooms are called sugi hira take (lit. 'cedar flat mushroom') in Japanese, but commonly known as hataha here in Niigata. The people here have eaten them for centuries. Both my son and I like them and will continue to eat them despite the incidents.

Get a bottle from Echigo Winery! http://www3.ocn.ne.jp/~ewine75/sub1.html

It's not poisonous. I'll report on it later.

It's probably the high population density in Japan, especially in urban areas, that gives Muffin that impression.

Thank you, MGLoyd, for your compliment. With this low-tech method, you have all control over your coffee beans and you can closely check how the beans are dried, reduced in size, change in color, expand, crack, and become oily. That's interesting. And, I have learned a lot from my mistakes!

Thank you for sharing the info. Although I was born and bred in Shibuya ward, I have never seen or heard of this product. I find that the sauce is a specialty of Shibuya. The manufacturer mainly produces sauce for commercial use, but produces three types for home use. These home-use types are available from limited sources only: 1. Tsu no Kuni Ya liquor shop 津の国屋酒店 東京都渋谷区富ヶ谷2-20-14キャッスルＴ１階 tel:03-3467-6517　　fax:03-3467-6527 2. Shop inside the NHK Broadcast Station 3. Candy Pull http://www.shibuchika.jp/candypull/main.html They are all located in Shibuya ward. torakris, I wonder if you bought a bottle.

That really depends on the person. In my case, I probably go to one of those shops two or three times a year, only to buy a gift before visiting someone. As for mattcha, I never drink mattcha at home; I drink sencha only.

This roaster can roast up to 150 g (1/3 of a pound) of green beans at a time. 1. At first, set the heat high. You may have to control the heat later so that first crack occurs in 15 minutes. 2. Shake the roaster once per second in two ways as appropriate – shaking it as you would when making chahan (fried rice) in a wok and shaking it vertically. When first crack occurs, shake it vertically only. Roasting progresses as follows: 3 to 5 minutes: Chaff starts to come off the beans. 15 minutes: First crack occurs. The crack must be strong. If the heat is low, the crack is weak. 3. When roasting is completed, transfer the beans to a strainer. Cool them down with a fan so that the roasting does not progress any longer.

Thank you, melonpan. You just place the roaster on top of the radiator fan, like this:

This is the 4th attempt. The best result ever, aromatic, flavorful, and satisfying. 17-minute roasting.

Are you sure that the link is right?

watering gum? this is a new one for me! I really should pay more attention when shopping..... why on earth would you want your mouth to water??? the homepage for Glico doesn't mention the 6 special ingredients.... ← According to this page, http://www.ezaki-glico.net/watering/uruoi/index.html (Japanese only), this product contains watering components made from six different organic acids. The page also says: It's not only hair and skin that requires "moisture". When your mouth dries, germs that produce smell become active.

I agree with torakris. Suttara hito-tsubu (Take one after smoking)! Ingredients include herbal extract, turmeric extract, and vitamin C, which moisten your throat, and champignon extract, which prevents bad breath.

How to use the can roaster: based on http://www.flavorcoffee.co.jp/flavor3b.html Requirements: Stove or portable stove Roaster Fan Stainless steel strainer Cotton work gloves Stopwatch (not shown in the photo) 6 minutes later 9 minutes later Control the heat so that first crack occurs 15 minutes later Radiator fan that Nakagawa of Flavor coffee made especially for me, so powerful that it cools just-roasted beans in less than five minutes: Text later.

I went to Hida Takayama for the high school excursion. All I can remember about the foods I had there is goheimochi . It's a bit off-topic, but let me stress that Shirakawa-go is designated as a World Heritage site, as described in one of the links provided by torakris http://www.kankou-gifu.or.jp/en/07/01.html I love those wooden houses...

Quite frankly, I can't answer your questions. I'm sure you know more about roasting and coffee in general than I do. I'm a beginner... I'm interested in your modified popper. Perhaps you could post a photo of it along with a brief description.

I thoroughly enjoyed the photos. Thank you for sharing. One question: Do you like vending machines?

How to make a can roaster based on http://www.flavorcoffee.co.jp/flavor3.html Parts: 1 milk powder can, 13 cm (5.1 in.) in diameter and 18 cm (7.1 in) in height 1 wooden stick, 17 to 20 cm (6.7 to 7.9 in.) in length, for use as a handle 2 stainless steel bolt, 6 mm (0.24 in.) in diameter; one 7 to 15 cm (2.0 in.) in length and the other 16 to 20 cm (6.3 to 7.9 in.) 8 nuts (or 12 if attaching an optional heat shield) Optional: 1 metal sheet, 10 cm (4.7 in.) by 30 cm (11.8 in.), for use as a heat shield Tools: Hammer Nail, 2 to 3 mm in diameter Drill Punch Note: If the can is coated on the inside, burn the coating off before use. Procedure: 1. Make 31 holes on the bottom of the can: a. Determine the center of the bottom of the can. b. Draw 3 concentric circles with 2, 4, and 5.5 cm (0.8, 1.6, 2.2 in.) in radius. c. Using a punch, mark 6, 12, and 12 equally-spaced hole centers along the circumferences of the respective circles, and 1 at the center of the bottom, thus 31 in total. d. Make holes, using a hammer and a nail, NOT a drill, from the OUTSIDE. The reason for this is to make burrs on the inside of the can, which facilitates chaff removal. 2. Attach a handle and a heat shield (optional): a. Using a drill, make a 6 mm (0.24 in.) diameter hole at a location 1 to 2.5 cm (0.4 to 1.0 in.) apart from the bottom of the can and another at a location 3 to 5 cm (1.2 to 2.0 in.) apart from the top. b. Bend the metal sheet at a right angle along the 18 cm (7.1 in.) line from the top. Sorry, no more details. Please refer to the drawing below.

Sorry, my daughter asked me to read her a book before I could finish typing all the necessary information. As you say, katsuo bushi and strips of nori on top. The ingredients include onions, buna shimeji mushrooms, cod roe, and Japanese sake. I poured store-bought men tsuyu (noodle soup), a condensed type, just before eating. I selected this Japanese-style spaghetti for posting because I thought it would be less offensive to some of you than the napolitan spaghetti drowned in ketchup.

Tonight's supper: Japanese-style cod roe spaghetti