Hiroyuki

Thanks for your reply, raji, but I really didn't expect a reply. Well, I just wanted to imply that traditional sushi shops (sushi-ya in Japanese) are special in some ways in Japan, so that I could sympathize those who have had miserable experiences in sushi shops in New York or elsewhere. When I was in my early teens and my mother was in her late 30s or early 40s, we had lunch at a sushi-ya after visiting a grave. There were no other customers in that shop if I remember correctly. We sat at the counter and ordered a set meal. The chef started making sushi one piece at a time. We thought that we each had only seven pieces (we talked about this later, and my mother also thought she had only seven), when the chef said he served all the eight pieces. And the last one was really bad. (I didn't eat it because I didn't like it, and my mother had mine. She later told me it was bad.) After we left the shop, my mother said something like, "He made a fool of us." Once is enough for an experience like this, and I usually avoid sitting at the counter of a sushi-ya, even at my age. I can't fully explain why sushi-ya are allowed to treat customers badly. They can be too proud of themselves, and they can show their pride in some unreasonable way. They can look down on customers according to sex, age, social status, how they order sushi, their (chefs') preferences, and their state of mind. I can't think of any other type of eatery in Japan where the chef can treat customers in such an unreasonable way. Sushi itself is special food for the Japanese. We have it on auspicious occasions, like someone's birthday, someone's success in entering school, and someone's promotion in his or her company. Conveyor-belt sushi restaurants have changed our sushi eating habits considerably (we now eat it more often just like other types of food), and they also have changed the bad behavior and practices of sushi-ya. For example, fewer sushi-ya now put "jika" (market price) tags on their walls. I hope that despite the bad treatment you might receive in some top-end sushi-ya, you keep on exploring the wonderful world of sushi if you so wish.

That must be a good question, although I can't give you an answer. When I was in Tokyo, I had no idea what the toshitori-zakana was. When I got married and my wife first told me that salmon was the toshitori-zakana in Niigata, I replied, "What is it? " But, when I was small, my mother usually bought a whole salmon (aramaki-zake or -jake) near the end of the year.

I found it! This post and subsequent ones will clarify what sembei are: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...dpost&p=1258866 There are sembei made from rice and those made from wheat flour. I like koyo (autumn color), too! Momiji (maple) leaves! Red, yellow, and green!

I checked the ozoni recipe and was a bit surprised that it called for buri, instead of salmon. As you know, the "toshitori zakana" 年取り魚 (fish eaten on New Year's Eve) is usually salmon in Kanto and yellowtail (buri) in Kansai. While talking with the okamisan (chef's wife) at the traditiona sushi shop I frequent, I learned that in her hometown (Shibata city, Niigata), they have both salmon and yellowtail! Lucky people!

Oh, it's a shame! I wanted to read your foodblog! I totally agree with your comments about department store restaurant floors. I have never had luck there myself. Yes, yawaraka (without the final i, to be exact). You must be the first one that has shown a photo of a washlet here on eGullet! I'm glad that I can see your pretty mom. Do post a photo of yourself in your next post!

But, uh... isn't this obvious? Shinju, didn't you tell me you could read Japanese?? This one came up first when I googled tenmenjan in katakana. http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%94%9C%E9%9D%A2%E9%86%A4 It says it is black miso made from wheat flour, salt, and a special malt.

I kind of understand what you mean, but do you think that the Japanese stop eating tuna in a day? Everyone hopes and expects that problems will be solved scientifically. Did I answer your question?

If any of you are interested: http://www.a-marine.co.jp/en_top/index.html Related story by the Japan Times: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20040507a3.html

Just curious, does anyone have any idea about the food cost percentage at Yasuda and other traditional sushi shops in the United States? In Japan, the food cost percentage is about 30% at normal restaurants, but it's much higher, about 40 to 50%, at traditional sushi shops. Moreover, it is said that if you kept on ordering toro only, the sushi shop would close down, which means that for toro nigiri, the food cost percentage is very high. In fact, a sushi shop can lose money for every toro nigiri it makes when the toro price is extremely high. Just wanted to tell you that running a sushi shop can be very tough.

Yes, in almost all teishoku ya 定食屋 in Kanto, too. Personally, I don't like it because it quickly seeps through the korokke and other fried item.

I was like that friend of yours when I was small, but not with tonkatsu but with korokke. Somehow, I grew out of that habit when I got older.

It's very, very wrong. From Wiki (believe at your own risk) In Japan you can buy a kind of powder that you put into warm oil that causes the oil to solidify. I usually use that, then throw my solidified oil out in the trash. As for deep-frying, I, too, make my initial temperature about 20C higher than the temperature I want to fry at, so when I put my food in, the oil won't cool too much. ← Really? I don't. I have sometimes wondered who wants to spend money just to dispose of waste. Like I said somewhere else, I usually use used milk cartons to dispose of used oil, and I try not to dispose of oil by reusing it.

One more thing: Today, I asked why he didn't have salmon (I had been wondering about this). Here is what he said: King salmon has a strong smell, and I don't like it. That's why I don't offer it. I offer sakura masu (cherry salmon) and others (I forgot) when they are available. Let me add that traditionally, salmon was not offered in edomae zushi (edo-style sushi) shops (due to parasite problems, I guess), but it's now a very popular neta (topping) in conveyor sushi restaurants. (My daugher likes salmon better than tuna.) In traditional sushi shops and conveyor sushi restaurants, they usually use the word salmon (サーモン in kana) rather than sake (Japanese word for salmon). I don't know exactly why, but I think this is in order to distinguish fatty salmon from other species of salmon.

Correction: Not in the fridge but in the freezer. Coincidentally, Sukiyabashi Jiro in Tokyo, which has become very famous since it gained three stars in the Michelin Guide, employs a similar method, as I learned weeks ago from a NHK TV program. Jiro-san first grills bonito over burning straw, and then he puts out the fire to smokes the bonito. Then, he puts the bonito in the freezer, not in an ice bath. I don't know how the chef grills his bonito. I should have asked...

I went there again for lunch today. I had a chirashi set. No photo. (I'm sure you don't want to see another photo of it.) As usual, I asked the chef if he had anything special. He replied he had kasago (scorpionfish). (Sorry, blurry. ) I ordered two pieces because I thought one piece would not be enough to savor its flavor and texture. 200 yen per piece. Quite frankly, I wasn't unable to tell its difference from other white fish, but I don't mind. I'm determined to have all the white fish the chelf recommends. I asked the chef about kan-buri (yellowtail caught in the winter season and known for its fattiness). He replied that it was still too expensive (even for his fishmonger) to buy, around 5,000 yen per kg (2.2 pounds). According to the chef and his wife, the kan-buri price will remain on the same level this winter. There are always some sushi shops that want it no matter how expensive it may be, which inevitably keeps the prices high. I'm not sure if I can have kan-buri nigiri until the end of this year.

I think that the only possible and safe solution will be to plan well advance where you will stay and eat, otherwise you may put your daughters in danger. I totally agree with helen on these points: If you could provide us with your itinerary, maybe we could give you some information about allergy-taiou (=accommodating) inns and restaurants, which aren't many, so you can make a memorable, safe, and homey journey.

Yep, been using this technique for years . . . works great. My latest deep-frying revelation is that more is not always better. I had always been led to believe that in order to maintain temperature and achieve a quick recovery after foods are added to the oil, you must start with a large quantity of oil. In other words, you need a large fryer and lots of oil. A couple of months ago, on a whim, I picked up a relatively shallow electric deep-fryer for $20 at Walmart, similar to this one, but a little shorter. Anyhow, this thing holds less than 2 liters of oil, but because the heating element is the same size as the other ones that hold 3+ liters of oil, the small fryer has nearly instant recovery of temperature after foods are added. You must work in smaller batches, of course, but because the recovery time is so quick, there is no waiting between batches for the temperature to recover. And you don't need to "overheat" the oil, either. Just set at 375 F or whatever, and you're good to go. ← How much oil do you actually use for deep-frying? In Japan, we usually put 600-ml or more oil to have a oil depth of 5-6 cm (about 2 inches). I've never heard of the overheating trick. Isn't it potentially dangerous? I don't think this trick works for tempura.

That is the million dollar question, sir, and you collect the jackpot! I think that's why Chinese-style osechi is often popular. I like to include some fucha-ryouri (Chinese-inspired temple cooking) things in osechi for the same reason - they often include sesame or poppy seeds etc, so they taste rich, but are not fried, or drowned in mirin and shoyu. Line-up: two elderly man (?? one maybe alcoholic??), two elderly women (one fussy, likes only white fish), diabetic parent with hungry teenage son. (Plus one person who doesn't like Japanese food - she wants beef stew, I know!) . If it comes to storebought osechi, I'd give up serving osechi - it just doesn't taste good, no matter how expensive it is. Apart from osechi, what do you like to enjoy at New Year? Are there some dishes you never prepare at any other time of the year? I don't know why, but steak with herb butter is something we only eat at New Year. For my husband New Year = mochi, grilled or in soup, though my boys also like it with fried golden brown in butter, or grilled with cheese on top. For me, "gochisou" type okayu (congee) is always a treat, and I look forward to nanakusa-gayu. ← I must say you have some interesting company. I wish I could join them! Sorry, my wife and I are not very imaginative about New Year's dishes. The same old mochi, zoni, and osechi ryori. Why not simply make (or buy) several osechi ryori just to keep up the appearances, and serve sashimi (white fish!), beef stew, lots of (cheap) sake, and greasy deep-fried food (for the hungry boy)?

That greatly depends on how old these home-alones are, as well as their individual preferences, right? As I mentioned somewhere else, osechi ryori is much of a thing of the past for me, and I only buy a few favorite items every shogatsu. Are there any osechi items that aren't too sweet or salty?

I only know the destination of the best tuna: Tsukiji Wholesale Market in Tokyo. (This may not be the case these days because non Japanese buyers can outbid the Japanese.) It is often said, the bigger the tuna the better, then again, there are people who say otherwise. At a wholesale market, buyers estimate the quality of each tuna by looking carefully at the cut end of its tail fin.

Thanks, I should have googled first: http://www.kimukatsu.com/index.html The site says that they started their business in 2002. No wonder I know nothing about them.

So, where is your Kimukatsu located? Kanto or Kansai? And, is it a chain or what?

I would be very interested in knowing what the awareness level of the average consumer in Japan regarding tuna stocks, or even "foodie" Japanese . To my knowledge tuna is ranched, which means that young wild fish are raised in pens, rather then being bred? If this is the case it still isn't contributing that much towards wild stocks? ← It's hard for me to answer your question. I know no average Japanese; all Japanese I know are unique individuals. We may be unable to eat tuna within a few decades, that's about all most Japanese, including me, know about this crisis. Some do nothing about it, and others like me try to eat as much of it as we can while it's still available. The artificial hatching of tuna eggs has already been successful, and some even say that in the future, cultured ones will be enough to cover the demand. Pens? Yes, large pens, or nets, are necessary for culturing tuna. They need to swin constantly because otherwise they will die for lack of air.

The Japanese consume about one-fourth of total tuna caught worldwide, and keep on receiving warning messages from the mass media. We can't stop consuming tuna in a day or two (for the same reason why people cannot stop consuming beef simply because of cattle burping), and efforts are underway to culture tuna.

I don't have a recipe for that. Typical ingredients include ham, onions, and green peppers. (You can add corn if your like. ) I make mine with canned tuna (I'm a fan of both fresh and canned tuna), onions, and mixed vegetables (corn, green beans, and carrot cubes). Fry all ingredients in oil until done. Boil spaghetti until soft (not al dente! ). Add the spaghetti and mix well. Then, finally, add as much ketchup as you want. (I tend to add a lot of it.) This results in a dish like this: http://www.eatsmart.jp/do/search/detail/Se...e/9002010000006 Enjoy! ← I made Napolitan last Sunday. I just had to because the popular TV drama, Kuitan 2, ended the previous day. Ending theme song of Kuitan: Itoshi no Napolitan You'll love it! Napolitan (4 servings) 400 g spaghetti 1/2 onion 3 green peppers ("peeman" in Japanese) 1/3 carrot 1 pack vienna sausage 1 tube (500 g) ketchup (the more the better ) When making Napolitan and any other Japanese spaghetti dish, you can forget al dente. ← Here is a better version of the song, Itoshi no Napolitan. Tonight's supper will be napolitan spaghetti!