_john

I use small tea containers from the 100yen shop to organize all of my spices and powders that I have a small to medium sized amount of. These all went in one drawer with labels on top. Now I can easily find what I'm looking for and they are protected in airtight/light tight containers. I bought stackable shelves for my under sink space that I use to organize all my dry goods. My massive cutting board that covers my sink when I'm working is stored between the refrigerator and the sink unit. I am a big fan of minimalism, if I don't use a tool every month then it gets put away in storage so it doesn't clutter my space. I usually only shop for one day, but I'm a single guy living alone so this might be much easier for me, it really cuts down on clutter in the fridge. I have 4 sets of everything and that is all, not many extras or odd items to clutter the cabinets. I have a wok, a stock pot, a frying pan, a fish grill, a takoyaki pan, a katsubushikezuriki, and a pasta machine in my equipment/pan cabinet. I use these pans for everything and really try to fight the urge to buy something shiny when I go to the cooking district. Other then that I just try to stay organized and everything seems to work great.

I'm interested in growing 蓼 【たで】tade does anyone have any information on this herb? The only form I have seen it in is 蓼酢 【たでず】tadezu which is a vinegar sauce flavored with tade that is used as a dipping sauce for grilled ayu. Here is Gernot Katzer's spice page for water pepper. I really like the flavor and would like to grow some in my window box but I'm not sure where to get a plant. I asked a few shops in the gardening district but they did'nt seem to have the seeds or a catalogue they could order them from.

if anyone is looking for something specific in kansai, especially osaka, pm me because i've most likely been looking for it my self at some point. on that note I can't seem to find: real bacon, smoked paprika, kosher salt

offtopic: if anyone knows where to order the dvd online in Japan I would love to know about it. great manga, great anime. i think it is educational, in the way that iron chef is educational

I must have misunderstood my student. maybe he developed the white curry for his particular company? On the other end of the spectrum is black curry. CocoIchi is seving a black curry right now but I have never tried it. I think it is made black with squid ink?

One of my students developed the original white curry a few years ago. He seemed to be really proud of it and mentioned that it was developed partially as a novelty item and partially to prevent curry stains on white shirts while eating your curry bento. I still havent tried it yet though. This guy is a curry proessional of the highest order so if anyone has any hard to answer curry questions let me know and I will ask him for you. I'm curious to hear how it tastes...

has anyone tried the pitamac yet? I have 3 students that work at Mcdonalds and they tell me about the new items but I haven't asked them about the pitamac yet. On a side note: The employees at Makku have to try the new menu items at least once so they can inform customers about them. One of my students is a manager and one of her responsibilities is to formally apologize for service errors at her restaurant. This is often done by visiting a customer's home. For example: if a customer did not receive sauce with her nuggets the manager will visit her at home and present the customer with new nuggets (with sauce) free of charge.

Sorry, no. It's way too expensive for me to buy... What do you mean by "shortcut"? Tamari shoyu takes three years to make, while koikuchi shoyu takes six months to make. How long does it take to make those "shortcut" shoyu? ← someone told me that by using chemicals the process be shortened to as few as 2 months. This is just hearsay so I'm not entirely sure. ← I think I know what they mean, and I managed to find one source of information: http://mrs_yang.hellokitty.ne.jp/blog/d/10108567.html This blogger visited the Kikkoman plant in Noda city. She had read the comic book "Oishinbo", in which "sokusei" (accelerated?) soy sauce was mass produced using defatted soybeans, which was unsavory and flavorless because it wasn't brewed, and she thought that Kikkoman would make shoyu the same way. She was wrong. They took as long as eight months to make shoyu. She later learned that in the postwar period until the 1980s, they seemed to produce shoyu in a similar way, but in the 1990s and after, they stopped making such inferior shoyu and started to make efforts to make real, savory shoyu. ← that makes sense. I actually consider kikkoman soy sauce to have quite good flavor. I've read the first 10 volumes of Oishinbo I wonder which volume is about soy sauce.

Corn! As for kyohou, is it possible that they were seed-less ones? My father grows kyohou (and other varieties of grape) and makes them seed-less by using some chemical. ← the corn was kernals in small bunches. really quite good. I asked the waitress about the kyohou and she said that the chef had specially prepared the grapes to remove the seeds. The tops of the grapes looked slightly cut.

Sorry, no. It's way too expensive for me to buy... What do you mean by "shortcut"? Tamari shoyu takes three years to make, while koikuchi shoyu takes six months to make. How long does it take to make those "shortcut" shoyu? ← someone told me that by using chemicals the process be shortened to as few as 2 months. This is just hearsay so I'm not entirely sure.

I had my first kaiseki experience last night and I though I would share it with you. The menu was as follows: hiyayakko with yamaimo oroshi, very thin negi, and maple leaf served in a light tsuyu type sauce. sakura dako which was octopus simmered in a soy based broth for a long time served with karashi mustard hamo eel with garnishes of microscopically sliced kabocha, myoga, and akashiso served with one soy based sauce and one plum sauce grilled ayu served with tade-zu sauce a mixed nimono plate including kabocha, awabi, sato imo, and other items in a light and sweet dashi a mystery item that was small fried fish that resembled sardines but i cant read my handwriting, it was served with daikon momiji oroshi (spicy daikon puree) and negi a mixed tempura plate which included shrimp head (my absolute favorite), onions from awaji island, gobo, and corn (!) it was served with sea salt which was used to season it to taste. ochazuke with umeboshi, red shiso flowers, nori, and fresh wasabi kyouhou grapes that were magically de-seeded without being cut. served over ice. On our way out we were given a take home item of sabazushi which was wrapped in a dashi simmered daikon katsura muki (paper thin daikon that has been "unrolled" with a knife) there were two sakes that accompanied the meal: Ume Nishiki junmai from Ehime prefecture - a very smooth and floral junmai Hatsu Hana junmai from Nigata prefecture - also very smooth with a distinct anise flavor. All I can say what that it was amazing and flawless. As you can see there were quite a few shunnomono (seasonal items) as well as local items from the kansai area and even a local meibutsu (sakura dako). I was scribling my notes under the table as not to be rude to my host; sorry for the lack of details. I will certainly remember it for a long time to come.

I was reading about kijoyu or namashoyu which is unpasteurized shoyu. does anyone have any experience with unpasteurized shoyu? I'm curious about the taste difference (and the price difference). I also was wondering how I can tell the difference between normal shoyu (koikuchi shoyu) that is produced in the traditional manner from those that are produced using shortcuts. Is price always a good indicator or is there something similar to "certified organic" that distinguishes these types?

does anyone have a tested recipe that uses weights instead of volumetric measures? i'm looking for both cake and yeast doughnuts.

I've always wondered ... Is there a Japanese equvilent of The Joy of Cooking or Larousse Gastronomique? I have been reading a lot of Japanese cookbooks (in Japanese) at the bookstore on my lunch breaks and I would love to read something that is considered a classic. Is there a single text that many people know as the quintessential Japanese cookbook within Japan?

someone told me that kantou natto smells worse than kansai natto. can anyone confirm this?

I was going to go the brick direction but I settled on the flower pot for two reasons: you can move it easily, and by moving the bricks it sits on over the drainage holes I can vary the amount of air the coals are fed and effectivly manage the temperature. Thats son of hibachi is awesome, I dig the chimmney lighter idea.

The pot is unglazed, and I "burned" it with a large amount of charcoal before using it just in case there were some nasty chemicals. I have seen those yakinuiku tables in Los Angeles and San Francisco, so there must be someone importing them. Try calling restuarant supply places in those areas and seeing if they can ship you one. On a side note, I know someone with a full sized okonomiyaki grill in their house. Now that's a true Osakan!

I dare anyone on this board to try the "natto tomato" and dislike it, that is if you like raw tomatoes and natto in the first place. My students have even spread my "secrect recipe" to their families now. Before you know it I will be being profiled in one of those housewife magazines...

Check out the yakitori grill I made for about $5. I used a rectangular terracotta flower pot and a cheap grill I bought at the hardware store. Granted, I do live in Japan, but im guessing you could make something similar from things you can find at the hardware store in America. I put another grill on the inside to hold the choacoal. I put two wires on top when I am making yakitori and put the grill on when I am making regular grilled foods. I ignite the charcoal on my stove using the fish grill and then transfer it to the yakitori grill with tongs. I researched many many shichirin and decided none of them were worth the cost. The biggest factor in my mind is that the cheap ones are round ... a shape that is not very good for making most grilled foods that I enjoy. The rectangular ones were all too big for my needs and were very expensive. I can fit 10 yakitori skewers on my grill, which is just about the right amount for one round. And the price is right!

I highly recommend "tomato water" or "tomato consomme" chilled. It is one of my secret recipes, I serve it in shot glasses as an appetizer and people go wild for it. It's a great way to prepare a crowd for a more adventurous meal. But in a small bowl with some mizuna it is amazing, very refreshing. tomato water: puree tomatoes in a blender then strain them through cheesecloth or a coffee filer to drain off the tomato water. This draining is best done overnight. Add enough salt to really bring out the tomato flavor. chill and serve. I sometimes serve it with tomato water ice cubes floating in it, or something of with a jelly like consistency floating in it (maybe konyakku would work here).

yeah "風に吹かれて豆腐屋ジョニー" (kaze ni fukarete tofu ya johnny) is the one hiroyuki. I couldn't remember the name offhand. I buy it in the basement supermarket of a fairly average department store. In my experience it can be a little hard to find and when you can find it they only have one or two of their products. you'll know it when you see it, the packaging is very unique. If you do get to try it let me know what you think, I'm addicted.

I've had sort of a tofu obsession lately. First I discovered otokomae tofu. This is an amazing company from ibaraki prefecture that has made it big, their tofu is really popular. I've tried a bunch of different types of otokomae tofu. My favorite is the one that has the name that ends in "johnny". It is incredibly creamy, it's really amazing. If you can find otokomae's products near you I recommend them, I had a sort of tofu epiphany after trying nantoka johnny. After getting turned on to tofu my otokomae I decided to make my own tofu. I used store bought soy milk that was made of only green soy beans and water. The results were great, I let it drain overnight and was able to enjoy creamy and fresh hiyayakko.

do tell, how was it?

recently natto curry has become popular. I sometimes use up old natto in curry. i discovered a really good natto add in: cherry tomato and salt. cut the tomatoes into quarters and sprinkle with salt, then mix with natto in the normal way. I have been teaching some of my students about this and when they try it they really like it.

I'm looking for a Japanese pickle recipe but I can't seem to find it. It is a cabbage pickle, I'm pretty sure it is shiozuke, it includes thinly sliced lemon. I'm not sure if uses hakusai or regular cabbage, I can't remember. I've had it at several different restaurants so I'm assuming it is something that is well know. One especially delicious version included fresh tomato. Any ideas?