sanrensho

It seems like most instructions for iced tea recommend a strong brew brought down to temperature with ice. Personally, I just brew a large pot the normal way (to my desired strength), filter out the leaves and let it cool to normal temperature before refrigerating. Of course, this needs to be done the day before. In Japan, they sell teabags specifically used for cold-brewing iced tea. Those are quite nice, but are limited in terms of variety.

You can definitely use it here in Canada, provided you purchase a step-up voltage transformer. (We use a variety of Japanese electronics in our household including a rice cooker, stereo equipment, keyboard, etc.) However, the unit you mention is a 1400W model. A 1400W transformer will cost you a pretty penny, like these for around US$120 (shipping extra): http://transadapt.com/voltage-vr.html http://www.buytravelconverter.com/transfor..._100v/index.asp Of course, you may be able to find a cheaper large capacity step-up transformer in Akihabara, but these units can be quite heavy so are best shipped by sea/container with your household goods.

North Shore, please! (I must be the only one here who has yet to try one...)

Agreed. Size is important--in this case, don't get a large rice cooker to cook small quantities. A bit of Googling of Japanese sites shows that the newer IH cookers produce a noticeable improvement in quality of cooked rice compared with pre-IH cookers. The pre-IH cookers tend to produce softer rice with a slightly higher moisture content. (Not good for Japanese rice, which I assume the OP is interested in.) This confirms my anecdotal comparisons. The chief difference between the National cookers appears to be the steam option. It doesn't say if it has a removeable lid like the Zojirushi, which is handy for cleaning.

I simply used Rose Levy Beranbaum's Mousseline Buttercream recipe (from the Cake Bible, I'm sure you have it) and added the puree to taste at the end. For the puree, I just whizzed the raspberries with a few teaspoons of sugar and a tiny squeeze of lemon. I've found this buttercream stores well at room temperature for 2-3 days.

Did you push the puree through using a spatula? I made a raspberry buttercream just last weekend, and removing the seeds took no more than a few minutes. Best to do it in a few portions, so you can remove the seeds as they collect.

Here are some photos that will give you a better idea of the texture. Looks to me like choux pastry inside of a flaky pie type crust, although I have yet to try one. Photos are from this blog: http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_..._papas_cre.html

Thanks for the info. I'll look out for the plastic rounds and maybe ask a cake shop to sell me some acetate/rounds. Will check out Michael's this weekend. I'm still undecided about the Tupperware option. Not the nicest looking option, but if it works... Also, apologies to JeniH for hijacking her thread.

How are you transporting your cakes? I have refrained from making four layer cakes (2 x 9" rounds split into four layers) chiefly because I don't have a way to transport them safely or even store them in our fridge. I suppose I could go to a bakery and offer to buy a few of their boxes, but I'd prefer something airtight for refrigerator storage. When I was a kid, my parents had a tupperware cake holder, but I haven't seen one for sale locally.

Thanks for the suggestions, Ling. I did check out Ming Wo and wasn't able to find much of what I was looking for. No acetate and cake holders of any kind (glass or plastic). I didn't even bother asking about the magi-strips. Do you reuse your cardboard rounds? I also need some deep, rectangular cake pans, so I thought I would try to find an equipment supplier where I could buy everything at once.

Would appreciate if you could post any bakery suppliers that sell to the public. I would like to purchase some acetate (for lining mousse cakes) and other supplies for making cakes (magi-strips, bulk cardboard rounds, etc.).

All of the Papa Beard choux pastry is made in one of three central plants and shipped frozen to franchises. The fillings are made at each location. http://starbulletin.com/2005/03/02/features/story1.html

Puree and sieve. Doesn't even have to be all that fine.

That would be outright cruel, if not plain mean.

Not to get too far ahead of the discussion, but I would love to hear what your guests have to say about their impressions of our best French bakeries.

I totaly understand, then. My SO has done her share of those (she used to work in the imported bread business).

Personally, if I were to host someone from out of town (Paris), I would try to focus on what we do best, rather than what they do best (authentic French breads). This is my oblique way of saying that your guests might be disappointed, unless they are bread freaks and specifically want to see what our take is on French breads. Sorry, I know this doesn't really answer your question. I would love to hear which bakeries are considered best for baguettes and so forth by my fellow Egulleters.

Matcha powder is high on my list for my SO to purchase when she visits Japan in July. Lacking the room for another appliance, we simply mix matcha powder with good quality vanilla ice cream that has been slightly softened. I agree, freshly made matcha ice cream is miles better than a commercial matcha ice cream that has been sitting around for weeks (months?).

In defense of all things gooey (melted chocolate, Nuttela, etc.), I must insist that it be excluded from the "nebaneba" list. Just so nobody gets the wrong impression, "nebaneba" implies more of a sticky or viscuous texture. Of course, some gooey foods do happen to be sticky, but not all. Favorite nebaneba food: yamaimo.

Out of season US (California) strawberries used to be almost uniformly atrocious until 1-1.5 years ago. Recent US strawberries have been much better and are, more often than not, acceptably sweet.

This link might be helpful: http://www.junglecity.com/enjoy/food_english/meat.htm The US Export Meat Federation has a chart that, while useless from a translation perspective, could be shown to your butcher to indicate what you want: http://www.americanmeat.jp/database/parts_b.html Here's one more for good measure: http://www.geocities.jp/wallabiesroom/cook3.htm Basically, you are looking for a "kata roosu."

I always thought it was considered a lunch staple. My usual pho joint usually doesn't have any left by late afternoon.

I'm sure you've already visited this site: http://www.westcoastseaweed.com/seabean/nscp_toc/index.html Don't see any prices listed. Fascinating, I would definitely try some if there was a local source.

Have you tried the Japanese blueberries? If so, how do they compare to the US blueberries? Blueberries weren't commonly available when I was living there. Although we would ocasionally pass by the odd small blueberry farm when driving around in Nagano-ken (Matsumoto and surrounding areas). Someone mentioned figs. In my experience, most Japanese aren't familiar with eating raw figs, much less dried ones.

Interesting. For those who don't read Japanese, the sites that Hiroyuki linked to state that an abundance of "mitsu" in an apple is an indicator of ripeness, and that apples with "mitsu" tend to be sweeter as a whole. I'll have to tell my wife about the "injecting apples with honey" myth. She'll get a laugh out of that.