Sencha

Oh! This thread just reminded me what I forgot to buy at the store the other day!! Well, I'll have to buy the nuka another day.... Oh, and before I forget, thank you, Helen, for your expertise on making tsukemono. Your posts on the subject have been quite helpful, especially concerning nukazuke!

I have some questions, since your list is brief. Did you soak the rice beforehand? The rice is usually soaked before steaming. The time depends on various factors, including the type of rice, amount of milling done to the rice, as well as quality of the rice. Which type of yeast did you use? Did you buy one specifically used in sake production, and if so, which variety? If you haven't tried yeasts specifically used for sake production, you may want to try different varieties out, since each offers differences in the finished product. Do you leave your sake as namazake (raw sake) or pasteurize it afterwards? Also, have you tried to use the sakekasu (sake lees) in cooking? If not, you may want to look for some recipes which use them, so that you may enjoy your product even more! And as for jayt90's question: "But I am wondering what the best Japanese sake may have to make it superior?" There are various reasons why certain Japanese sake are superior (to foreign-made, as well as Japanese-made). Here are some I can think of at the moment: -- There are different varieties of rice which are used for sake, and which are specifically grown for sake. -- There are also a variety of strains of yeast used in sake production. --Water. Good clean water is key to making good sake. -- An experienced head brewer (touji) who can make the best out of the resources he has, and knows when to adjust certain things in the production. -- Preference of the taster. After all, not everyone likes the same type of sake.

That's an interesting point. I think it's simply that many people here, because they aren't Japanese, aren't aware of proper Japanese table setting. If some of these presentations are done by people with a European influence, they may just place them vertically, since that is what is normal to them for silverware. I think it's fine to nitpick though. Many people won't learn otherwise unless it's mentioned to them. You may have just taught someone a good lesson.

I don't know how things are in England, but in the United States you would likely hear people say, "Coffee jelly? What's that?". Most Americans just aren't familiar with it yet.

-dried squid and cuttlefish -jerky -corn chips I also have a bad habit of raiding the tub of miso and eating a small spoon of miso when I want something salty and tasty.

This is so amusing! Many of us find the eating habits of certain people appalling, whether it be what they eat or in the way in which they eat, but it's not a thing that should be dismissed and forgotten. My complaints aren't restricted to relationships though. I can't stand to be around someone who will eat terribly unhealthy food all the time. I can enjoy a pizza or a burger just like anyone else, but it's disturbing to me when I see someone eating only junk food. I've known some people who won't even touch a green vegetable... Another thing I can't stand is when a person makes it a habit of wasting food. I'm not talking about throwing away a few bites. I'm talking about when someone will throw away half a plate of food as if it's nothing. Food is a little too precious to me to throw out like that. And for the last I'll write of at the moment, I can't stand being with someone who won't try new foods. I mean, it's not that difficult to try something! They might even like it! If not, at least they would know and don't have to eat it again.

My mom didn't cook when I was growing up and still doesn't to this day, so the phrase "just like mom used to make" doesn't mean anything to me. Rather, it's more like "just like I used to make! No, wait...I still make it." I guess my comfort foods are relatively simple though. I just LOVE grilled fish. Shioyaki.... That smells of my early childhood! Fresh tortillas (both corn and flour) are good too and are at least 100 times better than anything from a package. Rice. Simple. Rice. So comforting. Fresh greens. Such a pleasing flavor as long as they're cooked right. Grilled tofu! When I've lived in cold places it was my saviour. Bread. REAL bread. None of that presliced stuff with a ton of ingredients with strange names. A French bread or sourdough, preferably.

I don't understand how you've overcooked the shouyu, unless you're burning it. The key thing to remember is that the flavor of shouyu will change in some ways when cooked. It's perfectly normal. As for preparation of a teriyaki sauce, it's as Hiroyuki mentioned: mixing the ingredients and cooking it until thickened.

I remember seeing another long curry recipe before, but as interesting as it sounds, I just don't know when I'd ever get around to cooking something like that. For me, curry tends to be something I cook (from package!) when I don't want to bother cooking anything difficult or when I can't figure out what else to cook. Still, I can't help but wonder what such a grand recipe would taste like!

I've never done a ramen broth with pork only, but rather mainly pork with a bit of chicken. I imagine a broth made with just pork bones would be relatively easy to do and be rather similar. You just need to be able to get some nice marrow filled bones. Different people have different preferences on which type of bone they prefer. A preliminary step to making the broth is as AzianBrewer mentioned, boiling the bones briefly (2-3 min.) and draining them to remove scum. Then you can go on with the recipe. Typical ingredients I add to the pot are onion, negi, ginger, and konbu, but some others are quite likely to work as well. Just cut them into chunks and add to the pot. I've found pork based stocks to take a bit of time though, so this is something you might want to do when you've got enough time. I think the least amount of time I'd think of cooking it is 6 hours. I usually go for 7-8 hours though, keeping the heat at medium or medium-high or so. It's really an easy process; just time consuming. Just peek in at the stock every once in a while to see if you need to add a bit more water. At the end, just add a little salt and strain the stock. You'll be rewarded with a delicious white, opaque broth. When it's chilled in the fridge it should be really gelatinous, and then you'll know you have a good stock. If by chance you find that when it's chilled it isn't very gelatinous you can put it back into the pot and cook it until it's reduced a bit, concentrating it. Making broth from scratch is great, but I'd still like to be able to make the noodles from scratch.

Hm...Am I one of the few people who doesn't like using farmed salmon...for anything? Dioxin levels in farmed salmon are usually found to be signifigantly higher than in wild salmon. I personally like to avoid eating things that are toxic...

Shortening would have the wrong flavor and just wouldn't give a pleasant mouth feel. For shortbread, butter is best, but margarine is an okay second.

I find it incredibly amusing (in a good way;not in ridicule) and interesting that some people will actually go to the trouble of making such extravagent bento! Such bento must really brighten a person's day.

I just ordered it through my co-op catalogue, I paid 2900 yen for it (about $25). Theya ren't all that easy to come by. Some place in Kappabashi should have them, you might also try looking in cooking utensil sections of department stores or other large ('we sell everything') shops. ← That's all you paid for it!? I'm jealous! What about the price of the katsuo?

Kurozatou and ume? I don't know why I've never thought of that before. That sounds wonderful! It's a shame it lacked the kurozatou flavor as you mentioned...

Ah.....the wonderful tetsubin. I absolutely love tetsubin. Admittedly, one of the original reasons I got a tetsubin was due to me breaking two ceramic teapots in two years. I didn't want it to become an annual thing! Of course, aside from durability, they are great for tea and the aesthetics of a tetsubin are nice (at least, to me).

That was a good laugh!

Great! That is easy! I just wasn't sure if there was anything more to it than adding sesame. I'll have to give this a try soon.

Upon actually thinking about that for a moment, I would normally have to agree with you with no cheese on seafood. Rarely have I tasted good seafood and cheese combinations, but oddly enough, those negative thoughts don't come up when thinking of pizza. I'm still trying to figure out why that is though.

I'm interested in hearing about that kurogoma korokke too! It sounds good! Please, share with us how you made them. I've been in the mood to make some korokke soon, so I'd like to give this type a try.

Japanese pizzas always look so good! It's a shame that pizza chains in the US don't often try anything new and interesting.

I don't know whether to be intrigued or frightened by this....

It should be relatively firm and smooth (no wrinkles). Thickness can vary a bit. Out of curiosity, what do you plan on using it for? If you're new to using it, kinpira gobo might be a good place to start. So easy and tasty!

It's already that time of the year!? I was really craving some kuri gohan (kuri okowa would be good too, but I'm currently out of mochigome) the other day and lamented the fact that it will probably be a couple more weeks until some chestnuts are available to me. Summer doesn't seem to want to die just yet here.

I don't consider the eel wacky either. Eel is just SO delicious. I'll agree with the sugar free ice cream being odd though... When I want ice cream, I want sugar!