MoGa

I have a weakness for sour things so I love ume in pretty much all its forms. But one of my favourite Japanese sweets is Camu Camu Lemon I've tried the Camu Camu ume and grape varieties, but neither touched on the cheek cramping joy of the lemon kind. A few years ago I got a taste for this sweet Except I use 'sweet' loosely. I've not been able to find it again on my last couple of visits, the memorable part of it was the incredibly sour coating. The first few sucks were almost unbearable - like the sour equivalent of a bite on a 'devils penis' chilli pepper. The rest of the candy almost seemed bland in comparison.

Relaxed and informal, there's Abeno which specialises in Okonomiyaki (a food often enjoyed by children - especially as it's cooked at the table) http://www.abeno.co.uk/findus/index.html If your budget is starting to pinch, not so far away is Icco Pizza Description and address: http://www.welovelocal.com/en/london/camde...zza-w1t4lu.html Map (showing proximity to Russel Square): http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&hl=en&ge...z=16&iwloc=addr

Make sure you never come with that particular person to London. All our worst restaurants are conveniently located for those following the tourist trail. Most visitors eat only when and if convenient, annoying but true, there's no other reason these awful places stay in business. Not to say that Nexus was 'awful'. It just reflects the reality of fusion cooking in Spain. Not a joke at all, sadly, just what happens when the only Oriental food the majority of its customers are familiar with is Spanish-style-Chinese food and mediocre sushi. Remember, hardly any immigration was possible before the 1980s, Spain is just starting to get into stride with regards to 'ethnic' restaurants. Could have been worse though... at least you didn't decide to have a 'paella' that evening

Thank you for the suggestions! The main point of my reply was to indicate that for someone newly "surrounded by fantastic Thai restaurants" and one would presume "Thai grocery stores" neither of these books make the task of identifying herbs and vegetables much simpler. As as has been kindly pointed out here, different books and resources are required. My current tactic is to ask for as much information as possible from the store itself, certainly some guidance as to how to cook it. If I can get a name, all the better. Once at home I can look through websites to see if I can identify it. I'm much more successful identifying things retroactively, I'm not always successful in trying to source ingredients from a book's description, even when I've armed myself with the name of the herb/plant in different languages. (An example of a plant that is easier to identify retrospectively is Vietnamese 'tia to' - which can be easily confused with Japanese shiso/perilla - which comes in green and red - or sesame leaves. FWIW shiso may be a suitable for tia to, unfortunately it doesn't work the other way around. I'd suggest a combination of chopped mint and Italian basil as an alternative to shiso instead)

I only have two books on Thai Food - both are well loved and the recipes I've made from them have been delectable. Thai Food by David Thompson and Cracking the Coconut. (It's very gratifying to see them both already recommended). The main problem I still have is identifying the intriguing vegetables at Thai and Vietnamese stores. These books don't really help with this at all.

I thought that was really confusing so I did my own searching in Spanish. My mother is Spanish and would feed me arrowroot as a child when I was poorly (easily digested). She'd never came across it in Spain and didn't know the word in Spanish - it's more a British thing, a food brought over from Britain's former colonies. For all I know different parts of the Spanish speaking world have different names for it. It's native to South America, after all. Best I could work out is that it's called arrurruz or maranta (short for its full name Maranta arundinacea). There is a wiki page in Spanish showing some possible alternative names for this plant. http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maranta_arundinacea (first 6 words of article) Eggplant and aubergine are the same thing, if begpie can say which Spanish speaking country s/he is thinking of it might help someone help further.

I don't 'cook' with it and the only meat I eat is fish (so I can't comment on its tenderising properties), but it comes into its own with chilled tofu, as an accompaniment to home-made udon noodles, as a dip for raw fish and ripe avocado, as a last addition seasoning for cooked dishes and soups and for making Japanese style 'quick' pickles (basically - marinading vegetables for a couple of hours). It's good enough that you can enjoy it by the spoonful; smooth and rich without being cloying. The price of the sauce in yen is included on the Japanese page. In the UK (Japan Centre) it is 3.45GBP for a small bottle. The Ponzu is the same price and the miso is 5.99GBP (although it is currently out of stock). The Dashi is also very good and at 4.56GBP for a litre represents excellent value (other brands are more expensive)

Why did you end up choosing this restaurant? I get the impression you just stumbled on it as it was conveniently located. Entering Nexus + Barcelona into Google and avoiding your commetaries, the first mention I saw was this one http://www.barceloca.com/dataDetails-8760/...-barcelona.aspx Which describes your menu almost perfectly - Mediterranean food fused with East Asian flavours. Here's the description of your choice: "Tallarines salteados con ceps, cigalas y soja" Tagliatelle Sauteed/tossed with ceps, langoustines and soy sauce. Just from this I would have steered well clear. From your review I'm convinced I would have been absolutely right to do so.

I just remembered a well loved English speciality food you should be able to find a vegan version of (avoid the chocolate covered kind) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kendal_mint_cake

Sweet smoked paprika (pimentón de la Vera) Shiso/perilla/beefsteak plant leaves --- I can't consider the garlic as a herb or spice - I have a bunch in the fridge that look just like spring onions (gorgeous sliced and fried with egg and mushrooms) and a jar of garlic cloves pickling in a soy sauce mix, and hardly anyone is going to claim banana for their favourite herb either.

The miso from the same brand was so good I felt encouraged to try their raw soy sauce. Excellent! Like comparing an aged balsamic vinegar to a supermarket wine variety. http://www.yamato-soysauce-miso.com/product_rawsoy.html - English http://www.yamato-soysauce-miso.co.jp/okai.../s_hishiho.html - Japanese Apparently, there's a 3* Michelin restaurant in France that uses it. Can't remember which one though...

I've not seen bags of perilla seed (but you've spurred me to look a lot harder!) in London, but your descriptions sound wonderful - there's obviously lots of room for experimentation. The furikake I metioned is made from the dried leaf of the perilla (if you ever buy ume boshi plums you can make your own yukari seasoning by drying out and crumbling the red leaves that usually coat the umeboshi). I don't know how the Koreans use perilla seeds, but in Japan they are often used in pickles. I believe they are called shisonomi I've also had them served to me still attached to the stalk, you use your chopsticks to strip them from the stalk and the seeds will season a small bowl of soy sauce Pictures here: http://hachi.fool.jp/cooking/11_shisonomi/index.php I'd love to get hold of some to use in my own pickles. If I do find them, I'll be asking you more questions. Those suggestions you made have really made my mouth water!

I never gave miso much thought until quite recently. I certainly used it often enough, but never gave the product I selected much concern. And then I tried this one http://www.yamato-soysauce-miso.com/product_miso.html - English http://www.yamato-soysauce-miso.co.jp/okaimono/m_kanae.html - Japanese from the Yamato Soy Sauce and Miso company Which got me interested enough to find out more There's a long article here that makes fascinating (and slightly depressing) reading http://www.soyinfocenter.com/HSS/miso1.php - most of the kickers are on page 3 Unfortunately, the Japan Centre in London has run out of this particular miso, but we've been assured that it will be restocked again. I'll be doing a lot more to seek out traditionally made miso on my future visits to Japan. There is a word of difference between misos that goes beyond white, red and black, and merely paying more for miso won't always yield a noticeable gain. I'm embarrassed it took me so long to finally fully appreciate this food, and I feel I've only just wedged my foot into the door, I've still a lot of headway to make.

I have tried both of these items, in Korea, and all I can say about that, is: Honey, that ain't right. Mostly because they were made with processed cheese, though, which I loathe wholeheartedly. They might be nice with feta or cheddar, who knows? Butter and soy sauce, on the other hand, I find delicious. I have a capricious palate, I guess. ← ← I got the idea for combining cheddar and mochi a few years ago from a book by Emi Kazuko/Yasuko Fukuoka. Now that you mention it, mochi rice cakes brushed with soy sauce, filled with melted cheddar and eaten with half a nori laver sheet are really good. Never seen it sold in Tokyo though. My Japanese husband isn't too keen on mochi, but I can usually convince him to have a couple of these when the weather is cold (although he'd normally prefer cheese on crumpets given the option)

Mirin (I always keep a big bottle in the fridge) I'll try and post a photo in the next couple of weeks - it's a very pretty pink. (I'll PM you when I've posted it). I made another batch of the mackerel 'magic' furikake today. MrMoGa's lunch tomorrow will be the magic furikake with rice, Saturday's salted cabbage (kabetsu shio zuke - salt, konbu & mirin) and shoyu marinaded garlic cloves (ninniku shoyu zuke - store bought).

Thank you, Dianabanana! Did you have it with rice? I've also made this and can say it's been a big success (I've now made it with mackeral and I've also tried it with canned tuna, which was also delicious). Perfect for lunch (with rice of course) and as a late night snack. We love it! thank you so much! --- Alternative use for Yukari Furikake (shiso gohan) This is the powdered perilla/beafsteak plant leaves - ingredients are usually red shiso, salt, sugar, amino and malic acids. Add a tablespoon to 2-4 whole pickled beetroots and mash beetroots with fork. Leave for 5-10 minutes and combine beetroot pulp with your choice of - mayonnaise, creme fraiche/sour cream, yoghurt, thick cream (we generally like a combination of mayonnaise and creme fraiche or yoghurt - or just leave out the dairy products entirely). Delicious with new potatoes, salmon and salad. Ideally, I make this with one or two ume mashed in with the beetroot, but this isn't necessary. I came up with the shiso powder and beetroot combination after running out of ume, and both my parents as well as my husband enjoyed it. It's now a favourite fish and salad dressing.

I used to go up to Glasgow a lot when I was younger, and white pudding (with chips) was the late night main stay of the vegetarians and vegans I knew there. (Ask when you're there, not all the recipes for White Pudding are vegan) It is possible to get vegetarian cornish pasties in Cornwall, but I don't know if vegan ones are sold. Another Cornish speciality is Saffron Cake. Again, although it is possible to find vegetarian versions (without lard) I'm not so sure about vegan ones. Someone mentioned porridge, the traditional way to eat it is without milk or sugar http://www.glasgowguide.co.uk/scottish_recipes_Porridge.htm You may find somewhere prepared to make it for you this way Other foods I would recommend you look out for as you travel around the UK: New potatoes (preferably with a little mint) pickles and chutneys - for instance, somewhere that serves a Ploughman's lunch http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ploughman's_lunch may be able to offer you a range of relishes and pickles with bread and vegetables, they just need to prepare it without the cheese. Many delicatessens will stock locally made pickles, relishes, jams and preserves for you to try. Britain has some glorious treasures sealed into jars. In May British samphire is just coming out. This can be gathered for free off of English coasts (I get mine near Maldon) but fishmongers also sell it. Just clean and blanch in boiling water for about 30-40 seconds (you can do it with the kettle from a hotel). Lovely with a little vinaigrette, they're perfect with new potatoes, but should make a tasty salad (perhaps with some cracked wheat - another food that can be prepared in a hotel room - to make a tabouleh style dish). Unfortunately, as you already suspect, not too many of Britian's specialities are suitable for vegans (vegetarians fare considerably better). Our fruit and vegetables, when sourced from a good farmer's market, can be fantastic though. If you can bring a little cooking stove you may be able to enjoy more of our local foods. Here are some more suggestions http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/in_season/may.shtml asparagus is fantastic in May And you might be able to enjoy our broadbeans Japanese style: http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/jI7hw41z5sA...Jmxr1Zi6y8hm-uw Unfortunately, you've missed the Wakefield Rhubarb Festival (February). Rhubarb is a speciality of the Yorkshire Area http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_yo...ire/7215790.stm mmmm.... (And I second Rousillon, I've had the vegetarian tasting menu here - excellent - I haven't eaten a vegan menu though. And the Andrew Edmunds/Mildreds combo suggestion - Mildreds is OK, Andrew Edmunds offers extremely good value for money in London, you'll probably need to book up though as it's very popular)

These may present a real challenge pairing wines with the food, but first places that came to my mind as bring your own venues are http://www.huongviet.co.uk/ and http://www.mirchmasalarestaurant.co.uk/mm/restaurant.htm When I had to entertain a group of Tokyoites who had come to London for my wedding, I had to think of somewhere with the high standards they were used to but which was still affordable. We went to the East London Mirch Masala, a huge success. The much lauded Lahore Kebab house (also BYO) is just around the corner, but the decor there is less attractive, and the food choices for those who don't eat meat are much smaller. Personally, I prefer the Mirch Masala. The difference in price also seems to be negligible.

I wonder why the kneejerk reaction against encouraging and promoting food diversity. The article seems fine with what, to me, seems to be the continuing recreation of the conditions that created the Irish potato famine on a massive macro scale. Apparently I'm part of some elite for getting a weekly delivery of organic vegetables from farmers who spend their holidays visiting other farms and growers in Europe rather than sunning themselves on beaches. Until you realise that I was a wheelchair user last year with an income close to poverty, with no private means of transport, and the delivered boxes proved to be the most convenient, and ultimately economic way to receive food. One only needs to read "The Road to Wigan Pier" (George Orwell http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/o/orwell/geo...r/chapter6.html to realise that poor people have always aspired to luxuries beyond their means. In Britain this was typified by the popularity of tea and sugar with people who could barely afford bread and dripping. Strange how it's OK now to spend inordinate amounts of your income on designer sneakers made by underpaid young cobblers who'll never in their lifetimes get a shot at meeting other shoemakers at a conference, but by using the same amount of money to instead acquire and enjoy wine and cheeses made by people with a decent living wage one is somehow 'out of touch'.

Asparagus with butter and soy sauce or butter and miso is really good, both of these combinations I've eaten in Japan. I thought Ramen with butter and corn was popular in Sapporo. Britain has a long tradition of fish sauce and butter - Worcestershire sauce which is splendid with butter and melted cheese. The anchovy paste 'Gentlemen's Relish' also showcases a long standing habit of combining anchovies with dairy produce (buttered toast and/or scrambled eggs)

155F is 68-69C. I'll give it a go. Cheers!

Again, thank you! This should be enough information to help me progress a little further. (It took me several years and many botched attempts before I finally reached a satisfying state of competency with okonomiyaki, the udon may take longer, but I will persist.) I'll be very interested to see _john's advice for onsen tamago.

I don't have a cooking background so had no idea of the principals, I just know that I've been increasing the ratio of bread flour (high gluten) to all purpose flour (low gluten - called 'plain' flour in the UK) each time I made it. The longer resting times I give make more sense now. We like them chewy too, and I haven't been able to bring myself not to rinse them either. Thanks to you and to helenjp, it feels great to have a discussion about this. I have another question. My husband likes to mix raw egg in his udon (I just like having the yolk). I rinse the udon with cool water and then pour freshly boiled water over it so that the egg can coddle - mixed immediately with the noodles in the bowl. Is this the best way? All the references I've seen about sanuki udon with egg and condiments don't go into any detail. Is it just egg yolk, or the entire egg? Is it mixed into cold noodles? Or are they piping hot (the way the rice you eat with egg at breakfast is)? I've only eaten udon in soup in Japan, and my husband couldn't remember. (The restaurant use brands would be useful - my husband is from Tokyo so we do go back periodically. If I could get a batch on the next trip I'd know the taste and texture to aim for)

Thank you _john! I've started making udon during the last few months and have had good results with this recipe http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fg20010701rl.html (although I let it rest longer than suggested) I'll give yours a try this week. Which flour do you find gives you the best results? And what would you expect to use outside of Japan?

Any trip to a supermarket and a peek at the contents of most people's trolleys will confirm this. Delia's new book is a direct confirmation that much of what is written in "Bad Food Britain" (Joanna Blythman) may actually be correct. According to her (Blythman), we have excellent cook books and cooking programs, but most people would rather read/watch them than use them. Preferably, whilst tucking into their re-heated dinners (like the diners in Terry Gilliam's Brazil who eat sludge whilst looking a stunning photo of the meal it represents). I spent a year living in the suburbs where my local supermarket stocked a range of sushi ingredients. For most of that time it was impossible to buy sushi rice (when querying, Sainsbury's didn't have a supplier) making all the sushi ingredients redundant. It was more about the 'idea' of making sushi than the reality, I'm sure both managers and shoppers felt they offered and enjoyed a more 'cosmopolitan' shopping experience as a result. This seems very important nowadays.