torakris

I am going to make hamburgers! I am also first the first time going to grind them myself, so my first couple questions are what kind of beef to use and what is the best way to grind them? I have both a food processor and a meat grinder.

Marco Polo, thanks for the recipe! I have been using instant versions..... mukbo, those pictures are incredible! can you give a recipe for the jajangmyun? A Korean friend used to make this for me all of the time (about 12 to 13 years ago...) but I can't remember everything he added and the Japanese recipes I have tried aren't the same...

I will be back home in Cleveland this summer for almost 6 weeks I have already picked up the newest copy of Cleveland Ethnic Eats and dog-eared a bunch of pages..... Any new noteworthy restaurants in the past year? Where are some of the best places for al fresco dining? Where is the best ice cream (soft cone/gelato/anything) in the city? I will be in Cleveland Heights and prefer east side dining, but I will travel to the west side if the food is good enough!

nasu dengaku! and sencha, welcome to eGullet and the Japan forum!

I have to admit that in Japan I have never given a thought to what kind of eggs to use for raw uses. I have used everything from the expensive brand name ones to the cheapo ones I find at my local drug store. Some of the more expensive ones are more flavorful but unless you are eating the egg straight with out anything else I don't think it is worth the money. In the US, however, I am very cautious about using raw eggs and take the time to search out some good ones. Now one of my sisters raises her own chickens, so I will have a very fresh supply when I go home this summer.

that looks like kama to me..... I wonder what it was that they had labled as kama, maybe it was a different kind of fish?

The mustard you should use is karashi, the Japanese mustard. Most packs of natto come with a small pack of it included. Add it it to taste, I probably like my natto spicier than most people... Also I don't use a whole egg just the yolk.

Ara are basically the leftovers from when the fish is cut up and it can consist of many parts incluing head, backbone, innards etc. The kama (collar) is also consisdered an ara, but larger pieces are usually sold on their own. The most common preparation for ara is simmered dishes and soups.

from the Daily nihongo thread: word for 9/13 well I think we are done with buri! let's take a look again at the names at different stages of life: STAGE-- KANTO NAME (KANSAI NAME) big adult-- buri (buri) adult-- warasa (mejiro) young adult-- inada (hamachi) juvenile-- wakashi/wakanago (tsubasu/wakasa) baby-- mojyako (mojyako) Please remember that these names can vary depending on who you are talking to and what part of Japan you are standing in, for an even more detailed list of the names used in different parts of Japan look here (Japanese): http://chisiki.sub.jp/MorinoKigi/NamaenoKi/SyusseUo.htm

I think you have this reversed. S. niphonis (aka Japanese Spanish mackeral) is the true sawara. This is the fish that is native to Japanese waters, I am not sure how much Spanish mackeral (from the Atlantic) is actually eaten in Japan. Putting S. macalatus into a Japanese search engine brings up only a little and the corresponding name in Japanese is just Spanish mackeral written in katakana (the Japanese "alphabet" for foreign words).

I am so in this one! The cast is off the foot, the weather is gorgeous, hamburgers on the BBQ!!

brown the chicken pieces and onion (if you are using a regular onion) in the frypan first until about halfway cooked through then add the sauce (and scallions if you are using them) and let it simmer a bit until the chicken is just seconds away from being done. Then add the eggs and the chicken should be perfect. I hate over-cooked chicken....

we have discussed all of these fish in length on the Daily Nihongo thread saba starts here sawara (Spanish mackeral) starts here aji starts here I haven't gotten to sanma (saury pike)yet...

sounds like a kind of age-dashi tofu, I like the idea of garlic and sesame in the sauce. The Japanese sauce tends to be a bit tamer....

I use both, depending on what I happen to have in the house. I prefer momen ("cotton") though for ma po dodu as well as for most other things...

All tofu needs some sort of coagulant, otherwise it would never form. The differences come in the types of coagulants used, the best tofu uses natural sources.

the Cuisinart I bought came with 2 bowls!

Ｉ　ｊｕｓｔ　ｒａｎ　ａｃｒｏｓｓ　ｔｈｉｓ　ｒｅｃｉｐｅ　ｆｏｒ　ａ　ｔａｍａｇｏ　ｔｏｆｕ　ｓｏｕｐ．．

Hey Kris - We're coming up from Toledo, if you'd like to meet up just over halfway for a caravan - we are basically right on your way - you'll be taking I-80 to Toledo and then grabbing 23 up to Ann Arbor. ← Actually I am looking for a ride.. My parents are going to be in Iowa that weekend and if they drive they will take my mother's car, they would never drive my father's car that far, and I can't drive my dad's because it is a stick Now if they decide to fly (their original plan) then I have no problem.

Helen、the typical toast in the US is a similar thickness to the Japanese ８枚　bread.

In the toaster settings thread chrisamirsault asked: While we're on this very important subject, might I suggest that the bizarre British habit of cooling toast is utterly mad? Can someone from across the pond explain this to me? Of course, moralistic statements about all right-minded, intelligent people preferring cool toast are perfectly acceptable. I get a little fanatical when it comes to toast..... If I am buttering it the butter, the butter is slathered on before I can even get teh toast to the counter, I have been known to re-heat the toast if for some reason I missed that crucial buttering window. Peanut butter can only be applied after the bread has been placed on the counter, in the 3 to 5 second range after removal from the toaster. If it is too hot it will melt too much but if it cools down it will not melt at all. Jam can only be placed on toast that has been completely cooled, I do not like warm jam!

So should should try to be to your place before 10? Anyone else going from the Cleveland area?

count me in as another tentative I will be flying into Cleveland on the 13th and have debated going since this thread started..... I will be bringing a Japanese friend (who speaks very little English) with me and also need to see if my sister can babysit as I really don't want to drag 4 jet lagged kids around. I will give a more definite answer in a week or so. How many spaces are left? My little brother is currently in Lansing, he is the other foodie in the family and might be interested as well.

Is prahok anything like the Thai fish paste? I have a tub of kapi lek in the house... and are the preserved lemons/mandarins preserved in the same way as the middle eastern ones? (I have a jar of those too ) Anzu, thanks for the tip on the book, I will take a look at it.

Will harissa lose it's potency after sitting for a while? homemade and tubed? I have a tube of it that I opened a couple months ago and it had a really good kick back then, but when we used it last night you could barely taste it....