torakris

It is neither subtle nor pronounced which is probably why I love these so much. It is just perfect. I bet you could get a similar taste though by adding some umeboshi paste to a simple ponzu.

I just read through both links and there is nothing said about eating raw fish. It is basically telling you how much of certain types is safe during pregnancy due mercury levels/etc. I have looked through my pregnancy books (in Japanese) and there is no mention in any that raw fish is dangerous. During my 3 pregnancies in Japan I was never told to stop eating raw fish though it was suggested that I don't eat as much "western foods" as they tend to be high in fat and calories... I will also take a look online and see what I can find.

Now I found this one Ume-shiso ponzu Now I can't decide which one I like better. I had this with some cold boiled gyoza a couple days ago and the kids loved it.

S&B has just put out a new wasabi product Yuzu-wasabi (wasabi in a tube with the skin of yuzu-a citrus fruit) Though I don't think it would be good with all sushi, it could be nice with some. It is better used on noodles, salads, etc. I love this stuff it's great!

A new product from S&B Yuzu-wasabi! This stuff is great! The yuzu flavor and smell is about as "real" as you can get and the wasabi is tamed down a bit so you can use quite a bit of this stuff with out the nose pinching heat. I used it with this Pork and Cucumber Wasabi Salad and don't think I will ever go back to just regular wasabi again.

There are absolutely no words to convey just how jealous I am at this moment. I touch down in Cleveland in 36 days!! and I know where I am headed first.

Wow! I rarely return things but I would definitely complained to the store about that one. Or even better, send my husband to complain-- we get get really good service after he complains.

I have never seen them in stores, but I have never looked for them either. I tried something similar at FoodExpo here last year and was not impressed.

Actually the most common roll I make at home is a Korean style futomaki. I make them every summer for my sister when I visit Cleveland for my sister, who begs me for them. I based mine on a version that was served in a Korean restaurant on our college campus that we used to visit quite frequently for lunch. They contain takuan (Japanese pickled radish), carrots, cucumbers and bulgoki seasoned beef. Last summer we also added kimchi, this was a a wonderful addition BUT make sure you squeeze every last drop of liquid out of the kimchi before you add it. Learn from my experience...

The newest member in the Hi-chew family Ume Hi-chew (a wonderful addition!) Last month I bought two of these bags with Valencia orange, pink grapefruit and Italian lime this was probably my favorite package to date

here is a new thread on Foods that DO NOT belong in sushi rolls

We have had lots of sushi thread but yet not one of them is devoted to the humble sushi roll. I love sushi rolls from the futomaki (fat roll) to the hosomaki (thin roll) and even the temaki (hand roll). I have recently been on a sushi roll kick and have been eating them quite a bit for lunch. Some recent lunches: a salad maki with fresh salmon, cooked shrimp, egg, lettuce, cucumber and mayo from Precce supermarket top: organic vegetable maki with tomato, cucumber, egg, daikon and mizuna bottom: seafood maki with a couple kinds of fish, egg, cucmber, lettuce, and yamaimo (mountain yam) from Mother's Organic Market What are some of your favorite rolls?

I love sushi rolls, all kinds, temaki (hand rolls), hosomaki (thin rolls) futomaki (fat rools, etc. I have tried many different varieties even some I thought sounded quite unappetizing and was often pleasantly surprised. A couple days ago I ate one that I actually wanted to spit out of my mouth. The offending food ingredient? red bell pepper It completed overpowered the roll and was the only thing I could taste. It was rolled with raw tuna, cucumber and mayo, not the most pleasant combination either.. It was bought at the Costco here in Tokyo... Anyone else have a bad a experience with a sushi roll?

I forgot, I didn't tag along We finished making the bento later than we planned. It was close to 1:30 when we finished and I needed to be home when Mia and Hide came home from school, Julia had taken the day off... By the way they didn't really ride the train, they just filmed them doing that. They walked right back out of the station and went off in the TV van... Hosshan caused quite a clamor wherever he went they had to stop the filming quite a few times. On the first day of filming we had about 20 some neighborhood kids waiting outside our front door for autographs and pictures. I, nor my children, had never heard of the guy before this but he was really a lot of fun. I was also disappointed they didn't show all the food I made, they asked me to prepare nikujyaga and a couple other dishes. I made a really wonderful goya shira-ae and some orange-cranberry biscotti, all of which Hosshan ate.

There was actually a week between when we drew the picture and the bento was made so we made some changes that were just skipped over and not really mentioned. They didn't show the one other item that I thought was also a nice Hawaiian touch, the pork seasoned with soy sauce then rolled around a piece of pineapple and cooked. Bruce, I am really sorry I didn't mention it sooner. The director called yesterday and said he will mail a DVD but to show my parents this summer I am adding it to the DVD we made of my two recent appearances on Okusama wa Gaigokjin and my husband's appearance on NHK later this month.

Thanks for watching! Rona, It is on from 9:10 to 9:30 so you can skip the first 40 minutes. It is hard to believe that 20 minute piece took 3 days of filming and 2 days of planning but it was really a lot of fun. Sorry for the late announcement, I just had LASIK eye surgery done and I am supposed to refrain from staring at computer screens for the next couple days... For the past 3 weeks I have been wearing my glasses that have a 10 year old prescription and was getting headaches a lot so I haven't been online much. I have tons of pictures to upload and many things to discuss but I am going to let my eyes rest for the weekend. Kansai TV said they are sending some pictures to me, hopefully they have one of the bento since I forgot to take one. If I can figure out how to work my scanner I will get a picture up.

I am sorry I haven't posted earlier about this!! The show is Ufufunopu and will start at 8:30am and runs until 10:00, we will be on for a 15 minute spot but am unsure of what time exactly. It runs on Fuji (channel 8) here in kanto but was produced by Kansai TV so it maybe running there as well. They had me prepare some dishes which the comedian Hosshan tastes and the rest of it is focused on daughter Julia (age 9) making a bento (her first) for her father).

For Japanese products I would stick with Kikkoman (only made in Japan products) for soy sauce, Kadoya for sesame oil, and Mitsukan (sometimes writtten Mizkan) for vinegar or vinegar based products.

I had never seen this sakura powder before, so I don't think it is widely available. I wish I could remember more about the powder now but I am pretty sure it wasn't sweetened.

The show will be on Fuji TV, I will let everyone know the air date when I find it out. We are working on the bento so far we have sort of a beach scene with a fried quail's egg for the sun and some spam shaped like a surfboard. I like Rona's idea of sesame seeds for the sand but are still having a hard time deciding what to do about the water. Ｏｒｉｇｉｎａｌｌｙ　Ｉ　ｗａｓ　ｔｈｉｎｋｉｎｇ　ｎｏ　ｓanｄ　ａｎｄ　ｊｕｓｔ　ｓｏｍｅ　ｎｏｒｉ　ｓｈａｐｅｄ　ｌｉｋｅ　ｗａｖｅｓ but the director is trying to find some kind of blue colored food. I have food coloring but I can't really think of anything that would still look appetizing after being dyed blue. As for the rest of the bento we have the typical Hawaiian macaroni salad but are trying to think of two more Hawaiian style/themed vegetable sides...

I didn't realize this show ran for 7 years. I have never seen it before but it will start being broadcast in Japan later this month. I guess I will have a new show to be addicted to...

I CAN NOT do that "professional" cut, I have tried and tried and I just can't get it right. I was hoping someone else cuts onions like me but so far I haven't seen it described, please don't laugh! I slice off both ends, then with the ends pointing out to the sides I slice it down into about 6 rings. I divide the rings into 2 piles with the smaller parts on the top of each pile. I then cut the pile with a left to right cut straight down along the length of the onion making the spaces between the slices as big or as little as I want them. I then rotate the onion so that the slices are now up and down and then make more left to right slices on the length of the onion. The onion now falls apart in a perfect dice and I have no knicks on my palm and my fingertips are still intact. Repeat with other pile.

This is actually my 7th TV appearance and Julia's 4th, up until now the focus has always been on my as a foreign wife living in Japan but this is the first time where food takes the main role. Once you appear on tv once your name gets in te system and you get calls quite a bit. I am quite picky about the shows I will be on and I have turned down twice as many as I have actually been on. The husband isn't supposed know about it but we had to discuss with my husband the part about delivering the bento to him at work, he has to get a bunch of stuff cleared before we can walk on the site. Ok now I need help, Julia and I are still deciding what to make in the bento. Julia wants to make it a surfing theme, my husband's favorite hobby, but I am at a loss for what to do/add.

I forgot to add that I have extended my trip this year to either 8/28 or 8/30 and I am definitely going to get out there for the panzanella this year!

Thanks again for the report guys! I really want some of that duck and the gelato. Is Dominic going to be able to hold some of the salmon for our Heartland gathering? If not maybe he can pop a piece for me in the freezer until I get to Cleveland on 7/13....