torakris

word for 11/7: ”’Ø@@‚Í‚­‚³‚¢ hakusai (hah-koo-sah-ee) Chinese cabbage, napa cabbage, etc Hakusai wasn't introduced to Japan until after World War II, though the way it is used in Japan now you would think it has been here since ancient times. This vegetable meaning "white green" or "white vegetable" came from China and is used today in simmered dishes, soups, nabes, pickles, stirfries and even raw in salads. The hakusai are in Japan seem to be be squatter and fatter then the counterparts I have seen in the US, the outer leaves can range from a light to dark green while the inner core in a beautiful yellow with crisp white stalks. hakusai: http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/images/ve...ure/hakusa3.jpg

Only two more days until payday! Finishing my week of cleaning out the freezer and cupboard Weds. dinner: grilled hoshi-saba (semi-dried mackeral) soramame (like fava beans) and carrot shira-ae (tofu and sesame dressing) dried shiitake and konnyaku simmered in a soy-ginger sauce chirimen-sansho furikake (baby sardines and Japanese pepper) Japanese rice with 5 grains blend added

word for 11/6: ‚É‚ñ‚É‚­‚̉è@@or ‚É‚ñ‚É‚­‚ÌŒs ninnikunome (neen-knee-koo-noh-meh) or ninnikunokuki (neen-knee-koo-noh-koo-key) These are referred to as garlic stems or garlic flower stems in English, they are a side product of garlic bulb production. Orginally from China, the Japanese love them for their mellow garlic taste with a slight sweetness and a great crunch. They are too strong to be eaten raw but a very brief cooking, usually stirfry, tames them wonderfully. About a foot long they are a little thinner than a pencil and are fairly straight with a solid green body. garlic stems: http://www.vegefund.com/panfu/garlic/garlic4e.GIF

Tuesday dinner: takikomi-gohan (rice cooked with salmon, daikon, and ginko nut) kaiso (seaweed) salad with tofu and a shiso dressing miso soup with satsumaimo (Japanese sweet potato) and onion

All I can say is yuummm! I think I am going to Australia right after Malaysia!

word for 11/5: にんじん ninjin carrot Japanese carrots tend to be quite a bit thicker and a little shorter then their American counterparts. Carrots are used in Japan pretty much the same ways as in other countries, boiled, sauteed, simmered, salads, soups, etc. Though they tend to be more a garnish rather then an entire side dish and you will often see them carved into decorative shapes. There is also the kintoki ninjin (from Kyoto) that is quite long and red in color.

just ran across this today: http://www.sbfoods.co.jp/products/newprd/s...oruto.htm#07324 retort pack cheese curry the first one has cheddar, the second one is camembert.........

Had a wonderful weekend at Kujukuri in Chiba, my husband even picked up a new surfboard (like he needed that! ) anyway back to Nihongo word for 11/4: ‚É‚ç nira (kee-rah) garlic chives Part of the onion family they game to Japan from China are thus are used mostly in dishes of Chinese origin though they have adapted well to Japanese style preparations as well. They are available in the common green color as well as yellow and flowering varieties, though the latter 2 maybe difficult to find outside of International style markets. They are used in soups, including things like zosui, also in hitashi, dressed dishes, stifries, and in fillings for dumplings. nira: http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/images/ve...ure/nira.h2.jpg

I am glad to know I am not the only one! I drink incredible amounts of water with my meals, especially in the summer when I have been cooking in a very hot kitchen I can drink two large tumblers of water before I even touch the meal. I have often wonder how people can just sip wine or hot tea with their meal............

didn't cook Friday thru Sunday Monday night: pork gyoza nira gyoza Japanese rice

I wish I could nibble on things like that!

I was asked if I know any good reasonably priced kaiseki places, this is not a type of restaurant I frequent often and thought others might have some suggestions for good places in Tokyo and Yokohama. Anything?

everything! Denny's Japan: http://www.dennys.co.jp/dj/index.html to look at the menu click on the middle left side (under the steak) where it says Denny's info, then click in where it says Grand menu, this will list on the left side in a dark brown the categories, click on any one to see pictures of the food: salad/ soup pasta gratin/doria/omelettes bread/sandwiches hamburgers/meat dishes Japanese style/donburi/noodles side orders desserts drinks take a look a the children's menu while you are there, very different from the US.

This thread might do better if it was in the cooking forum...... (I will see if I can get it moved) I have to admit I have never really prepared yakisoba noodles for anything other then yakisoba If they are the ones I am thinking of they are already cooked? and thus need a very short time in the pan with a small amount of liquid (1/4 to 1/3 cup per "ball") added at the same time. They could probably be used in the same kind of recipes as Chinese egg noodles. 4 pounds, wow!

Of my close to 200 cookbooks about 20-25 get a fairly good rotation, if I had to pick one that I used the most it would be Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone (and I am far from a vegetarian!), next would be my set 4 Donna Hay books, her food is simple and fast and tastes great!

Good morning! Sorry to hear about last night's disappointment, it had to be better then the meal I ate at Denny's last night! I hope tonight and Sunday are better.

word for 11/1: ‰ÖŽq@‚È‚· nasu (nah-sue) eggplant There are a lot of eggplants in Japan! They range in size from the size of a thumb, to the monster globe ones we see in the US, these by the way are called •Ä‰ÖŽq@beinasu or American eggplant, then there are the long skinny ones sometimes over a foot in length. Eggplants were introduced from China in the 7th and 8th centuries and have since found their way into every style of cooking. They are grilled, deep fried, simmered, stirfried, pickled and even tossed in soups. Some varieties you may run across: ¬‚È‚·@konasu, these are the tiny ones that are often pickled whole or cut into a whisk shape ’·‚È‚· naganasu, the long thin ones, some of the longest ones come from the Kyushu prefecture ‰ê–΂Ȃ· kamonasu, this one comes from the Kyoto region and has a nice fat, round, slightly oblong shape and is most famous in the dish nasu dengaku ŠÛ‚È‚·@marunasu, this name "round eggplant" covers a variety of egglpants that are round in shape, the kamonasu included some pictures of eggplants in Japan: http://www.kennou-ehime.jp/shinsen/know/no...o4/yasai004.htm

I am sure it is most popular in Akita (and other parts of the Tohoku region), see the map Akita is #4 http://www.japan-guide.com/list/e1002.html I have seen it and eaten it in the Yokohama-Tokyo area on numerous occasions. It is usually sold in the refrigerated area of the produce section, pre-boiled and the outer skin removed in a vacuum packed bag or jar. I have no idea of its availability outside of Japan. here are pictures of it in jars and cans (I have never seen the cans before) http://www.ink.or.jp/~apple/apple-shop/tonburi.html

Thursday: okonomiyaki dessert: roasted pumpkin seeds

word for 10/31: ‚Æ‚ñ‚Ô‚è tonburi (tone-boo-ree) Sometimes referred to in Japanese as ”¨‚̃LƒƒƒrƒA@ihatake no kyabia) or caviar of the fields. These are seeds of the broom cypress, also known as goosefoot grass) a branch of wild spinach. They have a look and mouth feel similar to caviar and are often referred to as land caviar in English. more information (including medicinal properties) and picture: http://www.media-akita.or.jp/akita-shoku/tonburiE.html for a bigger and better picture click in the link in the last paragraph

Sorry about that I guess I just assume everyone knows what I am talking about! Umeboshi in Japan can be sold in various forms,, the moist reddish one is the most popular though they do have dried kinds all the way from semi fried to very dried, they also eat them sort of pickled in their green form. The ume is actually a kind of apricot though it is most often referred to as a Japanese plum.

Is that sour plum similar to a Japanese umeboshi?

Think the seaweed must be either deep-fried or toasted as they're really crunchy. It's not Malaysian though - the seaweed are Japanese and Korean snacks - Torakris might know how the seaweed is prepared? If it is yaki-nori (and it probably is) then it has been toasted, the Korean varities are also brushed with sesame oil, this makes them delicious to just eat plain. It is nice to have someone posting in a a similar (I think we are one hour off) timezone!

Weds dinner: pork shumai konbu "marinated" salmon sashimi served on a bed of finely shredded daikon and topped with minced scallions, dipped into soy sauce shungiku (chrysanthemum leaves) gohan -- the raw leaves are drizzled with a little soy and sesame seeds then some sesame oil is heated just to smoking and then poured on top, this is then mixed with some cooked Japanese rice. dessert: leftover kabocha and coconut milk pudding

Most of the kimchi I buy in Japan has an expiration date of about 1 to 2 weeks and once opened I try to use it with in the week, but I can see it starts to sour and get "bubbly" after a couple of days. The stuff I used to buy in the monster jars in the US seemed to last forever, of course they were "bubbly" from the start. Different preservatives?