torakris

Actually the address is Machida, Tokyo but is right on the border of Hachioji and Sagamihara about 30 minutes from my house in Yokohma, they are also in Chiba, Kobe and Fukuoka! Last night soft shell tacos ground beef filling made per Cook's Illustrated recipe tortillas lettuce avocado slices pico de gallo Dessert: congo bars

and for those who can't decide on what kind of pasta to eat for dinner, Kagome has come to the rescue with Half and Half. Retort pasta sauces that come in individual servings with 2 different flavors in each packet. Half and Half from kagome: http://www1.kagome.co.jp/cgi-bin/products/....cgi?CODE2=A005 pictures #4, 5 and 6 down

word for 10/10: わさび wasabi (wah-sah-bee) We already covered this way back but this time we are talking about the leaves and stems rather then the root. These have a milder wasbi taste then the root and are great in dressed dishes, simmered dishes as well as hitashi. wasabi: http://arakifoods.kir.jp/zukan/wasabi.htm

That is interesting I find the shiso leaves to be milder. I make a small batch of this kimchi a couple times a year. It is very easy to grow, I have 2 bushes of it in my backyard. It is also wonderful as a wrapping with onigiri (rice balls), especially grilled ones spread with some kojuchang......yum!

I like this sherry idea and might give it a try, I am assuming it is peeled first? And like someone asked does it change the flavor in any way? Most of the ginger I buy is sold in plastic bags in the refrigerated/cool section and thus is already moist when I get it, can I dry it out at home with out affecting texture/taste?

Thursday night: miso marinated lemon sole hakusai (Chinese cabbage) and aburage (tofu pockets) simmered with lots of ginger in a soy-mirin-dashi broth gobo (burdock root) and cucumber salad satsumaimo (Japanese sweet potato) gohan (rice) with goma-shio (sesame and salt) dessert: Costco apple pie

You are very right! I picked up another at Costco yesterday.......... East European Kitchen None of my other 200 books cover this particular area and it was only \880 (about $8).........

word for 10/9: よもぎ yomogi (yoe-moe-ghee) Called mugwort in English, this is a member of the chrysanthemum family and is found wild all over Japan. Unlike most of the other sansai this one is found most commonly in wagashi (Japanese sweets), in the boiled leaf form, dried or powdered. It can also be used in savory dishes like takikomi gohan, ohitashi, soups and even tempura. picture and recipe for kusamochi: http://homepage3.nifty.com/pico-pg/e-cooki...ng/e-yomogi.htm

Weds night, continuing with my kid friendly meals: mapodofu --stir fried saucy tofu dish but I cut back on the spices because of the 5 kids eating it shumai (these were gone within 10 seconds of placing them on the table) simmered satsumaimo (Japanese sweet potato) with lemon Japanese rice

and my dorm mates thought I was odd when I kept kimchi in my refrigerator for late night snacking. How do you cook squash in a dorm room?

do you peel it before you freeze it?

Just saw a commercial for an interesting thing. The product is called Coolish and it is being marketed as a drinkable ice cream, wouldn't that be what we call a shake? Coolish: http://www.lotte.co.jp/coolish/02.html in 3 flavors vanilla, cappucino and key lime (do the Japanese even know what a key lime is? )

It actually sounds good to me too, I looked for it at the supermarket yesterday but they didn't have it, they did have the nwe Mickey Mouse cereal (pictured just below the matcha one) with marshmallows and despite my 2 year olds whines it didn't make it into the basket.

Okay one more yesterday yasai bakkari ( Just vegetables) by Kentarou Kobayashi my shopping spree is over, I swear!

Tuesday dinner: moving into fall with kuri gohan (chestnut rice) tori-dango nabe, a nabe (one pot dish) of chicken meatballs with hakusai (Chinese cabbage), daikon, shiitake and mizuna eaten with ponzu dessert: ice cream sanwiches

According to Fuschia Dunlop the name for them is chao tian jiao or 'heaven facing' chilli, she describes them as moderately hot and very fragrant. I did a find a source in the UK: http://www.coolchile.co.uk/Merchant2/merch...ry_Code=Wchiles

I wish I could have eaten like this during my 3 pregnancies, I had the morning sickness from hell and had to be hospitalized with my first because I was losing too much weight (I had dropped down to 104 lbs and I am close to 5' 8"). I was down to eat these strawberry flavored ice chip things because they tasted just as good coming up as they did going down! I was completely turned off coffee during all three pregnancies, even the smell made me gag, I also couldn't touch noodles in any form . women really are amazing creatures.............

word for 10/8: 行者にんにく­ gyoujaninniku (gyoo-jah-neen-nee-koo) These are the Japanese version of ramps, if not the exact same then they are a very close cousin. Ninniku is the word for garlic and gyouja is the word for an ascetic. According to a book I read they were often eaten by the priests as they were walking through the mountains during religious training and the name stuck. The Japanese eat them lighty boiled and then used as ohitashi, dressed salads or sunomono. gyoujaninniku: http://www.sansaiya.com/goods_img/gyoujal300g2.jpg

Your best bet would be looking in an Asian market, I remember seeing some at a Japanese grocer in Columbus, Ohio a couple years back. Japan and the US have different voltages and it would be best to buy one made for use in the US. Most of the Japanese electronic makers have a version of some sort. Anyone in the US ever bought one?

One of my favorite quick cheap meals is a Thai curry, a can of coconut milk a spoonful of curry paste and in 10 minutes you have dinner with anything you may happen to have in your refrigerator. One of my favorite quick cooking books is Donna Hay's New Food Fast with sections on meals or desserts in 10, 20 and 30 minutes, all homemade and very good! and pictures of every dish like you don't in the American cookbooks

Got a new sushi book yesterday.............

Sorry with all the chaos going on in the background I fogot to mention my dinner idea. How about a risotto served with a salad.

Food is my passion and I spend hours (or minutes on busy days) cooking because it is what I love. I know that most people do not feel the same and I know plenty of people who see it as fuel. I have one sister, who is quite a good cook by the way, who once told our family that she doesn't really like food and if she could get her daily nutrients through 3 pills a day she would do it rather then eat. I think everyone has their own "thing", Like Fifi I really don't care for music, I probably own less then 20 cd's and only listen to music in the car because there is nothing else to do. My husband has a passion for woodworking and carving, this last Sunday just casually mentioned I was wanting shelves made for the kitchen, in less then a second he had paper and pencil in hand and was making a drawing of what he would build, 2 hours later I had new shelves and he couldn't understand why I wasn't jumping around for joy about them. To me they are just shelves...... Back to convenience cooking, though it may be faster (for some people) I doubt that it is cheaper, a lot of the purchased products she calls for in her book (semi-homemade cooking) are not cheap and I am sure I could easily make a better dish in the same amount of time with half the cost. For those people who hate to cook, I am sure convenience foods are a life saver.

Congratulations on the pregnancy! Children are wonderful (in the background............ 7 year old Mia is running around hysterical and will be late for school because her pink shirt is the wrong shade of pink to go with her pink hairbands and her favorite socks are in the washing machine 5 year old Julia is trying to make the world's largest pizza on my dining room table out of clay and real food 2 year old Hide has his pants off and is trying to pee out of the dining room window onto my garden Mommy (me) just burned the toast while typing this) Like I said, children are wonderful................ Congratulations!

I have her book Sichuan Cookery and she calls for them all through out there as well. Judging by the pictures in the book they are squat and boxy looking. I have yet to find them in Yokohama's China town as well and a Chinese friend was going to try and pick up some up for me on her trip to Hong Kong last spring, however SARS postpond her trip and I am still waiting.....