torakris

I could be wrong on this, but I think the nomihoudai may have started first then it led into the tabehoudai rage. As to the difference between tabehoudai and the buffets, I am not sure I have never thought about it. I am going to ask around today and see what I can find out.... Tabehoudai usually have time limits, that is the only difference I can think of.

NATTO Very, very few people make this at home, though in Japan they do sell kits for making it. I am sure most of the stuff you are looking at is the same way they are sold in Japan. I like my natto with some minced scallions an egg yolk and a a small handful of katsuo bushi (bonito flakes) thrown in. KIMCHI I love making kimchi, but if you access to decent stuff don't bother, it is quite time consuming and you may never get the smell out of your house! The fermentation period can be anywhere from minutes to a week depending on what you are making. I often make "quick" kimchis thata re ready yo eat instantly or within a couple of hours. As to the fermented fish, I use either ika no shio-kara (squid fermented in its own guts, another good food for you to try! ) or ami no shio-kara (tiny fermented shrimp), or else a Korean version of nampla (forget the name at this moment). Maybe this summer I will post some kimchi recipes..... kimchi thread: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?act=ST...T&f=21&t=17706& FOODS TO LOOK FOR if they have fresh foods shiso (perilla leaves) a perfect match with umeboshi myoga (ginger bud) a pink bud about the length of a pinky, sliver it and add it to salad like dishes shishamo (frozen most likely) small whole fish about 5 to 6 inches and their tummies swollen with eggs, these are incredible grilled--eaten all head to tail don't forget all of the tsukemono, the pickle section!

The green plums are in all the supermarkets now just waiting to be turned into umeboshi or umeshu, what are some of your favorite uses for umeboshi?

That is as fresh as it gets! (that is how it is sold in Japan too) Gus, I am so happy for you! sounds like you are going to be busy. Feel free to come back and ask any questions.

These were the biggest rage in Japan just a couple years ago, any favorites?

word for 6/15: 食べ放題 tabehoudai (tah-bay-hoe-die) all-you-can-eat For a while tabehoudai restaurants were the biggest thing in Japan, they are still around but not nearly as popular as a couple years ago. The word tabehoudai is usually preceded by the type of food, for example yakiniku tabehoudai, sushi tabehoudai, shabu shabu tabehoudai, cake tabehoudai. We were at one the other night and it had yakiniku, sushi, ramen. soba, udon, salads, hot dishes (Japanese and Western), and lots of desserts--all for one price.

Hi Kris-sensei, Please teach us how to say we are hungry and full. Your mention of onaka on 6/8 made me think about "onaka ga suita" and "onaka ga heta". Thanks! Elizabeth words for 6/14: おなかがすいた　　（おなかがすきました） onaka ga suita (onaka ga sukimashita) oh-hah-kah gah sue-ee-tah I am hungry (the one in parantheses is a little more formal) Elizabeth mentioned onaka ga heta as well and that is fine to say as long as you are a male and preferably whith a group of peers (best not to use it on formal occasions). During college I lived my my Japanese boyfriend and thus onaka heta was what I heard every day, I assumed this was the normal way of expressing ones hunger and during an improv skit in my first year Japanese class, I came out with onaka heta (the skit was about being on a picnic) and the teachers jaw nearly dropped to the floor, it was then that I really learned just how different the language between males and females really is. おなかがいっぱい　（おなかがいっぱいです） onaka ga ippai (onaka ga ippai desu) oh-nah-kah gah ee-pie I am full　(the one in parantheses is a little more formal)

Elizabeth. welcome to egullet and the Japan forum I hope to hear more from you! first off the natto thread: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?act=ST...T&f=19&t=10215& I love the stuff but here is how others feel about it.

I love this stuff. It is sort of like an American chop suey, but better and with the noodles on the bottom!

article about them in the Japan Times: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getart...g20030613rs.htm

I went out to lunch today with 3 fellow foreign friends to my favorite udon shop. They make a type of udon called goma udon and is made with the dough from regular udon that has been mixed with a paste of gobo and sesame seeds, leaving it with a speckled look. My friends all swore it was the best kind of noodle they have eaten in this country and no one had either seen it or heard of it before, curious I just did a search on this particular noodle and only found 2 hits and they were both for this restaurant. here is a picture (text is all Japanese), it is the second restaurant on the page: http://www.salus.ne.jp/magazine/backnumber...301/gourme.html Lucky for me the restaurant is 5 seconds from my house (directly across the street)

some more pickle recipes: http://japanesefood.about.com/cs/pickles/

Vikram, sounds wonderful! welcome to egullet, hope to hear more like this.

Coffee Crunch Sundae? Kristin, is this stuff any good? It sounds pretty wierd. The flavored ones are only American, the Japanese don't go for this silliness!

It is an interesting point you have and very true. I wonder if people just equate Japanese food with sushi/sashimi and a couple of nabes. Home cooked Japanese food is really very simple and a lot healthier then most Western foods. I often find when I am pressed for time and need a quick dinner, I make Japanese food.

Thursday dinner: Korean style beef and tofu patties served on a bed of steamed baby bok choy and served with a soy-vinegar-sesame seed-chile dipping sauce pork and shrimp shumai sliced tomato cabbage kimchi and octopus kimchi Japanese rice

since we are still on basics, word for 6/13: いらっしゃいませ irashaimase (ee-rah-shy-mah-say) with a slight pause befor the shy part welcome, normally shouted at you as you walk in the door! even at Mc Donald's, and not just by one person but everybody. sometimes shortened to irashai

I love nanban-zuke. I am never sure though where it falls food category-wise. It is deep fried, so could be considered an agemono, but then the marinate it in a vinegar essentially pickling it..... It can be made with most fish, normally ayu (sweet fish) , aji (horse mackeral), or saba (mackeral), or even smaller smelt type fishes. I also make it with chicken and once amde it with salmon that was quite good. i am sure pork would be nice as well. How do you like your nanbanzuke? for those unfamiliar with it please look here: http://web-japan.org/nipponia/nipponia8/bon.html recipe for the mackeral version is included

Thursday dinner: miso marianted then grilled flounder shirae (tofu and sesame dressed) green beans and carrots wild mushroom and bacon stir fry Japanese rice red wine rakkyo dessert: oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

Soba, you are in the wrong country! Those (and vanilla, chocolate and strawberry) are the ONLY ice creams I can find. How I long for a selection.......................

just how pure is your sake? http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getart...g20021013jg.htm

Kobe beef burger in Tokyo wonder which was first? At a restaurant that was started by Akebono, the great yokozuna himself, appropiately called Zuna: This last is no ordinary burger, though. It's styled "Zuna's Famous Kobe Beef Burger," and while it may not be famous yet, it surely deserves to be. O'Neal has taken Kobe's celebrated beef -- which sells for up to $100 a kilo in the United States -- and minced it up into tennis-ball size patties. It's served with slivers of peppered foie gras and anointed with white truffle mayonnaise. This must be the most decadent beefburger on earth, and certainly merits the 3,800 yen price tag. at today's exchange rate that is $32 here is the whole article: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getart...g20030523a1.htm

I just saw a package of konbu squares that were packed in miso, the pack mentioned the addition of soy sauce as well. It says to wipe the miso off before eating, sort of a konbu miso-zuke? Probably do-able at home.

since we are on basic words at the moment, for 6/12: 台所 daidokoro (dah-ee-doh-koh-roh) kitchen though nowadays it is just as common to hear キッチン ki-chin (kee-cheen, there is a slight pause between the kee and the cheen)

Kris: Please, please please let us know how this works out. My mind is boggling Big Time. Actually the breads are cooked in the oven, the first rise takes place in the microwave for 30 seconds (at 150 to 200W), but the breads from start to finish take 35 minutes (including 2 risings and baking). These are not loaf breads but more like rolls, typical Japanese stuff.