torakris

A lot of the "vendors" can actually be found as shops in department store basements, especially some of the sweets like taiyaki or dorayaki. In Osaka I have heard you can buy takoyaki almost anywhere but in Tokyo it can be a little harder to find. Many large stores (like Ito-Yokado, Jusco, Aeon, etc) have food courts that offer various "street" foods like takoyaki, crepes, etc Most of the larger parks (Uneo Koen, Yoyogi Koen) and major temple areas have streets lines with various vendors especially on the weekends. For oden and such try the outside of any major station after dark.

Some street food pictures, these were all taken in Asakusa. freshly cooked sembei (rice crackers) chocolate banana on a stick and in a cone candied fruits (that is a block of ice they are sitting in) the street vendors line the streets of Asakusa

I had been wanting to try negiyaki for sometime now and finally had the chance. This is a speciality from Osaka that in made with green onions instead of cabbage. on the grill the restaurant suggested eating it with soy sauce and katsuo bushi (bonito flakes) but I felt this added nothing. I remember easternsun mentioning eating it with ponzu and wish they had had some.

I don't think I have ever seen Agu pork before, apparently it is a native (well as native as you can get..) black pork. This site has some really nice pictures...

another wonderful Japanese speciality! monjyayaki this was now ready to be eaten feel free to make comments...

Maybe if it was in focus the beans would look less like dead bugs..

We have very briefly discussed monjyayaki in a couple other threads but it is time it has a thread of it's own! A bit of History: The cradle of Monjayaki is said to be Tsukishima district of downtown Tokyo. Several decades ago, sweetshops in Tsukishima used to have griddles in there shops. They served thin pancakes made out of water, wheat flour, and many kind of fillings. The snack was popular to kids. It was called "moji-yaki", literally meaning "letter-cake", since kids tried to make the pancake in the shape of their favorate letters. The name "Moji-yaki" turned into "monjayaki" in long history. from here where there is also a step by step description on how to make and eat monjyayaki (in English) Food Zealot and I recently went to Sakuratei in Harajuku wher we enjoyed a couple kinds of monjyayaki. By far from the best picture, but this was my favorite: mentaiko (spicy cod roe) with mochi (rice cakes) and cheese This was also good though I could have taken it a little spicier: spicy cooked beef, kimchi and kochujang First place all of the non-liquid parts of the bowl on the hot plate and sort of stirfry it with the big paddles. Then you make a well and pour the liquid part in the middle, unlike okonomiyaki this uses no egg so it is pretty much water and flour. Leave it alone and let it cook until the liquid part starts to thicken and become transparent. Then mix it all together and spread it out to let it cook a little more. It is eaten while it is still semi-runny... Almost ready monjyayaki is not eaten with chopsticks rather with little tiny spatulas, you can see it in Food Zealot's hand As monjyayaki is one of those you love it or hate it foods, many monjya places have a menu that also includes okonomiyaki, yakisoba and other foods that can be cooked on a hot plate. We also enjoyed a negiyaki (like okonomiyaki but made with two kinds of green onion rather than cabbage) and dish they called chicken kori kori yaki that despite it's simple appearance was quite good and on the grill

no, but they are cherry tomatoes which are always in season.

I guess you could call this the Okinawan version of chili.... This is actually called taco rice, but the ground beef is seasoned just like for chili and a lot of the toppings are the same, though I went a bit overboard with the lettuce.

Why is it that I take pictures of gorgeous food and can make it look inedible yet you can turn a fish head into food porn???? In the first picture, what is old cucumber?

A couple nights ago I made taco rice!

I can't find lime hi-chew anywhere anymore!! My daughter picked up the new one, dekopon (a kind of citrus), that is quite good but I am still craving the lime one...

Jason, those really look good and I am not a vegetarian! What are the differences between the Chinese jiaozi and Japanese gyoza? are there any? the gyoza thread vegetarian gyoza by easternsun

Yuja-cha (called yuzu-cha in Japanese) is one of my favorites in the cold months and one of the few drinks that I drink hot.

It was from the new Gourmet Cookbook (pg 361) and is called Gratineed Chicken and Vegetables in Cream Sauce (or Poulet a la Fermiere). They aren't sausages they are red carrots. I blame them for the funky color of the cream sauce....

Last night's dinner I lovingly refer to as 'Puke in a Pan' believe it or not it actually looked worse in person... My family didn't seem to care and the kids were actually fighting over the last spoonful.

my chili... I think it belongs in this thread rather than the chili cook off thread.

I just heard about a new restaurant in Daikanyama (Tokyo) that sells only fish cakes. Fish Cake & Deli

that tree is beautiful!! Just like it has been said wait until they are very soft, the worse they look the better they taste. My oldest daughter was a persimmon tree for halloween, we taped leaves all over her body and tied (real) persimmons up and down her arms.... I will make them into a persimmon bread today.

chibirisu, 6 times a year for 100 people??? Get a machine! I know people that have machines and they use it once a year for way less people...

I will let you know what I want when I get close to 10,000!! Yuki, i like the idea of cooking them in the rice cooker, do you use a special dish? Does the rice get smashed down?

Wow! You have a better memory than I do! I think I may have to stop posting my bad pictures of Japanese food or people may be scared off of it forever....

this is the wonderful Japanese delicacy of ika no shiokara, often translated into English as squid fermented in its own guts... My FIL made this version, it is actually much better tasting than it sounds or looks.

I am not even sure what this one was anymore....not a good sign...

It is a Sicilian Focaccia (sfincione) which is actually supposed to be THICKER than a focaccia. I am not sure what went wrong but it tasted like cardboard...