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Daily Nihongo (2003 - 2004)

torakris

By torakris
in Japan: Cooking & Baking

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torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 2/17:

新高　　にいたか

niitaka (knee-tah-kah)

Though this nashi has been around for about 100 years , it rise in popularity is very recent. These are large nashi weighing in at between 1 and 2 lbs each. the season for them is long, running from the end of September into november, these can also be kept in good condition for up to 2 months if stored in a cool place.

niitaka:

http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/veg-fru/i...ii/niitaka2.jpg

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

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Posted

word for 2/18:

晩三吉　おくさんきち　or　ばんさんきち

okusankichi or bansankichi

This type of nashi can be called by two names, the characters do not change though.

Most nashi can be found during late summer but you will still see some in the markets all year round, this is one of them. The bansankichi can be found from October through April, it can be distinguished from most other nashi in the fact that the top part near the stem isn't smooth and round like a regular nashi.

http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/veg-fru/i...ago/oku-at3.jpg

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

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Posted

I think I would be happy if I never talked about another nashi again!

Let's move on... :biggrin:

word for 2/20:

ぶどう

budou (boo-doe)

grapes

Japan has some really incredible grapes and we will cover some of them in the next couple days.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

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Posted (edited)

word for 2/21:

巨峰　きょほう

kyohou (kyo-hoe)

These grapes account for over 30% of all the grapes grown in Japan and though they peak in September, you can often find them available from April thru December. In my opinion these are the best grapes in the world. :biggrin: They need to be peeled before eating as the skins have a very unpleasant taste, but they are worth the time. These grapes can be quite large and I was once served one the size of a ping pong ball, they are incredibly sweet and can be incredibly expensive. :angry:

the kyohou:

http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/veg-fru/i...oho/kyoho.2.jpg

Edited by torakris (log)

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 2/22:

デラウエア

derauea (day-rah-ooh-eh-ah)

Delaware grape, this is probably rivaling the kyohou for popularity and is definitely the hands down winner with kids. Named after its supposed place of origin Delaware County, Ohio, it is used mostly for wine making except in Japan where it is regarded as a delicious table grape. The Japanese remove the skin before eating, just pinch the grape in your fingers (these are really tiny grapes) and te skin slides right off, or you can do it like the kids and myself, pop the whole grape into your mouth and then spit out the skin.

the following is a little bit about the grape from

http://www.delawaregrape.com/

What was the origin of the Delaware Grape? No one knows for sure. There was a story that it had been sent from France at the turn of the 19th century. Other placed the origins in Italy, however it has been found to be devoid of the characteristics of all foreign grapes and is said to be purely native American in habit of growth and adaptability to our soil and climate. It is commonly supposed that it is a chance seedling, perhaps a new variety of native grape. Perhaps we will never know the origins.

The Delaware vines produce grapes that are small and delicately formed. The berries are pale rose to bright red and have good "keeping quality" (It is said that the grapes can last up to 16 weeks after harvest. The pulp is quite juicy, almost gelatinous in consistency, with a distinct fruity flavor, sometimes called "foxy". The Delaware Grape is said to be an excellent table grape and delightful to taste.

The Delaware Grape, widely grown by vintners today, has stood the test of time. It has remained constant and is still recommended today as an excellent native grape to grow. It is widely praised for its' disease resistance and hardiness and is currently grown throughout the Northeastern US, especially New York, and in Ohio, along Lake Erie. It is often used in some premium champagne blends , to produce a dessert wine and to make a light fruity semi-dry drinking wine. It is decidedly grapy-tasting. It is a favorite table grape in Japan, the second leading grape grown and also very well known in areas of Europe

the delaware grape:

http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/veg-fru/i...are/delawa2.jpg

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

jhlurie

jhlurie

Posted
Posted
word for 2/21:

巨峰　きょほう

kyohou (kyo-hoe)

These grapes account for over 30% of all the grapes grown in Japan and though they peak in September, you can often find them available from April thru December. In my opinion these are the best grapes in the world. :biggrin: They need to be peeled before eating as the skins have a very unpleasant taste, but they are worth the time. These grapes can be quite large and I was once served one the size of a ping pong ball, they are incredibly sweet and can be incredibly expensive. :angry:

the kyohou:

http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/veg-fru/i...oho/kyoho.2.jpg

As someone who has never in their life bothered to "peel" a grape, I shudder. :smile: But if it's that big, maybe its worth it.

Jon Lurie, aka "jhlurie"

gus_tatory

gus_tatory

Posted
Posted

hi torakris~!

is the "o" at the beginning of a word always honourific?

like in "omakase" (does this mean "chef's choice"?) and ochazuke ("green tea/rice soup"), i mean.

thanks. :smile:

"The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears, or the ocean."

--Isak Dinesen

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted
hi torakris~!

is the "o" at the beginning of a word always honourific?

like in "omakase" (does this mean "chef's choice"?) and ochazuke ("green tea/rice soup"), i mean.

thanks.  :smile:

for your first question the o is sometimes honorific, normally only when it preceded a word that can stand on its own. For example tea is actually just "cha" so adding the o makes it honorific, but you rarely hear anyone saying just cha, ocha is the mainstream usage. Then you can take the word tegami which means letter and add an o to it to make otegami and it makes it more formal, tegami (with out the o) is the everyday usage. Then you have a word like onara, which is fart (the noun) :biggrin: and I am sure this is not honorific in anyway, though I could be wrong! :blink:

The word omakase is from the verb makaseru which means to leave something up to some one or something else, when you are using it in a restuarant it can mean the chef's choice (especially if it is written on a menu), but you could also use it when asking someone to pick out something for you, whether it is food or not.

I know that no matter how simple a word I teach today, everyone is going to leave this thread remembering only onara, so I will make that the word for today 2/23! :biggrin:

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 2/24:

マスカット　オブ　アレキサンドリア

masukatto obu arekisandoria

Muscat of Alexandria grape, these are referred to as the "Queen of Grapes" as the Kyohou are referred to as "King of Grapes". Though these carry only 1% of the grape market in Japan, they command the highest prices. They are sold beautifully displayed in boxes and the price can range from $20 to $100, they probably average somewhere between $40 and $50. They are in season from MAy thru November though they peak in the summer.

the grape:

http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/veg-fru/i...ria/alexis2.jpg

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 2/25:

ネオマスカット

neo masukatto (nay-oh-mah-sue-kah-tto)

I guess this could be translated at Neo Muscat, created in 1938 as a blend of the Muscat of Alexandria, these have a similar taste and are much more affordable. Their season runs July to September.

Neo Muscat:

http://www.pref.yamanashi.jp/nouseibu/kajy...ges/neo-mas.jpg

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 2/28:

レッドグローブ

reddo guroobu

Red globe, this is the most popular imported grape in Japan. Unlike most of the grapes eaten in Japan, these do not need to be peeled before eating, yet I still see people doing it all the time.... :blink: These are imported mostly from Chile (January- June) and the US (September- December).

red globe:

http://www.maruka-ishikawa.co.jp/veg-fru/i...obe/redglo2.jpg

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 2/29:

トンプソンシードレス

tompuson shiidoresu

Thompson seedless grapes.

I first saw these grapes in Japan 1 1/2 years ago at Costco (Tokyo store) and had never seen them in a Japanese supermarket until less than a month ago. Hopefully they will become more popular in the future.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

gus_tatory

gus_tatory

Posted
Posted (edited)
word for 2/29:

トンプソンシードレス

tompuson shiidoresu

Thompson seedless grapes...

hi torakris--

with Japanese, is the rule generally the following, as it seems to be?

--if it's a product that's native to japan or that was introduced early, it has a Japanese name, and

--if it's something like Thompson Seedless Grapes, that were introduced later, it would be called the phoenetic equivalent in Japanese? (i.e., "tompuson shiidoresu"?)

thanks,

gus

Edited by gus_tatory (log)

"The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears, or the ocean."

--Isak Dinesen

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

Good observations Gus! :biggrin:

Today I will explain a little about the Japanese writing system.

The Japanese writing system is made up of a combination of kanji (Chinese characters) and two sets of phonetic syllabaries, hiragana and katakana. These are not three separate writing systems, rather three different but complimentary scripts used together when writing in Japanese.

1. Kanji:

used for elements that carry meaning or content, such as proper or common nouns and the stem part of verbs and adjectives.

2. Katakana:

used mostly for foreign words (loanwords) and certain scientific or technical terms.

3. Hiragana:

used for fuctional elements expressing grammatical relations (case particles, conjunctions,etc) and inflectional endings

Katakana and hiragana can be distinguished by their "shape", hiragana is sorfter, rounder while katakana is more sharp and pointed, here are the vowels writen in both:

vowel hiragana (ひらがな） katakana （カタカナ)

a あ　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ア

i　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　い　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　イ

u　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　う　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ウ

e　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　え　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　エ

o　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　お　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　オ

New words are added daily to katakana dictionaries as more and more words are entering the language. More than 100 years ago when a new "word" entered the Japanese language it was often given a "new", Japanese name. For example take the word car, this was given the name jidousha, written like this 自動車, the separate characters describe what a car is ( "by itself" & "moving" & "carriage") though te word jidousha is still used it is much more common to hear the word kuruma instead. Kuruma is written with just one kanji 車　as most people today don't remember any cars that didn't move by themselves.... Of course you will also see kuruma written in hiragana くるま、　especially in books written for kids just as you will see the word auto written in katakana. The place were I bought my car was called Auto Plaza アウトプラザ.

Also a little bit on kanji that we discussed almost a year ago (as if you weren't already confused! :blink: ):

The Chinese characters used in Japanese writing today obviously came from China, when they did they came with the Chinese pronunciation (in a form adapted to the Japanese sound system), but since the Japanese already had their own word equivalents they ended up with two (and sometimes more) reading for the same character.

the ON (ohn) reading in the Japanized Chinese reading

the KUN (kuhn) reading is the original Japanese word reading

so for example 子　which means child has two readings the ON reading of 'shi' and the KUN reading of 'ko'

Most words usually have only one or two ON and KUN readings but then there are kanji like

上　 (which means up) that has 2 ON readings and 8 KUN readings

enough to make a foreigner go batty! :biggrin:

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

Most grapes in Japan have seeds and if it says nothing on the package you can assume that they have them. If they don't have seeds (this is starting to be more popular) then it will say

種無し　　種なし　　tane nashi (tah-nay nah-shee) on the package.

tane is the Japanese word for seed and nashi (not the Asian pear) means without

sometimes I have also seen packages that do have seeds labeled as

種あり　tane ari (tah-nay ah-rhee)

ari is the opposite of nashi, so basically means " to be with"

don't get that confused with another meaning of the word ari that means ant.....

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

I think we are actually done with the fruits! :biggrin:

Time to move on to a whole new subject,

word for 3/4:

魚　さかな

sakana (sah-kah-nah)

fish

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 3/5:

まぐろ　　マグロ　　鮪

maguro (mah-goo-rhow) and those are all the ways you may see it written

Tuna

we will spend a couple days discussing the varieties and cuts of this fish.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

Let's start by discussing the types of tuna.

word for 3/6:

本マグロ　　黒マグロ　（クロマグロ）

honmaguro (hone-mah-goo-rhoe) kuromaguro (koo-rhoe-mah-goo-rhoe)

These are both ways of saying bluefin tuna, probably the most popular tuna for sashimi/sushi eating.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 3/7:

インドマグロ　or　南マグロ　(ミナミマグロ）

indo-maguro or minami-maguro

This is the Southern blue fin tuna pulled out of the Indian ocean, at one time they were caught just off the coast of India but now they are brought to Japan from as far away as Tasmania and Cape Town.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

word for 3/8:

キハダマグロ

kihada maguro (key-hah-dah-mah-goo-rhoe)

Yellow fin tuna, this also commonly referred to as ahi which is the Hawaiian name.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

torakris

torakris

Posted
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Posted

word for 3/9:

目鉢マグロ　　or メバチマグロ　　or めばちまぐろ

mebachi maguro (may-bah-chee-mah-goo-rhoe)

Big eye tuna

This is the one that is currently in season and about 80% of the tuna at the supermarkets right now is mebachi.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

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