Kawahagi sashimi

Shinji-san made sashimi from kawahagi. Great fish with a nice texture. And, if it is very fresh, you can eat the liver. We make a sauce out of it by simply crushing it and dipping the sashimi into it.

Kawahagi

Shinji san getting ready to make sashimi from kawahagi.

Ivan Ramen - An American Making Ramen in Tokyo

Ivan Ramen and below are his shio ramen, tan tan men, and the slow-roasted pork on rice.

Ivan Ramen - An American Making Ramen in Tokyo

Nihonbashi Yukari

With Chef Kimio Nonaga outside of his restaurant. Mika, my cousin in the middle, was visiting from Yamagata.

Nihonbashi Yukari

Chef Kimio Nonaga, the 2002 Iron Chef Champion at his restaurant, Nihonbashi Yukari.

Shinji-san's Bento

Shinji-san's Bento

Shinji-san's Bento

Shinji-san's Bento

Grilled salmon, turnip in an umeboshi mayonnaise dressing, kiriboshi daikon, Korean-style bean sprouts and kombu Tsukudani.

Shinji-san's Bento

Zakkokumai rice, kombu Tsukudani, stir-fried mushrooms, chirimen and kabu leaves Tsukudani, grilled saba

Shinji-san's Bento

Salt-marinated and grilled salmon, takana pickles, dashimaki tamago with nori, cucumber pickles, stir-fried greens and chikuwa.

Team "Food Sake Tokyo"

This is the team working on Food Sake Tokyo, to be published by The Little Bookroom. Takuya Suzuki is the photographer and Junko Nakahama is the coordinator. This is the best team in Tokyo to put this book together and I am honored to work with them.

Shinji-san's Bento

Anago on rice, kinpira gobo, kabocha nimono, chikuwa stuffed with okra and carrots, kombu wrapped around gobo, and julienned daikon with an umeboshi dressing.

Shinji-san's Sashimi Platter

Shinji-san often makes sashimi platters like this for dinner.

Shinji-san's Bento

Kinpira gobo, okra-stuffed chikuwa, kabocha nimono, koya-dofu nimono, gobo-stuffed kombu maki and chirimen and kabu leaves Tsukuda ni.

Kabu Radish

Nothing goes to waste in the Japanese kitchen. The radishes are used for pickles and simmered dishes and the green leaves are chopped up and used in simmered dishes.

Shinji-san's Bento

Miso-marinated saba, chrysanthemum leaves in a sesame soy dressing, chikuwa fish cake stuffed with okra, kinpira gobo, hijiki nimono and hakusai pickles.

Wrapping up the bento

The bento is topped with a pair of chopsticks and then wrapped in a bandana. This is what Shinji-san takes to work everyday. 

Anago Appetizer

One of our favorite appetizers. Anago slow simmered until tender in a sweet soy sauce served with thin sliced cucumbers garnished with sesame seeds.

Wakasagi no Furai

This is a deep-fried pond smelt with butter( wheat flour and crumb ).
Wakasagi ( pond smelt ) has plain tast.
It is not so fishy.
And it is rich in calcium.
I put worcester sauce or mustard on it before eat it.

Datemaki

Datemaki is a rolled sweet omelet mixed with surimi(fish paste).
Usually It is made from egg, surimi, soy sauce, mirin ( or sake ), sugar, salt, and so on.
If you cook it at home, you can mix hanpen as surimi to egg.
Baked omelet is rolled with bamboo mat while it is still warm.
Datemaki is a typical new year's food in Japan.

Meharizushi

Meharizushi is a rice ball covered with pickled takana leafe.
"takana" is a variety of the leaf mustard.
Pickled takana (with salt) has a nice flavor.
This is a country dish of kumano rigion(a part of wakayama prefecture and a part of mie prefecture).
But I think it is getting known in kanto area(Tokyo and surround) in these days.

Oden Season

As it gets cold, it is the time for oden. Otafuku in Asakusa is one of Tokyo's classic oden restaurants.

Yamagata's Sato Cherries

I look forward to eating these cherries each year. From Yamagata - where my family is from.

Tendon (Tempura Bowl)

Tendon is a bowl of rice topped with tempura.
Usually It is poured with mildly sweet sauce (Tare) which is made from dashi-stock, mirin, soy sauce, sugar and so on.

Prawn is most popular ingredient for Tendon.
In this photo, tempura topped on the rice, are prawn, pumpkin, and small sweet green pepper.

Shinji-san in the kitchen

Shinji-san at work in our kitchen in Kokubunji.

Fileting Sanma

My husband came home one day from Tsukiji Market with sanma which is in season at the moment.

Here Shinji-san is teaching me how to filet sanma. Cut off the head, and then make a long slice down its back. The knife will easily cut through the spine. And, then take out the guts.

Sanma Himono and Sashimi Style

The sanma was eventually turned into himono on the top and sashimi on the bottom. The himono is salted and left out to dry so it becomes rich in umami and all we need to do is pop it into the fish grill. The sashimi is an intense, rich, oily fish so it is sometimes good to have it with a bit of grated ginger with the soy sauce to cut through the fat.

Kyoto's Nishiki Market

Here are some of my favorite shops in Kyoto's Nishiki Market.

Kyoto's Nishiki Market

Kyoto's Nishiki Market in the heart of the city is not to be missed for foodies. This link will show you some of waht Nishiki has to offer.

Kappabashi Map

Click on the title "Kappabashi Map" for a simple map to some of the big shops in Kappabashi.

Kappabashi

Kappabashi is where chefs and restaurateurs go to pick up all they need for their restaurants. I contributed this to the bento website several years back. You can find everything you need here from knives, pottery, pots and the famous plastic food samples.

Click on the title "Kappabashi" for the link to the bento article.

Miso Dengaku - Addictive Miso Dressing

I try to keep some miso dengaku on hand at home in the fridge. Today we had it over simmered daikon. It makes for a great dip for crudite, or spread over grilled tofu.

You can also mix in different flavors like a tart vinegar, toasted sesame seeds, or sauteed nira chives.

Mix in a small saute pan until thick:

2 Tablespoons miso (explore with different types to see what you like)

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons mirin

Taste and adjust with salt if needed.

from here, you can play around and add toasted sesame seeds, some vinegar, etc. It keeps in the fridge for a few weeks, but usually disappears before that.

Being Green in Japan with My Hashi

Disposable chopsticks are a way of life in Japan in Japanese restaurants. But it does not have to be. For those looking to avoid this, carrying around a pair of your own chopsticks, called "my hashi" for "my chopsticks" is a great alternative.

My pair are lacquered and I look for chopsticks with fine tips as I think they are easier to eat with. When purchasing the set it is suggested to pick up the small plastic cover to protect the tips from getting broken while carrying them around town. The cover is a spring theme of sakura cherry blossoms.

For me, it is not just the "green" or "eco" factor, but it also elevates the dining experience for me to use a nicer pair of chopsticks. My husband has a pair that I pack with his bento lunch box each day.

There are pairs that are even smaller that break into two pieces that need to be screwed together so that you could even carry them around in your coat pocket.

I try to carry these around with me as much as possible. The reaction by the staff from airplanes to restaurants have been very positive. Best of all, most of the time they will wash my chopsticks for me. That is customer service that I love that is only found in Japan.

Amaebi no Sashimi

This is a sashimi of Amaebi.
Amaebi is a shrimp which has beautiful pinc colour.
It live at depths of between 200 and 500m.

Literaly, "amaebi" means sweet shrimp.
It has a unique sweet taste, if it is eaten as raw.
And It has a soft texture.

I like drink hot sake(rice wine) slowly with having this sashimi.

Daigaku Imo - Sweet Potato Sweets (they're a snap to make!)

This very easy recipe was on the morning t.v. program, "Hanamaru Cafe", to which I am addicted. These have become Shinji-san's favorite "oyatsu" or snack. And while it is sweet, it is still a healthful snack as the sweet potatoes are rich in nutrients and it is topped with sesame seeds.

It takes less than 10 minutes to make.

250-300 grams sweet potato (washed, dried and cut into bite size pieces)

4 Tablespoons sugar (wasanbon if you have it, if not, regular sugar or try brown sugar)

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon vinegar (this helps the sugar from hardening when it cools down)

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 Tablespoons salad oil

a bit of water

toasted black sesame seeds

Put the sweet potatoes, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, salt, salad oil and water in a fry pan and put over medium high heat. Place a lid over it and after two minutes stir the mixture. After another two minutes stir again, and start to watch (and smell) that the sugar does not burn. After six minutes, check to see if the sweet potatoes are cooked, and then move to a plate to serve. Sprinkle with black sesame seeds and allow for the sugar to cool a bit before serving.

You too may become addicted to these "daigaku imo" sweet potatoes.

Grilled Salmon Breakfast

A hearty Japanese breakfast of grilled, salted salmon filet, scallop Tsukudani, apples, cucumbers in a Korean-style dressing, chawan mushi (savory egg custard), Korean nori, salad with tofu, wakame and a creamy sesame dressing, miso soup and rice. Starting our day like this we get a well-balanced, nutritional and low-fat meal. And, delicious to boot!

Seasonal Fish - Kamasu Barracuda

From Tsukiji Market, this "kamasu" (barracuda) does not look as scary as it sounds. Shinji-san slit it open on its back and then took out the guts. He sprinkled it with salt to draw out the water and bring out the umami. We grilled it in the fish grill and enjoyed this meaty and flakey barracuda.

The Japanese Fish Grill

Most Japanese homes have a fish grill under their burners on their stove (in lieu of a large oven). Our home does not have that so we went out and purchased this electric fish grill. We have had great results and will think about getting one of these when we go back to NYC. There are burners on both the top and bottom so the fish is cooked on both sides. It is easy to grill it to a nice color. We put a little bit of water in the bottom of the pan to help with cleaning as fatty fish will give off a lot of oil as it grills.

Grilled Tsubodai

This fatty and meaty tsubodai was harvested around Hawaii. It is "himono" or salted and then air-dried. These fish simply need to be heated in the fish grill. We also had tsubodai on the BBQ and because the skin is very thick, it is a great fish to put over the strong heat of sumi charcoal.

Yokan

Yokan is a traditional Japanese sweet.
It is a sweet jellied red beans paste.
Usually it is made of red beans, agar-agar, and sugar.
Usually it is sold in block form, so we slice it and serve.
I like have it with green tea,