Seems like wagashi(Japanese Traditional Sweets) is the new trend. I've been getting a lot of requests for a wagashi class this month, so I set up a couple of classes.
Come and explore the art of wagashi and learn to make them yourself. You will be making 4 pieces of wagashi in this class which you may taste after class with a bowl of matcha green tea or take home with you in a box. Classes scheduled in April and May:
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Yesterday was "Premium Friday" in Japan. For those of you who have no clue what this is, it is a government backed campaign to boost consumer spending after work by encouraging workers to leave early on the last Friday of the month , which just started in February.
This month the "Premium Friday" happened to fall on the last day of the Fiscal Year, so I doubt that the second Premium Friday contributed much for consumer spending except for farewell parties for those leaving the company. For my cooking class, I had a group of British Company workers come to do a team building activity by cooking. They split up into 3 groups to make three kinds of gyoza dumplings. I hope they enjoyed their Premium Friday Evening! Yesterday, I finally had some time to go down to Asakusa to buy a new wallet that I have been wanting to for several months. The shop is off of Nakamise Shopping street that stretches from the Sensoji Shrine.
This is a traditional handcrafted and handpainted white leather that dates back to the 1800's originating in Himeji city, Hyogo Pref, which is actually my husband's home town. I just love all the patterns from traditional to modern that are all beautifully painted by the artisans. I really had a hard time deciding which one to pick! Bukoya Oozeki Website (In English) Today was a Chirashizushi class. Chirashizushi is a type of sushi that is served on a plate with toppings scattered on the sushi rice. Chirashi or Chirasu in Japanese means to "scatter". This is a typical Girls day dish, which falls on the 3rd of March every year to celebrate the well being of the girl(s) in the family.
Although the Chirashizushi is eaten all year round, the girls day Chirashizushi is topped with ingredients that symbolizes good fortune. For instance, the shrimp symbolizes, longevity as the bent shape resembles an elderly person. The lotus root symbolizes good future as you can look through the holes, the kinshitamago (shredded eggs) symbolizes gold, the beans (in most cases it will be snow peas) symbolizes hard work. And especially for girls day we decorate the sushi with sakura dembu, a pink colored dried and shredded fish which symbolizes a cherry blossom. We also made clam soup which symbolizes happy marriage as there is only one match for a set of clam shells. The class finished off with a sakura mochi, which is also a girls day dish. Most of the Cherry Trees in Japan are Somei-yoshino, which bloom about the same time, end of March to beginning of April in Tokyo. But if you are not in Tokyo during that period, you can still enjoy the Kawazu-zakura which has a slightly darker pink flower blooms earlier.
Today, I spotted a Facebook post from my neighbor who had a photo of the Kawazu-zakura in our neighboring park. So, I set off with my 10 year-old son for my first ohanami. (I needed the exercise too) The cheery trees were in full bloom - and contrary to the somei-yoshino, the Kawazu-zakura lasts longer so you may be able to enjoy the ohanami for another week or two. The park is called Rinshi-no-mori -koen. It used be an experimental nursery, established in 1900 by the Agriculture Agency. Later it came under the management of the Forestry Agency and was called the Ringyo Shikenjo (forestry research station). It is full of trees and wildlife, you cannot believe it is in the center of Tokyo. We used to come here a lot when my two boys were much young as it has two playgrounds and a splash pool. They hunted for Kabutomushi (Japanese Beetle) and crayfishes in the summer. For more details of this park, please visit this article by Bestlivingjapan The first class of the year started off with a wagashi class attended by visitors from Guam, Canada and Hong Kong. A lovely little visitor made cute wagashi sweets including a mountain full of flowers. The class ended with a tasting session with a bowl of matcha.
My class aprons which I ordered last year debuted on this day too. And I think they look great! Kagami Biraki (鏡開き) is a Japanese traditional ceremony which literally translates to "Opening the Mirror" (from an abstinence) or, also, "Breaking of the Mochi." It traditionally falls on January 11 (odd numbers are associated with being good luck in Japan) It refers to the opening of a Kagami mochi, or to the opening of a cask of Sake at a party or ceremony. (from wikipedia) So, today from the mochi that was opened, I made strawberry daifuku. It's very simple. Recipe for Strawberry Daifuku Using Mochi 1. Wrap the strawberry in about a golf ball size anko (red bean paste) - I used matcha bean paste and white bean paste this time. Set aside. 2. Take the mochi, and place it in a microwavable bowl with enough water to cover it and microwave for 2~4 minutes depending on the size of the mochi. Turn it over half way and keep a close eye on it as it will become too soft and melt away in the water. 3. Turn the mochi over in a plate covered with potato starch. Divide the mochi if its too big. Wrap one strawberyy in the mochi. Serve immediately as it will become hard and dry with time. Happy New Year to you all. Last year has been an amazing year with increasing visitors to my cooking class. I had never thought of welcoming so many people in my house! It has been a great experience and I do hope I will be contributing to increasing more Japanese Cooking Fans this year too.
We visited Taiwan for Christmas (and I hope to write about this trip in my blog someday soon) so I hadn't been able to plan in details about the Osechi (New Year's Feast) but managed to prepare a couple of dishes on my own. Each dish symbolizes good fortune and Haruka Masumizu has written a great article on Japan Today explaing it, so if you are interested, please take a look. - Kohaku Namasu (Red & White salad) - Date maki (Sweet Egg Roll) - Kuri Kinton (Mashed Sweet Potato with Chestnuts) - Tazukuri (Candied Baby sardines) - Stewed Kinkan (kumquat) - Tamagoyaki - Roast Beef - Stewed Root Vegetables - Grilled Shrimp The store-bought dishes are Kuromame (sweet black beans), Kamaboko (fish cake), and Kobumaki (Rolled kelp stuffed with salmon) The reason much of the dishes are so sweet is that they are to last for a few days so that we had something to eat when the stores were closed during New Years. Actually I didn't put so much sugar in my osechi, The shrimp has been pan fried in garlic oil instead of boiling it in sugary water and I put cream in the mashed sweet potato instead of the liquid candy. The root vegetables that are tratditionaly stewed in fish broth and soy sauce have been stewed in garlic and tomato for my version. Roast beef is not a typical Osechi dish but it's something my children will prefer. I think the only typical dish missing in my osechi are the Kazunoko (Herring Eggs), which my parent's usually send over. This year they didn't as they thought we would be in Taiwan. The red and white salad has less sugar in the dressing which is nice to eat with a drizzle of olive oil. My regular student Anna Jassem has written an article on Japan Today which includes my recipe for this salad. Following my appearance on NHK Eduational Channel, they have created a page that shows 2 video clips taken during class that was not shown during the program. Actually, I think some parts were a bit exaggerated but still I hope this clip gives you an idea of what my class is like.
Next appearance will be in January. This will be on my Tofu Class. Link (in Japanese) http://www.nhk.or.jp/minnaouen/plan/00026.html It has been so cold this past week, so our gathering at the Daikan an izakaya that specializes in oden was just right. Oden is a Japanese Oden is a Japanese winter dish consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs, daikon, konjac, and processed fishcakes stewed in a light, soy-flavored dashi broth,
Daikan is located between Daikanyama and Ebisu, a short walking distance from both stations, hidden in a quiet area away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Although Daikan specializes in Oden, you can enjoy other dishes which are also very very nice. We ordered "omakase course" that consisted of several dishes including a omelette with mushroom gravy with a hint of yuzu, fried chicken breast with yuzu pepper filling, grilled sanma with mushrooms, which finishes off with a big bowl of oden. I would definitely come here more often if it was in my neighborhood even alone, as there is a counter space where you can sit across from the chef and chat. There are also two tables that seats 4 each. The owner chef is an ex-sony staff so you the place is like a mini sony museum with displays of the old walkman series and more. The photo on the tabelog doesn't do much justice to the place as it is much nicer and the atmosphere is good with friendly staff. Daikan : Tabelog Website (in English) |
AuthorI'm Miyuki and I teach Japanese Home cooking at my home in Tokyo. Archives
February 2021
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