Epic Journey - A Feast For The Eye....And The Stomach!

Is it April already?  Yes, my epic journey to Japan has taken place and I am still overwhelmed by all that I have learned and experienced.  Truly a journey of a lifetime!  I kept a blog while I was there, so if you are interested in more than just food relating to Japan, you might want to check it out at www.yonseiinjapan.blogspot.ca.

The food?  Wow.  The first thing I will say is that presentation is so important in Japan.  Everything is presented so beautiful...lacquer boxes, delicate dishes, gorgeous wrapping...it is something to behold.  In our Japanese-Canadian culture, we refer to boxed lunch as 'bento' boxes....well let's just say that in Japan, a bento box ('obento' in honourific culture...which translates directly to 'honourable bento box') is an art rather than a way to pack your lunch!

  
Small portions, beautifully cut, artfully presented....inspired a feeling of tranquility.  Zen.

And I LOVED breakfast!  Rice, tea, salted fish....you'd think you would get tired of it and yearn for an omelette?  Not me...I really enjoyed the Japanese breakfasts.  The only downside is that coffee (especially large, North American quantity) is not generally a part of it.  My fellow delegates and I could often be found in the wee hours of the morning, wandering swiftly through the hotel labrynth hoping to find the only coffee shop in the hotel open before our day began...the one with the good coffee and the BIG cups...some North American habits are hard to shake.

Kyoto really is the cultural capital of Japan, and there you will find unique, 'Kyoto-style' cuisine.  For example odofu is a meal of tofu.  Sound boring?  Anything but.  It comes in various forms...simmering in a lovely broth, infused beautifully with sesame (I need to find a recipe for that), covered with a thick miso sauce...all different ways to enjoy tofu as a main course.

On a 'free' and memorable night in Kyoto, my colleagues and I went out in search of a good restaurant in Gion. Gion is an area of 'old' Kyoto, a cultural hot spot where the Geiko (Geisha) and Maiko (apprentice Geisha) can sometimes be spotted.  We searched through the dark, narrow streets and finally came upon a place that seemed right.  It was a small restaurant and like most, we were greeted warmly at the door.  There was only one other couple in the restaurant, which made the experience seem much more intimate.  We sat at the sushi bar and ordered a multitude of amazing food and drink...including fried tempura, fresh sushi, grilled beef, even blowfish...and all finished off nicely with Japanese scotch.  If my colleagues are reading this, they will be waiting for me to say that I'm not exactly a scotch person, but I'll admit the experience was finished off nicely with the conviviality of a toast of scotch!

Inspired?  I am.  I am not having salted fish for breakfast today...but I am definitely feeling inspired both culturally and culinarily...is that a word??  Kampai!

Epic Journey - Japan

So this is exciting....Part of being a true foodie is not just the love of making food, but the love of eating and admiring food...agree?  Well, I am about to embark on an epic journey to the 'homeland'....a homeland I have only been to once before, but homeland all the same!

I've been privileged to be invited on a trip to Japan to explore Japanese culture, business and politics.  While I am excited to discover Japan on all fronts...I must express my great excitement at the prospect of such a culinary adventure!  So, I'll be very business-like at my meetings...of course....but I intend to warn the other delegates that I have a slight obession with food and will likely be snapping photos of my food as we go along.  Gotta have full disclosure to form good relationships and hope that they do not think that I am certifiable!  So we'll start in Tokyo and travel to Kyoto, then Sendai (where the 3.11 earthquake and tsunami took place)....I hope you'll join me on this adventure.

Happy New Year - Cold and flu season means it is time for okayu

Happy New Year!  I know it is mid-way through January, but my policy is that it is always okay to say that as long as it is January.  Come February it is time to get down to serious business...

Unfortunately, this year, January is flu season and it is a big, raging, ugly, monster....So when Kara came home from school on Tuesday with body aches, headache, sore throat and cough, I decided it was time for okayu.

Now, you might not know that I've spent the better part of two years discovering and exploring my Japanese heritage.  Being fourth-generation  Japanese Canadian means I've spent most of my life aware of but not living my Japanese roots.  In 2010 I decided to change that.  I travelled to Japan with my father for the first time (for both of us) and I took on a volunteer director position at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre.  What an incredible and enriching experience it has been....

So, of the many discoveries of my heritage (paralleling with my love of food and cooking....) I have discovered okayu....which is really rice porridge.  It is Japanese short grain rice, cooked in an abundance of water and garnished with Japanese condiments.  I know... it sounds blah...but actually it is very easily digestible and when you are sick, have no tastebuds and nothing looks interesting...okayu actually does the trick.  It is standard Japanese fare when you are sick.  The added benefit for Kara is that it is easily eaten in front of the television....bowl and spoon in hand with CSI on the telly.  In actual fact, it may be the act of having your mom make something warm and comforting when you are feeling especially miserable and needy that may hold the magic....but so be it.  I'm making okayu.

Okayu

1/2 cup short grain Japanese rice
3 cups water
1/4 tsp salt

Optional garnish:
umebushi (pickled plum)
furukaki (seaweed and sesame-based condiment)
nori (seaweed)

Rinse the rice under cold water and drain.  Add rice and water to a small saucepan, cover and bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 30 mins.  Turn the heat off and let the rice steam for 10  mins.  Add salt and stir.  Garnish.

Mixed Rice - "Maze Gohan"

This is a family favourite...my grandmother was famous for this recipe!  It took many years for me to actually finalize the recipe (it's still a work in progress), as it was 'in her head' and I needed to keep calling her every time I made it to tweak it here or there.  So this is a valuable commodity in our family and I hope this entry will help keep the tradition alive.  It travels well and feeds a crowd, so we usually make this in the summer for bbqs or picnics...but it would be equally good in the winter.  I made this last for our 'summer birthdays' pool party in July and it always meets with rave reviews and nostalgic thoughts...

Maze Gohan

2 boneless chicken breasts (cut into bite-sized pieces - it's easier to do this if the meat is partially frozen)
2 grated carrots
One handful of green beans, cut on the diagonal
1 can of bamboo shoots (cut thin)
8 dried shiitake mushrooms (or fresh)
1 pkg kampyo (dried gourd...comes in long strips)
1/2 cup frozen green peas
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup Japanese soya sauce (shoyu)

5 cups cooked rice
1.5 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups vinegar (rice or white)
2 tbsp mirin
salt

Sesame seeds and/or eggs for garnish

Soak kampyo and shiitake (if using dried) in hot water for 1 hour.  Cut shiitake and kampyo small.
In a medium saucepan, boil water and add chicken for 5 mins.  Add vegetables, shiitake and kampyo.  Boil until vegetables are tender.  Mix equal parts shoyu and sugar and add to vegetable mixture.  Let marinate for at least 10 mins.  Drain and squeeze.
Mix sugar, vinegar and mirin together in a measuring cup and add to rice.  Let marinate for 15 mins.  Mix in vegetable mixture (cut, do not stir...).  Cook peas in accordance with package directions and add to rice.  Transfer to serving bowl and garnish with black sesame seeds or eggs.

Egg garnish - beat 2 - 3 egs with a bit of salt.  Pour thinly into a teflon pan.  Roll and slice thin (long strips).

New Years Day - Japanese style!

A tradition in Japanese culture is to have a special feast on New Years' Day.  I remember the big feasts at my grandmothers' house.  She would cook for days in advance and a stream of people would come by the house over the course of New Years' Day...'open house' style.  We would set and re-set the table for new guests to arrive.  I miss those days.  Great memories.  On this new years, we did a 'mini' New Years Day...sushi, sunomono (cucumber salad...my sister's first attempt...and a good one!), bbq duck, mochi, mizuyokan (red bean cake...eating is meant to be 'good luck' for the new year) and japanese chow mein...a yummy, nostalgic and great time together.  Here is my grandmother's recipe for Japanese Canadian chow mein...simple but it's all in the technique!!

Nanny's Chow Mein

1 lb boneless chicken breast (cut in bite-sized pieces)
1 med stalk of celery
2 med onions
Couple of handfuls of mushrooms
handful of green beans
1 package dried brown chow mein noodles (available at Japanese market)
2 tsp garlic
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
2 eggs
green onions or goma (black sesame seeds) for garnish

Thinly slice onions lengthwise, creating long, thin slices.

Cut beans on a diagonal, to produce nice, thin slices...but watch your fingers!  Slice celery thinly on the diagonal and mushrooms in half and then sliced.

Spray a large saucepan or dutch oven with cooking spray and add one tbsp of vegetable oil.  Heat over medium heat and add the chicken pieces.  Stir and cook until no longer pink.

Add onions and cook until transuculent.  Add salt, sugar, garlic and the rest of the vegetables.  Cook, stirring frequently, until veg is tender but not too soft.  Add the chow mein noodles and stir.  Cook with the lid on to steam the noodles, stirring occasionally.  If the noodles start to stick to the bottom, add a bit of water to the pot.  In the interim, spray a medium non-stick frying pan with cooking spray and heat over medium-low heat.  Beat the eggs in a bowl and add a bit of salt.  Pour the egg mixture into the frying pan in a very thin layer (save some for a second batch).  This should be almost paper thin.  Heat over medium to low heat until set.  Do not let it brown.  When set, roll carefully off the pan with a spatula, creating a toilet roll effect. Remove to a cutting board and slice the roll on the short side to create long lengths.

When chow mein mixture is done.  Remove to a serving platter and garnish with egg strands and goma or green onion).  Gochisosama!