Holy mackerel! The variety of edible seafood available in Japan is a deep abyss. Tackling the long list of choices is challenging, especially with the array of Japanese names (written in kanji, hiragana, or katakana), their English... Read more »
Children’s Day? (formerly Boys’ Day), May 5th, is a national holiday that is part of a series of days off called Golden Week, or GW for short. Traditionally, kashiwa-mochi (oak leaf-wrapped mochi rice) and chimaki (a sweet... Read more »
The time is ripe for picking strawberries in Kansai. Kid-friendly, u-pick greenhouses and berry patches are open from mid-December to late spring/early summer based on availability. Families indulge on luscious, red berries during timed all-you-can-pick-and-eat sessions. Some... Read more »
March 3rd is Hina Matsuri (Doll’s Festival) a.k.a. “Girls Day”. Once upon a time, dolls carried away bad spirits from their owners when set adrift in rivers, seas, and oceans (nagashibina). This custom is still practiced in... Read more »
CELEBRATE SPRING! CAST OUT THE ONI AND FEAST ON A LUCKY FAT SUSHI ROLL Are you ready to rid your place of bad luck and welcome spring? Setsubun, February 3rd, gives you just that chance. Pick up a... Read more »
One popular cooking method in washoku (Japanese cuisine) is nimono which means simmered or stewed —great for warming the soul during cold months and adaptable to slow cooking in a crock pot. Here are 5 Japanese comfort... Read more »
Hopefully butter isn’t too high on your list of holiday ingredients. If so, you should prepare yourself to find empty shelves and a note of apology where the butter used to be sold; the government’s plan to... Read more »
This month’s KA cuisine is a macrobiotic dinner for autumn. Taking advantage of in-season Japanese sweet potatoes (satsumaimo) and taro root (satoimo), this menu is sure to please. Two of the recipes call for shio kōji (a fermented... Read more »