Kitchen Culture
Tasty tidbits from the old-fashioned Japanese kitchen
MORITSUKÉ Creating a Japanese Sensibility at Table
Moritsuké refers to the way in which food is displayed or arranged. The word itself covers a wide range of activity from choosing the vessels – plates, dishes, platters, bowls, boxes or other containers – to design decisions regarding how space is divvyed up; it even...
Rainy Season Kitchen
RAINY SEASON KITCHEN TSUYU (梅雨 literally, "plum rain") comes to the Japanese archipelago every year as spring turns to summer. The constant dampness of tsuyu encourages the growth of kabi (mildew, and molds) requiring a strategy (taisaku 対策) ... and diligence...
Great Graters
The Japanese developed two very special graters for two specific foods: 鬼おろし機 oni oroshi ki (“monster graters”) made from bamboo used to coarsely grate daikon into shards and鮫の皮 samékawa graters made from nubbly sharkskin that transform tough, fibrous wasabi roots...
HATSU-GATSUO
初鰹 HATSU-GATSUO First Catch of the Season Japan’s seasonal sensibility is always on display at table; here the transition from spring into early summer is celebrated with hatsu-gatsuo (skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) prepared tataki-style. Whole loins of katsuo...
Green Tea
Green Teas 緑茶 RYOKU CHA Green teas are green because enzymes responsible for oxidization have been prevented from doing their (dark and discoloring) work. The Japanese halt oxidation by steaming freshly picked leaves, while the Chinese typically pan-fire or roast tea...
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May 2020: TSUDOI Project
TSUDOI means "Get-Together," the opposite of social distancing...