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The Best Book on Japanese Food Culture

March 12, 2009

kyoto's soul food

I was thrilled that Saveur included my item about Mrs. Sachiyo Imai in their latest "Saveur 100" list. Scholar, educator, TV host, and most importantly, accomplished cook, Mrs. Imai has worked tirelessly for the past quarter century to preserve Kyoto's traditional food culture. She is amazing. I wanted to share this piece I wrote about her efforts to save Kyoto's obanzai cooking:

March 17, 2008

New York's Best Japanese

At least in my opinion... New York is fortunate to have a sizable Japanese expat community -- and real deal restaurants to serve them. I'm talking about Japanese cuisine beyond sushi, which is just a tiny part of the food culture there, despite its popularity here. Many friends ask me to recommend Japanese joints in the big city, so here I go: Check out the half-dozen restaurants below (listed alphabetically) to discover a world of Japanese cooking from sophisticated cuisine to tapas-like pub food to home style chow. And what about your favorite places? Any Japanese restaurants you want to add? (And not just in New York) Please share your thoughts in the comments!

April 20, 2008

About the JFR and Harris Salat

October 2, 2007

hotpot 101, or window into japanese cuisine

"There are no rules for making nabe," said Chef Ono, as we got to talking about Japanese hotpot cooking to me the other night at Matsuri restaurant. I've been fascinated by this homey soul food, as readers of the Report know (see posts here and here), and wanted to learn more -- and understand what hotpots say about Japanese cuisine as a whole.

February 4, 2008

Meet Tadashi and Harris

September 7, 2009

Chowing Down at Japanese Baseball Stadiums

Susan Hamaker, a Japanese Food Report reader and self-described "half-Okinawan Tar Heel living in New York" who writes the Shrinecastle blog, contributed this fabulous account of eating a Japanese baseball stadiums. Hot dogs and pretzels? Oh, so much more!

October 12, 2009

Buy a Japanese Knife

While working at Matsuri, I heard of a traveling knife salesman from Japan who regularly visits restaurant kitchens across America. I asked Chef Ono if he could order a knife for me the next time this man showed up at the restaurant. That happened two months ago. The other week my blade arrived.

June 10, 2008

Savory Japan

August 18, 2009

akita sake

When I sat down with my friends Chizuko Niikawa and Akiko Ito today, both Akita natives, both sake experts, I posed a simple question: What makes Akita sake so special?

April 4, 2008

japan's far north

May 13, 2007

The Right Temperature To Serve Sake: A Guide

I remember the first time I tasted sake, and sushi for that matter, back when I was in college in the 80s. A friend who studied in Japan took me to a sushi bar on Irving Place in Manhattan, where he introduced me to raw fish on rice and sake served as hot as a steaming mug of coffee.

February 7, 2010

traveling japan

November 16, 2007

Read This Book: Asian Dumplings

Okay, I'm going to out myself here -- I'm totally "gyoza otaku," or obsessed with Japanese-style fried dumplings. I'm not alone. In Japan, gyoza is the classic companion to ramen (with a frosty mug of beer finishing the picture), with bespoke versions the subject of magazine articles and television shows and endless debate online.

October 20, 2009

Dashi-infused Japanese Cucumbers

At Saveur, Atsushi demonstrated a fundamental notion of Japanese cooking through this utterly simple dish, composed of Japanese cucumbers, a good konbu-katsuobushi dashi and myoga for garnish.

August 22, 2008

Tidbit du Jour: Tempura Batter

December 13, 2009

Review -- James Oseland Quote

September 7, 2009

Elizabeth Andoh's "Kansha"

My friend and hero Elizabeth Andoh has just published her latest cookbook, Kansha. Make sure to pick up a copy! As I paged through the book, Elizabeth's recipe for age-dashi dofu, or crispy creamy tofu, as she describes it, caught my eye (p 178). I had to cook it, and it was delicious! Here's my adaption of her recipe, for 4 servings:

January 4, 2011

"In Praise of Shadows"

March 12, 2009

hiroshima-style oyster nabe

December 23, 2007

Ikejime: The Japanese Way to Butcher Fish

At my recent workshop at Saveur, I taxied over a live fish for Chef Sono to butcher the traditional way, a method called ikejime. Why share a cab with a flopping fish? I've been fascinated by this killing process since I first witnessed it in Japan, and Sono-san was kind enough to demonstrate it and explain the technique. This week I learned even more, thanks to an outstanding presentation organized by the Gohan Society and featuring the revered chef Suzuki-san of Sushi Zen restaurant.

December 17, 2009

Dining in Kyoto

I've been in Kyoto for almost a month now, and while most of my dining has been <i>makani</i> -- restaurant staff meals -- I've had a couple of chances to squeeze in some great dinners (details on my restaurant training soon).

June 27, 2010

Register for Workshop and Tasting at Saveur Magazine!

Please join me as I moderate: "From Soba to Artichokes: Vegetarian Cooking, Japanese-style," featuring Chef Masato Nishihara of Kajitsu restaurant, at the Saveur test kitchen on Monday, October 26th from 7p to 9:30p, featuring a sake sampling from boutique importer Joto Sake.

October 1, 2009

mixed rice of the mountains

Train your eye to the top right hand corner of this amazing dinner. Overlook the thick slices of super fresh hamachi. Skip past the delicious udon noodles with oysters and fish cake. Forget the kiriboshi daikon, air-dried strips of daikon. Focus on the mixed rice -- we'll get to it in a minute.

February 28, 2008

let's cook with the world's best vegetables

May 13, 2007

Chef Abe's Fresh Yuzu Kosho

Yuzu kosho is one of my absolute favorite Japanese ingredients. A salt-cured condiment made with yuzu citrus peel and chilies, it's at once intensely fragrant, hot and alive, a zesty accent that plants a big, fat palate-popping kiss to any dish.

December 9, 2011