Japan - Food Photo Kick Off!

Of all the great number of distractions that could possibly fill any small part of a good day, I enjoy food the most. Preparing, enjoying, and remembering great food, or even simply seeing certain food can instantly elevate the day's mood (just as easily, its certain, as it can dissuade the healthiest appetite). A good meal can draw us back into time through the nose, or widen our eyes after dully realizing we've fallen into a monotonous dinner slump, "spaghetti again?...." When I'm at home, I like to draw out the process strategically, choosing my next meal after weighing what's left in the ol' fridge box, and what's on sale at the market around the corner. Cooking itself is as creative as any one's personality is, and good eats with friends and family captures the lighter side of our primordial social-nature. Eating out, on the other hand, brings all the same qualities and none of the dirty dishes.

I have taken down lots and lots of meals during my time in Japan, and now that I am beyond the seven month mark, I thought it might be good to go back and check out some of the eastern fuel that is propelling this twenty-eight year old gastric intestine. The first five weeks digesting Japan cuisine were especially exciting, in light of my accompaniment, and both Sis and I did so well to account and document those delicious dishes that great items like Takoyaki, unfortunately, remain off this menu. I will instead focus on what has happened since. Lastly, the changing season is bringing about changing treats, yet another reason to update you all on just what tastes are slowly emerging on this side of the world. Here are just a few of the culinary rich eats that warrant photo and caption.

But first, a sunrise. 

I can't lie - There are days in which I wish my transparent screen doors didn't face East at all, mornings that I wish my curtains were forged of reinforced steel instead of green tinted voile. But then again, once in a while, there are these morning sunrises that automatically and instantly reinvigorate the body with its seemingly bright yellow and orange rays (the Sun is actually white), removing the slightest desire to ever fall back asleep anytime soon, and promise hope. I used to wonder what I was doing, living so far out in the country. I don't hardly any longer.  

Ok! Of course I am going to kick off a food photo list with my favorite dish/meal/snack/(and lets face it)/breakfast: Pizza. Alas, pizza is a rare novelty in Japan for which I am, ironically, somewhat grateful for. It means that my options are not weighed down by sloppy fast food imitators, who throw ketchup and the wrong cheese on top of over-yeasted goop and call it a pie. It means that when you do come across a restaurant that is ready to prepare pizza, that its made with care. Its too bad that like in most of the Asian world, its rare to see an oven, much less expect one when you move into a new apartment. There is an "oven" that I use here left over from the last tenant, but its more of a toaster than anything. Melting a little cheese on a slice of bread layered with tomato sauce is as close as I can get at home, unfortunately. So, I go visit my friends at the end of the block and order some real pizza from time to time for about ten US dollars. 

Nothing fancy here, just some good old fashion eats. Chicken, broccoli, black beans (which, are priced insanely high in Japan), rice, and some homemade salsa. Throw in some tortillas and avocado, and we're more than half way to a burrito....

I don't remember where we were, or what we were celebrating, but I do remember eating cheesy ebi (shrimp). Talk about some good loving - this dish really did me in: the big butter sauteed shrimp were tender and moist, the cheese was the perfect consistency between creamy and overly congealed lactose. Spiced with a little fire, I was caught in its munchy mysticism; I lost all conversational orientation within the group, there was no sense of time, and I am more than sure I ignored all the other platters of sushi, tempura, nabe, and everything else in front of me until the last greasy piece of pink cheesy shrimp meat departed this world.   

Its hard to get tired of sushi, even in Japan. This other shared platter was especially well prepared too, don't think you are going out to eat in Japan and not sit down to some well cut fish. The sushi was exceptional, as expected, and left you wanting to try what other wonders the chef behind the kangi curtain could bring out.

Back on the farm, I do make French toast from time to time. No yogurt, no berries, no granola or cereal to throw between this classic dish and a generous serving of maple syrup. At least, not today. A perfect warm meal for the these cold autumn mornings.

If I were you, and looking at this bento box, Id think it were store bought too. Actually, the food you see before you is demonstrative of just how insanely good some student's mothers are at making a great lunch. That is, you know you are appreciated as an English sensei when something like this makes its way into your day for free. I mean, just think of the time and effort this took to make. The people really are different out here. Not having to worry about second lunch from time to time rounds out the top of my list as to the many great perks being an English teacher in Japan. 

Yeah...so if the sound of deep fried fish skin and bones doesn't sound appealing to you....well then I am here to tell you that you are just plain wrong. Not only is the crunchy dish more enjoyable than what you might expect (think: fragile potato chip, and you wont be far off), it is, surprisingly (despite a lack of sauce) also not as difficult to eat, or digest, as one might think. I've had a harder time mistakenly swallowing salmon bones than I did here.    

Lets see, this is a shrimp curry that I ate one night to mix things up. Shrimp is quickly becoming my new favorite go-to seafood. Its cheaper here, considering what I used to pay back home, and can be used in so many different ways. I've even relaxed my "no shell" policy that for such a long time would swear by. 

There are many types, kinds, styles, techniques, and varieties when it comes to eating and making sushi - and this one is not kind. The conspicuous green sauce atop the rolls in the photo is of a special, unforgiving family. This sadistic sushi is the first I have come across, and although the restaurant that serves the dish is only a few minutes bike ride away, I don't ever really want to go back there (and order this again). That is because the sauce is really a combination of two different sources of heat: its a combination of wasabi, which is more of a nasal burn, one that rides the inside of your larynx and nasal cavity. The other heat is fire spice, a hotness that burns the tongue. And both water the eyes. 

If you look back to some of the first blog entries when Sis and I were but a couple of wide-eyed hungry cyclists entering Japan, you'll recall this dish served to us somewhere on our way to Himeji, near the town of Ako. It looked a little different then. Of course, back then, we were lucky enough to eat okonomiaki with the local catch of the season: oysters. Now that was a treat!  Since then, the snack came under our noses many a times, and with many different ingredients. The Hiroshima style okonomiaki for example uses noodles. Well, like most items on this list, Ive taken to my very one single burner for practice and experience in recreating the things that I love to eat while putting on my own spin on things. Pictured here is bacon okonomiaki, because, lets face it, bacon makes most things taste better.

Feeling cold but want something a little hardier than what miso ramen soup can deliver? Curry is the way to go. In particular, I love to eat my home made curry with some store bought fried pork. Neither is overwhelmingly spicy, so I make sure to punch up my curry by adding some red pepper spice shipped over from home to give the meal that radiating heat feeling well after the last spoonful of sauced is scrapped from the bowl.

Veggies and fruit are always hard to come by in Japan, they just don't have the land mass available in this eastern archipelago. This in turn forces some reliability on imported goods and creates higher yields for the service - which, is all fine. I get it. At least the chicken is still cheap.  

Speaking of chicken, you'll get your fill of it with yaki (grilled) tori ("bird" in the general sense, "chicken" specifically) . These are all that remain of a quick snack at home. 

I especially enjoy this meal not only for the great protein and taste of bbq sauce, I also enjoy it for a special novelty that I have grown accustomed to, and greatly miss since landing in this country. Namely, street food. You simply wont see any push carts, or street cars, or general food even being consumed on the streets away from public festivals and the like. In fact, I still get surprised looks when I cycle to the store and walk out eating an onigiri before work. Anyways, yakitori is a general exception to this. I still havent come across any push carts, but at least there are store fronts that are not shy about grilling the meat openly and letting all that sweet, grilled aroma fill the space and allow it to work for them as the best kind of free advertising. Yum!

More experimentation at home. Don't know why it took me so long to start making onigiri at home, its supper simple. But, a tip: you have to work will cool/cold rice and as soon as you add the nori, the green seaweed paper is going to start absorbing the moisture from the rice. So, don't plan on it keeping for long, if at all. Play it safe, and eat it right away =)

I don't normally like to go for this kind of fancy fu-fu food, ascetic decadence's don't turn me on at all. They're a distraction from the truth of the matter: there's just not a lot of food here. 

I'm focused on the meat, and the consumable. Don't get me wrong, the lobster tastes great. It's just that there is normally a strong correlation between the amount of food on the plate and how visually stimulating the dish is. Usually the more flash, the less food. And because I like to eat a lot, and become internally frustrated when I see more shell than meat, I don't usually go for this kind of thing. Luckily, the boss was paying so I didn't mind as much although I would have much easily preferred some better filling rice and beef.

Ah, and now we get into some real fine dining =) Welcome to Japan's free lunch system! Yes, yet another perk of teaching is access to the school lunch and I have to say it is not at all what I remember eating as a child. For starters, how about salad. Don't ever remember waiting in line to get that, not since US Congress declared "pizza" a vegetable (go ahead, Google it). Or how about a loaf of bread that wont make a sound as you break in in half? hmmmm, small wonders of this world, so beautiful....

Now this is what I am talking about! Potatoes, spinach, broccoli, chicken, carrots, onions, and mushroom stew over rice and a couple of hard boiled eggs garnished with rich bean sprouts - its an undeniable favorite here in la casa de Tobar and although it comes in many different forms and sometimes not always with the right ingredients, its what I like to eat in a pinch because its filling, it keeps for days, and I can make a huge batch of it at a time. Also, its ambiguous in its nature, thus making it suitable to eat for dinner as much as for breakfast; there are just not too many dishes that can do that (pizza comes to mind....).

Keeping it simple. No one said that cooking has to be intricate or complicated. Tofu and sprouts is as easy and scrumpcious as it gets. Maybe some soy-sauce for dipping, otherwise, that's it.

Now here is something I never thought I would enjoy so much. I used to have a bad temper against peeling off cooked shrimp shells -  I never enjoyed having to put additional work into the eating process after my plate was on the table. But, I suppose that is the great advantage of cycling out of one's comfort zones: new perspectives. A friend turned me on to the idea that you can peel off the shrimp and cook the meat as you would normally do. When it came to throw away the shells, instead of heading for the compost, reach for a small frying pan and with a little bit of oil and some salt, turn compost trash into an appetizer.

Man, there is a lot of food on this list already, but I would be remiss if I didn't include the absolutly essential cold season dish, nabe. The great thing about nabe is, and the reason why I personally love to make it, is that there is really no wrong or right way to make it. You can add whatever you want, and many differnet prefectures all across Japan do indeed credit themselves with unique nabe styles. I say perfect for cold weather dinners becuase nabe is cooked in a modern clay pot that insolates the heat from the soup so very well that you don't have to worry about it going cold. Furthermore, making more is so easy!

Ahhh, and what would life abroad be like without the occational hamburger. Sure I could go to McDonald's or Mos burger and scarf down something similar, probably cheaper too. But, I have been making homemade burgers for many a years now and there are just some standards you don't budge from.

Right, so this is a picture that falls under the general topic of this blog post, but I cant even add a small dash of review because I've never tried it (them). The idea is simple enough, the burger selection is "white" from the cheese and the one on the left, well, that'd darkened due to the use of squid ink. That's not what's discouraging, to me, anyways. Squid ink is used in many dishes, including the famous squid-inked pasta. No, I can't tell just what it is....perhaps, ostensibly, it hits too strongly at something segregationist.  

Finally, there is the prolific eateries of the yakiniku variety. Identified by that huge, sunken grill built into the middle of the table, these restaurants have some really choice meat to go after. And although they are not always on the cheaper end of the scale as far as dinning out goes, they are almost always on the higher end of quality. Forget the fact that you are actually paying to do the chef's job for him/her for a second, and have fun with this one. My way? I like to take a long bike ride and skip breakfast. Then, when I start to feel really hungry, I'll double back into town and plant myself at an all you can eat yakiniku, and give people good reason to believe why Americans are so obese. 

Yeahhhhhhh, finally full.

How about one final sunset to wrap all this great food together, it really is a wonder to watch after a great typhoon washes everything away. And just like the vanishing sun, the times are starting to get just a little bit colder on this side of the World - a very nippy reality for a Californian reared on a single yearlong season. They say it may snow in the coming months, lets hope not.


Much Love to you all, and have a very happy and sugar indulgent Halloween.

-A

Japan - Update Overdue

Hello Friends!

Well it sure has been a long time, apologies. I know many of you check the site regularly and by hook or by crock, I promised I'd get an update out.

People who I have had the esteemed privileged to meet along my way, perhaps some who are just being lazy, or maybe for having better things to do, say there is no good reason for having put off this or that kind of work for such a long time. There is not always sufficient explanation for why so much time passes between calling home, getting that essay done, or going to the gym. Things that need to get done, chores that need attention; just not right now. If you haven't already, Google "structured procrastination" to see that there are always good reasons.

Then, maybe it is because the coffee tastes tastes especially well this morning, maybe its the looming destruction of an oncoming typhoon, maybe its the enjoyed readings of Rajiv and Clara's blogs, maybe its that tremendous excitement for the Giants making the Post-season (again! Maybe next year Dodgers), or maybe its just that I have not stretched these muscles in a while. For any reason, its time to fulfill the accumulating requests, and put out a new bog post.

My sister Gabi is home again, making money as a mechanic at a shop that - get this - sells bikes and chocolates, how perfect is that?! You can look up the site, and awesome pics of my sis in action, here: www.Chocolatespokes.com

August was a true free paid month off vacation and although I traversed Kyushu (thus knocking another island off the list), there was plenty of fun to be had back home as well - namely hanging out with these two lads. Akkun and Yuusuke are cycling teammates on Kochi city's best group; these two are high on kinetic energy and always know the best place to hang out in the big city. Not bad at racing up hills either. Among the many end of summer festivals (you can not really see it, but there is one behind them now), you can be sure to see us walking around, beer in hand, playing psudo-tourists like it was our first day in town.

And here we have the best people working for Tosa city. I've said it before and I will say it again, Tosa is a small enough town where you really get to know everyone, even the mayor is completely approachable and seen walking to the local food stalls. All professionals by day - but as soon as work is over, most people love to have a cold beer to combat the hot summer dry heat. Unlike Thailand, the people here are completely able, without prejudice, to understand that we are not our jobs. We have personal lives; personal priority lives. As long as the two don't overly conflict with another, well, lets say its not uncomfortable for a city officer to be seen having a few beers in the street, or worry what people might "think." Just good times ahead. 

Also, you wont find traditional bar seating layouts in these watering holes. No black stools sticky with yesterdays beer stains to wipe off, nor crumpled peanut shells for you to walk over to ask the bartender for another drink. As in many other varieties, Japan fosters clean, communal appeal whenever possible. This means more often than not, open and outside drinking at tables with friends, or the new strangers who want to share your table with you. Loving it.

You all remember Yoshi. We met by chance near Ako and cycled a ways over Honshu before making the cross into Shikoku, where I had to leave my own way for Kochi to start work. He made his tour and stayed with me a few weeks later, inaugurating a set of wild days and wilder nights. We met again in Amakusa on my tour de Kyushu in August. Now, he has made his way to the southern most island (its very small) in Japan, in Okinawa ken. He's picked up a job tending a local bar and chance may just have me visit him sometime soon. So stay close. 

The man who cycled with me up mount Fuji, Go, finished his schooling and has taken up job with an amazing view. He is literally the wise man at the top of the mountain. 

Talk about overdue updates, my Bali brother Piter - the very first Couch I Surfed - is doing exceptionally well for himself, despite being laid off by Blackberry. No work, and denied a last fully earned paycheck, he didn't stutter, didn't flip out on a rampage, didn't start a list of who was to blame. Instead, he opened a bakery for orphans (being one himself). Now, there are plenty of self proclaimed saints out there but Piter needs no praise. Or, let me say, he doesn't need it although he certainly deserves it. 

Also, he is the proprietor of my favorite product, solar powered chargers...that actually work! Such a simple idea. If you are, or know someone who will soon travel, take a glance at what Piter has here, because it is an invaluable piece of equipment: free electricity. http://jamesawesomedude.weebly.com/ 

Since bidding my good friends adieu in Uthai Thani, Thailand, Nick and Harmony are living the American dream in Cambodia. I say this because, honestly, creating your own business in the good ol' US of A is nothing what it once was. Forget the incredible in-home competition, it is the regulations, and taxes, and licences, and city compliance that a new business must go through that ensures a type of frustration ironically non-existent in "developing" countries. You might even consider them in this regard to have a greater degree freedom.

One of the very cool perks of having a place to call home is the opportunity to register my pad on Couchsurfing and WarmShowers. That is how I met Arnold. He lives on the island of Kyushu in Fukuoka and is studying for his Masters. He took a little time off during summer break (like most of us) to do some healthy cyclo-touring. I am telling you, nothing beats academic/work stress like cranking out a few hundred kilometers over a beautiful stretch of country roads. 

Arnold stayed with me for a night to do laundry and get a good meal in him before turning out another long day around the island, on his way back home. I'm invited to visit and take a tour of the campus, so I just might =)

Here is a rare picture because it actually includes me, celebrating a birthday out with some new friends. Whats great about parties on this end of the globe is that they tend to be hosted at places that provide as much food, and drink, as you'd like to consume.

It's worth taking a little time to comment on this. To me, pumping out thousands of calories a day, eating as much as I would like is not the same as eating as much as I can. The difference being that the latter instigates certain challenge. However, as you might have already correctly guessed, the Japanese do not stuff sushi rolls down their throats till their belts require loosening, they don't chug miso soup by the gallons, nor is it the standard practice in any way to eat more than the person next to you or even hint at taking the last piece of food. This has nothing to do with a lack, or supposed lack, of food. Nor does it stem from an outdated tradition under which conditions of war of famine necessitate a conservation of meals. Hardly. Japan's consumable economy is not hurting. On the other end actually, there is a lot of waste produced, although it may not be for the reason you think. 

So whats the deal? Well, remember that dude Confusions? It turns out that the spirit of his old teachings when it comes to consumption is still alive, reinterpreted. Eating enough, as is the decorum here, means not stuffing yourself and refraining from taking the last piece of food (a great deal of waste multiplied over several dishes) not because its rude or are ill natured but because doing so activates conscious impulse control to show restraint.

The term is Hara Hachi Bu, but the literal translation does not quite get the message across. The modern colloquial translation is"eat until you are 80% full."  It took me a lot of practice to suppress that impulse control, to not go back for a second plate even when I knew I could get another two in me, to undue years of "clean your plate and then you may have dessert" attitude that we Westerners inoculate our children with. 

Now I am not saying that eating smaller portions is better for you, or that I always stop myself at 80% - and not to get overly political about the health issue here - but - I've done us a bit of research and would feel incommodious to leave without pointing to a very strong correlation between eating less and living longer life. That is, today the people on the Okinawa islands are the only, by the methods of Hara Hachi Bu, self imposed caloric intake culture-population. Well, it just also happens that they also have the highest World population of centenarians. 

And well if you are planning to live into your hundreds, then you better keep a sharp mind. That will be the only real part of you that outlasts anything else, if you choose to exercise it regularly instead of binge watching television shows. (Side note: The television station representatives actually come to your house to collect money for public broadcasting. A little invasive, a little outdated method for collecting duties. Though, as I have no television set, I eventually took one by the hand and gave a tour of the apartment to demonstrate, finally, why I've never paid. They have since not bothered to knock on my door). However I also understand, conversely, the psychological benefits of indulgence. Good morale. Here we (end of term coworker party) are having a chat over good local bands, stiff drinks, and lots of laughs. Not much of an indulgence you say? I forgot to add that this was just one group of co-workers; and that I teach at eight different schools.

The most frequent question I get from people back home is: so......what are you doing with your time? (Which, I admit, the concept of "time" thought into a unit of economic currency interests me, but there is another place for that). And the answer is: a whole lot of everything. Here is one way I spend my afternoons: volunteering. 

In theory, I teach closed book sessions of conversation English to a rotating group of adults who need a step beyond what they were taught in the classroom oh so long ago. Its no stretch to say that English is a hard language to learn on one's own; we all need a little help. Students show up irregularly and I don't get paid - unless you count the free sandwiches and coffee (which I argue is better than free cash because at its most basic, simply tastes better).

That is all for now. I know the length is not representative to the time lapse since coming off my Kyushu stunt. There is so much more to tell. At least, I will hold myself to a once a week update, even if I feel there is not that much to say. Which, of course, is lie.

All my love,

-A