Japanese Food

We seek him here, We seek him thereThose Frenchies seek him everywhereIs he in Heaven, or is he in HellThat demmed ... elusive ... Pimpernel!"The Scarlet Pimpernel", 1903, Baroness Emmuska Orczy?Yes, time for a return.There is some debate, Gentle Reader, about the origin of the word "bouchon" used today to describe some 21 establishments accreditted by the Association for the Preservation of Lyonnais Bouchon. Seems a little too self-absorbed for personal preference, but delightfully Gallic and likely useful as an argument starter.Your Humble Correspondent would fain join the debate, but notes with no little delight that the tradition of the bouchon has spread even to these Sakura shores in the form of a number of establishments that preserve the two essential elements: a focus on the cuisine lyonnais and overwhelming hospitality and bonhomie. Some examples worthy of your exalted custom include Le Lion in Ebisu and the superb Lugdunum in Kagurazaka. And now, Salle a Manger lately relocated to Ginza and pleasantly packed with happy punters ... although few looked like they were silk weavers or dyers, and most seemed to have bulging purses. Our guide was a wonderfully urbane Japanese gentleman practising in the law, whose company had showed remarkable foresight in despatching him to la belle France for some two or three years as a young solicitor fleeing the prison of a career as an enginer (deliberate). During this sojourn in Paris, he developed a penchant for Foie Gras in the French style. Why, then, Lyonnaise is still a mystery but Your Humble Correspondent shares this secret shame and was delighted to toddle along.The entree course was fulsome and "authentique", and YHC added a Pate en Croute to the Foie Gras and Salade Gatronomique chosen by one's fellow revellers (although the Andouillette and Pied de Couchon were also extremely tempting). My main course was a delightful Cuisse de pintade farcie au foie-gras (Thigh of Gineau Fowl, boned, and stuffed with Foie Gras and forcemeats) which was moist and mischeviously beckoning, likely adding an inch to Your Humble Correspondent's already bulging waistline.Unusually for a bouchon, the dessert list is interesting and complete - demanding attention and frivolous discussion. The wine list is exquisite, and we enjoyed a beautiful Sancerre as well as a lovely Rhone as well as (mais oui!) some Sauternes for the Foie Gras. One had little choice but to finish with a Calvados nearly as mature as YHC.There are some who dismiss Your Humble Correspondent as foppish and vague but he promises Salle a Manger will be a very welcome addition to your carte of inner-city refuges far from the madding crowds of bankers and lawyers. And should you spy a lurker at the door ... why, please invite me in! I promise I won't eat much...Pip! Pip!Salle a Manger: B1, 7-2-8 Ginza, Takaya-Ginza, Chuo-Ku, Tokyo 104-0061 t:03?62 80 64 81Rating: Food: 8/10; Bouchon-osity: 8/10; Service: 8/10; Ambiance: 9/10; Price-Performance: 8/10. Total: 41/50 (3 Forks)

I’m still getting reactions to the recently completed Japanese Cooking 101 course (if you missed it, here’s the complete list of lessons.) While the reactions have been overwhelming positive, I’ve gotten a couple of negative comments too. One I wanted to address in particular is the accusation, if you will, that the lessons do not represent that way most people cook in Japan anymore. read more

By now you have probably at least heard about the brouhaha over the owners of a restaurant/bakery that appeared on Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares show (U.S. version). If not, you can read about it here and many, many other places. There was a big to-do surrounding a TV food show here in France too. The show in question: Top Chef. (Yes there’s one of those in France.) read more

Last year I uploaded a series of printable cards for communicating dietary restrictions in Japan. This is a follow-up of sorts to this, with some information about food package labelling and allergy-causing products. There are seven substances that must, by law, be indicated as being present on packaged foods that contain them in Japan. I've listed them below in this order: English: kanji: hiragana or katakana: roma-ji. read more

A little technical note for people who read this site via Google Reader or another RSS reader, or subscribe to post updates via email: I’ve switched over from Feedburner to another service called URI.LV. The reason I switched over is that Feedburner has kind of been neglected by Google (who owns the service) for a while now, and with their announcement that Google Reader is being shut down soon, it’s kind of logical to assume that Feedburner will fade away too. If you are an email subscriber: You shouldn’t see much of a change at all, but there is a chance you may need to re-add the sender of the mail (thechef@justhungry.com) to your address book if the emails end up in your spam folder. If you are an RSS reader subscriber: You should not see any change at all. If you want to be doubly sure you’ll continue to receive updates, subscribe to this link or click on the RSS button in the side bar and delete your Feedburner subscription. (Incidentally, if you’re looking for a r

please ignore. Just testing. read more

A few days ago we moved JustBento over to a new server. So now we’ll be moving JustHungry over too. Fingers crossed it should go fairly smoothly, but you may see some short disruptions in service over the weekend. I’ll keep you updated on Twitter and the Facebook page if we hit a glitch though. Thank you for your patience! read more

There are several Japanese recipes that I take so much for granted that I'm sure I've uploaded to this site already...but I haven't. Shira-ae or shiraae, a classic tofu paste that was born from the Zen Buddhist vegetarian cuisine called shojin ryouri, is one such recipe. It's often described as a 'dressing', but that doesn't adequately describe its thick, rich texture. It's usually mixed with various shredded vegetables, but there's nothing stopping you from mixing it with poached and shredded chicken, or ham, or toasted pine nuts, or anything you like. The rich taste comes from ground sesame seeds and a touch of miso. The key to the texture is to drain the tofu very well. read more

There are several Japanese recipes that I take so much for granted that I'm sure I've uploaded to this site already...but I haven't. Shira-ae or shiraae, a classic tofu paste that was born from the Zen Buddhist vegetarian cuisine called shojin ryouri, is one such recipe. It's often described as a 'dressing', but that doesn't adequately describe its thick, rich texture. It's usually mixed with various shredded vegetables, but there's nothing stopping you from mixing it with poached and shredded chicken, or ham, or toasted pine nuts, or anything you like. The rich taste comes from ground sesame seeds and a touch of miso. The key to the texture is to drain the tofu very well. read more

Welcome to the last lesson in Japanese 101: The Fundamentals of Washoku. I hope you’ve enjoyed the course and learned a few things along the way. In this last lesson we’ll take a look back at what we’ve learned, and also see how to put it all together to great an authentic traditional Japanese meal at home. read more