Sakura and Japanese Garden
Sakura cherry blossoms are about to bloomed here in Tokyo. 🌸🌸🌸 One of the best season has come!!!
Tokyo Guide : Shibamata
In this Vlog, I will guide you to the Shibamata area. This area is famous for one of the Japanese movie called “Otoko wa tsurai yo”. This is a Japanese film series starring Kiyoshi Atsumi as “Tora-san”, a kind-hearted vagabond who is always unlucky in love. The series itself is often referred to as “Tora-san” by its fans. For more about this movie, please check here!
Vegetarian Ramen | Japan Travel
The other day, talented and influential journalist Piti came to my cooking class and we cooked home-style vegetarian ramen together. Piti has her own website “Piti no japao“. We chatted and laughed a lot while filming the video. As she works with famous travel site “Japan travel“, she introduces this video on their site as well. I hope you enjoy the video!!
Recipe : Tsukuda-ni (Seasoned Kelp)
Some of you might noticed but I hold Japanese cooking class in Tokyo. Many of my guests asked me about the leftover kelp after making Dashi soup stock/broth. I use leftover kelp and also bonito flakes to make other dishes. This time, I will show you one of the easy recipes that you can cook for your family. In this video, I will introduce how to make the Seasoned Kelp. My son (2 years old) will join this video with me. I am sure that just watching what he does while cooking is funny…
Please enjoy the video and try it out!
Recipe : Strawberry Sponge Cake
Strawberry sponge cake (so-called “shortcake”) is one of the most popular and classic desserts among Japanese sweets influenced by western culture. This cake is simple enough to be homemade at home and is a must for Christmas dinners and birthdays. The combination of the fluffy sponge cake texture and sweet whipped cream is very addictive.
Hinamatsuri (Girls’ Festival)
Happy Girls’ Festival Day!
To know more about this seasonal Japanese event, please click here!
Sake Navigator
My husband works at the premium sake company but I didn’t know a lot about sake. (I even believed that hot sake is ALWAYS for bad and cheap sake!)
I’ve been felt that I’m missing something so I joined sake tasting session and sake seminar intensively in January. Now, I got the certificate of the Sake Navigator.
I think it’s very useful certificate for both my business and my private life as well! Yay!!!
For more about the tasting session and the sake seminar, please check my Instagram!
Seasonal Event : Setsubun
On the 3rd of February, we have the day of “Setsubun” (seasonal division) in Japan.
Setsubun has been an important time-honored rite to welcome the New Year by banishing evils and keep the house from calamity.
On the day, people threw beans to banish demons who cause various evil things and plagues. The beans used in “Mame-maki” (bean throwing) are parched and edible. It is believed that one can maintain good health throughout the year by eating the sam e number of thrown beans as one’s age. And they shout, in principle, “In with good fortune! Out with the demon!”
At the same time, we eat “Eho-maki”, sushi roll containing 7 ingredients associated with the Seven Deities of Good Fortune “Shichi-fukujin”, facing the direction of Eho that is most lucky for the year as determined by the Way of Yin and Yang. (I use more than 7 ingredients! :-D)
It is also customary to eat Eho-maki while making a wish in the mind with the eyes closed and without uttering a single word. You will eat the whole roll at a stroke in order not to lose ties. In 2018, the direction of Eho is south-southeast!
Tokyo Guide : Yanaka Ginza
Gyoza town visit
It’s already the end of the year but I visited the Gyoza town in October. I am sure you are wondering “Is there a Gyoza town in Japan? Where is it?” Don’t worry! There are several Gyoza town in Japan but Utsunomiya, which is a city name is the most popular gyoza town in Japan. Utsunomiya-city is the capital of Tochigi prefecture and is located north west from Tokyo. It takes about 2 hours to go there by express train. Since it was a quick trip so my family and I tasted 12 different plates of Gyoza in 2 days!
These are sneak peak photos. For more detail, please check our YouTube channel. It’s coming soon!
