Bamboo shoots are now in season!
In Japan, we see many bamboo shoots at the supermarket and also on TV.
You’ll see many fresh bamboo shoots piled up at the supermarket. And, you also see the small bags with rice bran besides them. (It’s cute and of course, it’s FREE!) The rice bran can absorb the astringent taste when boiling the bamboo shoots. That’s why they usually are displayed together at the store.
You can also buy the precooked bamboo shoots to save cooking time.
In my hometown Fukushima, my father and relatives still enjoy getting the bamboo shoots from the bamboo forest. When I was a child, I also enjoyed getting them with families. What a good memory!
Since I like to cook and eat the seasonal vegetables, I bought the boiled bamboo shoot and cooked several appetizers! I still have the rest of it, so I am thinking to make Japanese style pasta and mixed rice with using several other vegetables.
Let’s enjoy the seasonal vegetables!
Bamboo shoot salad topped with bonito flakes
Cooked bamboo shoot topped with dried shrimp and sansho pepper sauce
YUCa’s Table : vol.104
Dinner menu:
– Japanese rice
– Miso soup with various tofu and spring onion
– Karaage (Japanese style fried chicken)
– Salad
– Grilled green peas
– Pickled daikon radish and plum
– Sautted daikon radish
– Iyokan orange
YUCa’s Table : vol.103
Dinner menu:
– Japanese rice
– Miso soup with shiitake mushroom and green onion
– Tofu croquet
– Grilled eggplant with miso sauce
– Pickled plum, daikon radish
– Sauteed daikon radish
– Iyokan orange
Motsu Nabe @ Fukuoka (Kyushu area)
I went to Fukuoka last weekend. Fukuoka is located in Kyusyu area which is south west area in Japan.
The purpose of visiting Fukuoka was to introduce my son to his great-grandmother who is 95 years old.
It was his first flight so I was worried whether he would cry or shout during the flight. But it was 1.5 hour flight and he was pretty OK.
I personally love the local foods in Kyushu area. One of my favorite and must-to-eat food is a hot pot called “Motsu Nabe”. In English, giblet hotpot. We could eat this hot pot near the hotel so I was totally satisfied. v(^o^)v
My husband, my son and I only spent two days in Fukuoka but we enjoyed the family time there. Hope you like other photos as well and visit Fukuoka soon or next time you visit Japan!
YUCa’s Table : vol.102
Breakfast menu:
– Miso soup with fried tofu and spring onion
– Yaki-onigiri (Grilled rice ball)
– Yaki-onigiri with Japanese basil and miso
– Grilled cod fish
– Sausage
– Braised pumpkin
– Mini tomato
– Sauteed shiitake mushroom
– Japanese omelet
– Pickled plum
YUCa’s Table : vol.101
Dinner menu:
– Brown rice
– Miso soup with wakame and tofu
– Miso marinated cod fish
– Japanese omelet
– Pickled daikon radish and plum
– Coffee jelly
YUCa’s Table : vol.99
Dinner menu:
– Miso soup with seasonal vegetable rape blossoms
– Japanese rice
– Mackerel simmered in Miso
– Sweetened sweet potato
– Tofu topped with dried bonito flakes
– Pickled dried daikon radish, plum and myoga
– Orange
Japanese Breakfast @ Hakone area
I visited Hakone this weekend with my family. Hakone locates western side from Tokyo and it takes about 1.5 hours from Shinjuku station. Since my family live in the western side of Tokyo, so we took the Romance car (special rapid train to Hakone area) from Seijo-gakuen-mae station.
Hakone is famous as for “Onsen” (Hot springs) spot! So many people visit there usually on weekends for relaxing. We also stayed at the “Ryokan” (Japanese style hotel) and took Onsen at night. And what is the best part, Japanese breakfast! Seeing the nature outside of the window, we had delicious breakfast!
In addition to the Onsen spot, there are so many unique museums along with venetian glass museum, Le petit Prince museum, Open-air museum etc… For more detail, please check other photos. I hope you like them!
Seasonal Event : Hina-Matsuri (March 3rd)
The 3rd of March is the traditional and representative spring event day called “Hina-Matsuri” in Japan.
Hina-Matsuri means Girls’ Festival! There is a tradition if the baby is a girl, the parents of the mother give a traditional dolls called Hina-kazari (Traditional dolls of Emperor, Empress, their servants and accessories on the tiered stand) to their daughter’s family. This day, parents having daughter invite their families and friends to celebrate this event. They display Hina-Kazari and serve guests traditional dishes, like Chirashi-zushi (garnished sushi), hard-shell clam clear soup, hishi-moshi and hina-arare (pink and white grilled piece of rice cakes). And they drink Ama-zake (white sake). This is called “sake” but Ama-zake is usually non-alcohol sake for this occasion.I like to make Amazake at home.
*For more detail, please check here!
When I was a child, my parents invited the Hina-Matsuri party for me and my younger sister every year. So this event reminds me of my childhood and I loved it♡
Though I have a baby boy, I like this event. So, I made the Chirashi-zushi for my family this year. Also I found the compact (and also tasty!) Hina-kazari at the supermarket so I built it at home! In addition, I got the modern style Hina-arare (grilled bits of rice cake) as well. Yummy!
Have a wonderful Hina-Matsuri (Girls’ Festival) day, everyone!
