Food Contamination Fears Could Harm Japanese Brands

"The Japanese Health Ministry said Saturday that it had detected elevated levels of radiation in spinach and milk at farms up to 90 miles from Japan’s crippled nuclear reactors. The ministry did not make reference to any contaminated farm animals, seafood or fishing grounds in Japan. And no food exports from Japan have failed quality tests being done by other countries. 

"But even the perception of contamination, one Japanese agriculture expert said, could cause long-lasting “brand damage,” especially if there was evidence of radiation spreading across Japan."

U.N. rejects export ban on Atlantic bluefin tuna

Worldwide bluefin tuna populations declined by roughly 80 percent since 1970. Japan, which consumes nearly 80 percent of the bluefin catch, argued at a recent United Nations meeting on endangered species conservation that “the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, or Iccat, should be responsible for regulating the fishery, not the United Nations.” Japan and other fishing nations were uneasy about possible regulation by the international endangered species convention in a major commercial fishery.  Bluefin tuna, called "hon-maguro" in Japan, is considered a luxury.

Dashi

by Yukari Pratt
yukari.pratt@gmail.com

Even the longest journey begins with one step. And your journey in the Japanese kitchen begins with dashi. Dashi is the basic building block without which Japanese cuisine as we know it would not exist. If you want to become proficient in the Japanese kitchen, you must master this one recipe.

I went to one of the best culinary sources I know, chef Kimio Nonaga, the 2002 Iron Chef champion and third-generation chef of Nihonbashi Yukari, a kappo ryori restaurant near Tokyo station (http://nihonbashi-yukari.com). Nonaga says he has recently changed the way he makes dashi based on scientific studies on how best to extract the flavor from kombu. Here is his method of making the basic kihon dashi jiru:

• 1.8 liters water

• 25 grams of kombu (Note: there are several types of kombu, but Nonaga-san prefers a variety known as rishiri)

• 20 grams of katsuobushi

Gently rinse the kombu in water and place in a medium saucepan with the cold water. Turn on heat to medium. Starting at 65ºC, the kombu will release its flavor to the water, so it’s best if the temperature remains between 65ºC and 85ºC. Within that range, there will be a slow stream of bubbles coming from the bottom of the pan. Do not go up to 95 degrees or closer to the boiling point, as this will cause bitterness.

Simmer at this temperature slowly for 25-30 minutes. Your kitchen will start to smell like you are at the beach, and the dashi, when sampled, will taste like the ocean. These are both good things. Continue reading here.

Tokyo Now

IACP member Yukari Pratt travels with Salma Abdelnour, travel editor of Food & Wine magazine to discover Tokyo's culinary temples. The article appeared in the February 2008 issue of F&W. To read it click here.

Photo by: drp

Japanese chefs bring authentic cuisine to New York

Master chefs from Kyoto, Japan, traveled to the Big Apple to meet the city's top chefs and French Culinary Institute students to teach them about classic and contemporary japanese cuisine. Yukari Pratt writes about this exchange in the Japan Times.

The Fifth Element: Changing your eating habits with Umami

Yukari Pratt writes about Umami.


Sweet, sour, salty, and bitter are the four tastes recognized on the palate in the Western world. In Japan, it has long been accepted that there is a fifth: umami. What exactly is umami, and can it change your life? I went to an expert, Jacqueline B. Marcus, to set the record straight. A registered dietitian and nutrition consultant based in the Chicago area, Jacqueline speaks around the world on the topic of umami.

First of all, there are taste receptors all over the mouth for sweet, sour, salty, bitter—and, yes, umami. “Umami is perceived as savory or meatiness,” Marcus says. “Examples in the Western world include Parmesan cheese or ripe tomatoes.” In Japan there are several examples of umami-rich food including kombu, katsuobushi (smoked bonito) and niboshi (dried sardines). Voila—these are the basic components of dashi, the essential stock without which Japanese cuisine would not exist. Umami is an integral part of Japanese cooking, and you’ll find it in miso soup or anything cooked with dashi.

Read the rest of this article here.

The Bento Box

Bento image care of Wikipedia.

Check out what a Japanese Bento Box can do for your lunch in this article from the Washington Post, written by Andrea Sachs. IACP member Yukari Pratt also gives tips on how to prepare a harmonious meal utilizing the concept of goshiki. Click here to read the complete article.

Depachika

In the Market
by Yukari Pratt
yukari.pratt@gmail.com


It goes without saying that Japan is a paradise for any foodie. This is the country where cows are indulged with beer and massages. Fruit is fondled and coddled like a newborn. Bread from Poilane is flown in weekly from France and handmade wagashi from Kyoto is whisked to Tokyo via shinkansen.

This outright obsession with food is perhaps nowhere more evident than in Tokyo's department-store food floors, or depachika. Working as the sommelier at Takashimaya's Nihonbashi depachika, I am surrounded by the familiar, such as background music from the Carpenters, and the not-so-familiar, like the endless variety of fish. My workplace is constantly evolving, and so massive that I feel I will never fully understand its intricacies. Nevertheless, the depachika is one of the greatest places for anyone who is passionate or slightly curious about food to get a taste of Japanese cuisine and culture-and to begin to unlock their many secrets. Read complete article here.

Image property of Lifestyle Japan.

Cooking with Kimchi

I managed to avoid kimchi for the greater part of my life. My mother always had some in the fridge, and it was one of the first aromas that would hit me whenever I opened up the door. This was not a pleasant experience.

Several years back, though, in the heat of the summer, a Korean-Japanese friend of mine named Ko whipped up a huge pot of kimchi chige soup. I thought he had lost his marbles. Who in their right mind would want to eat a steaming bowl of spicy kimchi soup? Ko had worked hard at making it, however, so I asked for a very small bowl. While it was hot and spicy, it was rich in umami and had a lot of depth to it. Beads of sweat congregated on my forehead, but I went back for more. It was almost masochistic, but I was converted. Click here to read the rest of this article.

By Yukari Pratt
Japan

photo by: AkumAprime

Homemade Brew

By YUKARI PRATT
Special to The Japan Times
Umeshu is one of a variety of kajitsushu (fruit liqueurs). The recipe for classic umeshu is simply green apricots (not plums), rock sugar and white liquor (a simple shochu) that has been left to steep for several months.

For generations, the drink has been made at home. If you are curious (and patient), why not give it a go?

Homemade kajitsushu
Making umeshu, one of the more popular kajitsushu, from scratch is very simple. Take 1 kg of green apricots that you have washed thoroughly. With a toothpick, carefully dislodge the stem from the top of the apricot. In a large glass container, mix the apricots with 500 grams of rock sugar. To that add 1.8 liters of white liquor or shochu.

Place in a cool area and allow to rest for three months. At this point you can drink it, but it will be light in flavor. It is best to wait a minimum of a year, which will give the umeshu more depth. Click here to see the entire article.

Top Shelf

Once a rough country spirit, shochu is now the most sought-after drink in Japan by Yukari Pratt.

A women`s book series known as The Sweet Potato Queens may be all the rage in the US, but here in Japan men and women are falling over themselves for the liquid version: sweet-potato shochu (imo jochu). What was once considered the poor man`s drink is now the hottest alcoholic beverage in the country, overtaking sales of nihonshu (sake). So if you haven`t given this traditional Japanese spirit a shot, now may be the time.
For one thing, shochu is locally produced, meaning you won`t pay the mark-ups of the importer, the distributor and finally the retail shop or restaurant. Being a distilled beverage, it can sit in your house and the flavor won`t change. And as with all food-related trends in Japan, shochu is good for you.
But what is really fueling the shochu boom? In short, Japanese believe it is less likely to cause a hangover. And that it can help shed pounds, a hypothesis I am still testing, with little success. Shochu is in fact low in calories, (35 calories per 2-ounce shot) and it encourages production of enzymes that break down blood clots (a preventative measure for heart attacks and strokes). One book encourages drinking shochu on Sunday evenings, claiming it will help you relax before starting a busy workweek. Oh, and my favorite reason: If you spill it, it won`t stain the tatami.
Shochu is produced throughout Japan, although much of it comes from Kyushu. Its alcohol content typically ranges from about 25 percent up to 45 percent, which is far higher than the averages for both wine (12-13 percent) and nihonshu (15-16 percent). If and when your tolerance is high enough, exploring the varied flavors becomes the fun part. Shochu is made with everything from the common sweet potato, rice and black sugar to the bizarre, such as konbu (a type of seaweed), milk, sesame seeds and green peppers. Sweet potato has a very heady bouquet. Rice can be simple and clean. Black sugar has a sweet amami to it, while awamori is a shochu from Okinawa made with Thai rice and a bit more aromatic than the typical rice shochu.
The authority on shochu, naturally, is Sho-Chu Authority, which has six stores, including one in Shiodome and another in Tokyo station near the Yaesu North Exit. Service is better at the Tokyo station branch, but for selection and variety, Shiodome may be the world`s best. You can also pick up pre-mixed chuhai drinks at your local conbini or supermarket, in the same section as the beer.
What should you eat with shochu? Much like food and wine pairing, if you like the shochu, it will go with almost anything you are having. The rice and barley varieties tend to be a bit more food-friendly than the aromatic sweet potato but all shochu lacks the acidity that both wine and nihonshu bring to the table.
Another benefit of drinking shochu is that it can be consumed in so many ways: straight, on the rocks, mixed with hot water or as a cocktail. The common chuhai in a can is shochu blended with a variety of mixers such as grapefruit juice or ume (plum). But plain shochu on the rocks is the best way to get a sense of aroma and taste.
When you`re ready to get on the shochu bandwagon, head straight to your local shochu bar and try a variety of flavors. Or if you want to get started at home, invite your friends and host a tasting party with any range of flavors or producers. As I wait for the Sweet Potato Queens to make their Japan debut, I for one will be bonding with the other sweet potato in my life, imo jochu.

Sho-Chu Authority
B2F Caretta Shiodome, 1-8-2 Higashi-Shinbashi, Minato-ku. Tel: 03-5537-2105. Open daily 11am-9pm. Nearest stn: Shiodome.
1F Tokyo Station, 1-9-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku. Tel: 03-5208-5157. Open daily 10pm-9pm. Nearest stn: Tokyo.

Shochu legend

黒糖　kokuto (black sugar)
芋 imo (sweet potato)
米 kome (rice)
眉 mugi (barley)
泡盛 awamori (Okinawan shochu)
度 do (percentage of alcohol)

Photo credit: Tama Miyake Lung

Tsukiji

This article first appeared in The Japan Times on September 15, 2006.

Yukarai Pratt meets Professor Theodore Bestor of Harvard University, author of "Tsukiji: The Fish Market at the Center of the World".

Bestor, a leading expert on Tsukiji outside of Japan, is in Tokyo to put the finishing touches on the translated Japanese version of his book, to be published by Kirakusha and scheduled to be on bookshelves in November.

Read the entire story here.

Ramen 101

There are all sorts of men in Japan. Not the kind you get squeezed between on the subway, but menrui, or noodles, like soba, udon and ramen. For me, ramen has always been the blue-collar noodle: you wait in line, order from a machine (not a person) and sit or stand wedged between slurping strangers, hunched over their steaming bowls as if they’re getting facials. Click here to read rest the of this article.

Yukari Pratt
Japan

Kyoto's Nishiki Market

Nishiki Market is in the heart of the historical city of Kyoto. It is open to the public and you will find most of Kyoto`s famous food products here from yuba (soy milk skin) to tsukemono (pickles) to ocha (tea). The Aritsugu knife shop offers more than a huge selection of knives but also a variety of kitchen tools. A new addition to the market is a standing bar where you can have fresh oysters and wine. Do not miss the Photo Tour and Yukari's list of favorite shops.









by Yukari Pratt
Tokyo, Japan

A Cook's Kingdom in Tokyo

Off the beaten touristic path in Tokyo is Kappabashi, the bowery area where chefs and restaurateurs come to set up shop. Very close to the popular Asakusa temple, it is a must-see for anyone curious about cooking. Carefully peruse the knickknacks and see if you can discover your treasure. Click here to read more about Kappabashi.

IACP members with queries please contact Yukari Pratt at yukari.pratt@gmail.com

Sake Bar in Tokyo Station

Yukari Pratt in Japan reports on a unique Sake Bar in Tokyo Station. "Tucked away in a corner of Tokyo station is a "tachinomi" or standing bar featuring sake from all over Japan. This unique bar is set up only for the summer - it will disappear after August 5th, so come and get it while you can. There is not much for food, so stop by and have a sample a few sake as an aperitif and then grab a bite at one of the many restaurants in the Kitchen Street area on Tokyo station". To read the entire story on Tokyo´s Metropolis Magazine, click here.

Photo provided by Eric.

From Japan: Yukari Pratt reviews "Cool Tools"

In a Japanese kitchen, form follows function, and in essence, Cool Tools is a tribute to kitchen design. Kate Klippenstein’s book is more than a catalog of utensils: the featured items are handcrafted works of art. Yasuo Konishi’s vivid photos highlight each piece so that the reader can feel the cool touch of the knife blades and the textures of the different graters. There are also revealing photos of old shamoji (rice servers), saibashi (cooking chopsticks) and yukihira nabe (pots) from a variety of households showing that, despite the wear and tear, these tools still have plenty of life left in them.

Klippenstein deftly guides the reader through the use of each tool, sprinkling each entry with interesting details. For example, the kogi (pestle) made from pepper trees, “which adds a hint of fragrance to the food being processed,” and the ceramic clay suribachi (mortar) on which, “traditionally, the grooves… were made with pine needles.”

If you’re motivated to restock your kitchen arsenal, you won’t want to miss “Five Basic Knives Every Household Should Stock.” The indispensable shop guide and list of Japanese terms make Cool Tools the ideal companion for a trip to Kappabashi. And even if you’re allergic to cooking, this handsome book will look smart on any coffee table.

Visit Metropolis Magazine for more book reviews.

by Yukari Pratt
Japan