school cafeteria

20081010 classica 001

natura 1600 @ hokkaido university, japan

Annie's takoyaki adventures - part 2

ESS member Junko-san invited several of her friends, Annie and myself to her house for a takoyaki party.




Making takoyaki was a lot of fun and we had some good conversations through the course of the evening.

It just isn't the same...

...eating at a Chinese restaurant in Japan.



a. You must sit on the ground. Guys sit cross-legged and girls sit half-lying down.
b. There is little or no MSG in the food.
c. The toilets are actually clean.

easy and delicious

Curry Rice (カレー ライス) is one of the most popular dishes in Japan. Preparation is quite easy. All you need is rice, curry sauce, vegetables and meat. The basic vegetables are onions, carrots, and potatoes. For the meat, pork, beef and chicken are the most popular, in order of decreasing popularity.

For more info, see wikipedia.

takoyaki

Takoyaki is a popular Japanese dumpling made of batter, diced octopus, tempura scraps (tenkasu), pickled ginger, konnyaku, and green onion, topped with okonomiyaki sauce, green laver (aonori), mayonnaise, and katsuobushi (fish shavings), originated in Osaka.

It is commonly eaten without rice as a snack food.



photo credit: hippoMum

okonomiyaki

Okonomiyaki is a pan-fried Japanese dish cooked with various ingredients. Okonomi means "what you like" or "what you want", and yaki means "grilled" or "cooked"; thus, the name of this dish means "cook what you like, the way you like".

nattō

Nattō is a traditional Japanese food made from fermented soybeans. It is most commonly eaten at breakfast to accompany rice. It packs a really strong smell, akin to strong cheese. Tastes abit like cheese too, but tastes better mixed soy sauce and raw egg.

Apparently it is a rich source of protein.





photo credit: roboppy