a mixed plate of Japanese American news and culture
If not for a shoulder injury many moons ago, we might be watching Masaharu Morimoto swinging a baseball bat instead of deftly slicing sashimi. As a foodie, I’m thankful that he took the path of sushi and sashimi instead of besuboru. Morimoto opened his Hawai‘i outpost, Morimoto Waikiki (1775 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu, HI 96815; [...]
Well, it’s the start of the new year, the Year of the Dragon. The Year of the Water Dragon, if you want to get technical, and it doesn’t officially start until Jan. 23. But it’s that time once again, that we make little promises to ourselves to change for the better; to be a better [...]
FLOUR: SPECTACULAR RECIPES FROM BOSTON’S FLOUR BAKERY + CAFE By Joanne Chang with Christie Matheson (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2010, 340 pp., $35 hardcover) The new cookbook by pastry chef and owner of Boston’s Flour Bakery + Cafe begins with an unlikely analogy to theoretical math. Says author Joanne Chang “theoretical math class … taught [...]
QUICK AND EASY ASIAN DESSERTS (Learn to Cook Series) (North Clarendon, Vt.: Tuttle Publishing, 2009, 96 pp., $12.95, Spiral-bound) “Quick and Easy Asian Desserts” sets out to demonstrate that desserts do have a place in Asian cuisine and that many are easy to make. The book begins with a brief glossary of essential ingredients punctuated [...]
Well, the beginning of every year is always filled with change. From simply hanging up that new calendar you purchased at Borders … whoops, that’s change in itself since there is no Borders, to crowning a new NCAA national champion in football via the convoluted BCS ranking system (I guess if LSU goes undefeated, it’s [...]
I recently had the fortune to be invited to a whole hog dinner at Town restaurant (3435 Waialae Ave. in Honolulu). What’s a whole hog dinner anyway? Well, taking a step back, one of the regulars of our informal wine group won a silent auction benefiting the culinary program at Leeward Community College. The item [...]
To many people, Japanese food is a special and exotic treat — that often consists solely of sushi or ramen. A new tour aims to demystify the dishes, and teach those who may be otherwise hesitant about them. Since 2004, Lisa Rogovin has taken locals on culinary tours around the Bay Area. Her knowledge of [...]
Since the tragic earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan’s Tohoku region more than eight months ago, Japan has seen substantial decreases in foreign tourism. Many areas directly affected by the disaster are also experiencing decreased domestic and foreign sales of local food products amid concerns for radiation safety. The Consulate General of Japan in San [...]
Sometimes we find it without even lookin’, sometimes it keeps knockin’ at our door without us knowin’, but sometimes we do find it and it changes our very core… OK, maybe not so grandiose. It may be as simple as makin’ that first Bolognese sauce or startin’ that first exercise routine or simply makin’ us [...]
With a mix of seasoned entrants and first-timers, five curry cooks vied for top honors at the Japanese American Religious Federation’s ninth annual Curry Cook-Off in San Francisco’s Japantown on Oct. 15. The cook-off is the primary annual fundraiser for the Japanese American Religious Federation (JARF), a consortium of 12 churches that serve the Japanese [...]
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