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Bakudan-Yaki - Japanese Street Food is the BOMB!

As Japanese food becomes more and more popular around the world, it's interesting to witness the foreign influence on Japanese cuisine. With Costco food courts and mammoth sized burgers readily available, the proportion size of the food and people in Japan are quite literally beefing up. One example of this is the popular Osaka/Kansai originated street food Takoyaki.

                                Fried Takoyaki in San Francisco

This warm and savory snack was always a favorite of mine at Japanese street festivals or in our home kitchen growing up. They are usually served in a set of six and casually eaten with a toothpick skewer. Takoyaki consists of a batter of flour, eggs and dashi with fillings of chopped octopus (tako), red ginger and green onions. They are topped with katsuobushi (fish flakes), green seaweed powder (aonori) and Japanese mayonnaise with a drizzle of Worcestershire or Takoyaki sauce for added zest and flavor. Though I believe the best way to experience Takoyaki in it's purest form is street style, all the above ingredients are available at your local Nijiya or Japanese grocery store, if you choose to create the Takoyaki at home.

                            Bakudan-Yaki  in Tokyo, Japan

So, on a recent trip to Japan, I was a bit stunned or maybe even mesmerized to find my favorite little Takoyaki balls turned in to one gargantuan takoyaki on steroids. Appropriately no longer titled a "takoyaki", it was now a "Bakudan-Yaki" which translates to "Grilled or Fried BOMB". Since these are much larger, a meal in itself, they have more filling options than the bite-size original. Ingredients such as shrimp, corn, onions, cabbage, ham and even "ki-mu-chi-zu" a.k.a. kimchi (written in Japanese above) are yours for the choosing.

Back when I lived in Japan, I wouldn't have ever imagined a Takoyaki the size of a small bomb. Well, times have definitely changed and the world has really gotten much smaller or in this case a WHOLE LOT BIGGER.

 

Go Mad Men Yourself

Here are a few things you may or may not know about me... I'm a sucker for vintage couture, fresh baked donuts, and colorful animation, so although late to the party, I finally MadMen'd myself last night and boy was it a frolicking, fun five minutes...well maybe I'm slightly exaggerating a bit, but I did release a few chuckles. It probably doesn't really even look like me, but hey, I have a glazed donut in hand while rocking a tangerine patterned Pucci-esque dress with head to toe Chanel accessories while on a flight traveling somewhere, who knows where, but somewhere so this is the closest to 60's Mad Men Mika you will get. Hope you all have a swell day and if you need a little pick-me-up or an amusing break, go MadMenYourself.

Spam Slicer - A Spam Musubi Must-Have

 

I'm not one for processed or mystery meat, but with a Japanese background and family in Hawaii, Spam was definitely a part of family gatherings growing up. I used to spend a lot of time in Hawaii, and along with Leonard's Malasadas and Matsumoto Shaved Ice, a Spam Musubi was part of the culinary check off list.

In recent times, I don't remember the last time I ate Spam, but at a family gathering in Northern California, my cousin Annie, knowing I'm obsessed with all things cookery and gadgety, busted out a Spam slicer to amuse me. The packaging was appropriately generic and the item resembled an egg slicer, but only in Spam form.

Spam Musubi

Spam musubi is a common and popular snack in Hawaii combining a teriyaki glazed slice of grilled spam atop a shaped chunky block of rice with seaweed wrapping. You can readily find it at casual convenience stores in Hawaii like ABC and 7-Eleven. Hawaiian families also commonly prepare it as a snack or party food.

If you are in the market for your own Spam slicer, purchase one on Ebay here...but hurry, they're going faster than a loco moco at Zippy's. Now if I could only find a slicer for the Spam in my inbox.

Lotteria Ten Layer Tower Cheeseburger - Japan

My dear friend Martin who snapped this picture near his home in Japan, said it just right... "The days of Japanese being smaller are about to be over". Well if anyone takes the Lotteria fast food challenge and orders the basic Lotteria Cheeseburger and adds the maximum ten stackable patties on top of it, they are in for some epic juicy proportions... both literally and figuratively.

Along with Iron Chef, the Japanese are pioneers of extremely crazy reality shows and an obsession for food in all shapes and sizes. Japan is also the home of competitive champion eater Takeru Kobayashi, who scarfed down 50 hot dogs in 12 minutes in the famous Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, which is held every fourth of July on Coney Island. Hearing that, you would think the guy must weigh quite a bit, but the reality is he maintains a six pack and prepares for his contests like a true athlete. But let's keep it real, Kobayashi doesn't eat 100 roasted pork buns in 12 minutes every day like he did at a eating contest in Hong Kong.

So next time you happen to be in Japan, beware of the ginormous Lotteria Tower Burger staring straight at you on the bus stop advertisement. Honestly, with all the incredible food in the land of the rising sun, this will probably be the last thing you are craving, but who knows...your inner Kobayashi may get the best of you. And for those who are curious, the cost of the burger is about 11 U.S. dollars.

 

photo credit Martin Giles for Food Fashionista

Ramune is the Fun Soda!!!

My friend Samya w/her first bottle of Ramune

As a child in Japan, I would look forward to drinking Ramune at the Obon Festivals every Summer. Ramune is a sweet carbonated drink from Japan that comes in a Codd-neck bottle. Named after its inventor, Hiram Codd, a Codd-neck bottle is a distinct shaped glass bottle that is sealed on top with a glass marble. What holds the marble in place is the carbon dioxide pressure of the drink inside of the bottle. Ramune is a staple in Japan, but now readily available in the United States at Japanese grocery stores and restaurants. Although I am not a big soda drinker, I always love sharing in the excitement of Ramune soda with a first time Ramune drinker. At first, it can take some getting used to drinking out of the shapely glass bottle with a marble rolling around inside, but after a short while, you too can become a Ramune aficionado. Next time you are having some friends over at the house, skip the tradtional soda pop in the fridge and have some Ramune in stock for a completely new and fun experience. Just make sure to recycle the bottles afterwards.

Purchase your Ramune from a local asian grocery store. If there isn't one located near you, you can purchase Ramune online here.

OctopusMe- Wear it

Now you can wear your octopus while you eat your octopus thanks to San Francisco based designer Deana Fukatsu, and her OctopusMe jewelry line. Deana actually casts genuine octopus tentacles in sterling silver and then oxidizes the silver for just the right finish. The tentacle earrings (pictured above) are one of the most popular designs, but she also creates Octopus inspired rings and necklaces for both men and women. The earrings are light weight and a definite conversation piece. I recently wore mine while dining at the sushi bar at Nobu and the sushi chef and I had mutually beneficial tako (octopus in japanese) envy.

To purchase your OctopusMe jewelry, visit OctopusMe

Drink 8 Glasses of "Warter" a Day

Whenever I visit Japan, I always hang out with my cousin's wife Nobue who is just such a pleasure to be around. A former Donna Karan gal in Tokyo, she not only loves to shop for touchy feely things all over Japan with me, but she loves to EAT! So on a recent visit after our just perfect Washoku (Traditional Japanese Cuisine) meal in Motomachi (a popular  shopping street in Yokohama), we stopped at one of my favorite bakeries, Pompadour for their fresh baked pastries and brioche and then headed back to her place. It was then that I spotted this perfectly placed little chalkboard in her kitchen, which (she's going to kill me) but I just had to share. We all got a side aching laugh after I translated how un-thirst quenching "warter" is when translating wart in to Japanese. LOL  Definitely gives water a whole new unappetizing meaning when adding an r to it.

Oh and BTW- to explain the "milk, lemon, and green" above is in Japan, whenever you order tea (either hot or cold) at many restaurants or cafes, they will ask you if you want lemon tea or milk tea. Basically it means, do you want it with lemon on the side or a side of cream/milk with sugar. My friends here in the US will often look at me a bit strange when I ask for milk or cream with my iced tea, but now they will know why. Plus, it must be the British in me. What can I say.

Watermelon of the Pharoahs

In honor of Watermelon season, here is a previous post from 2008:

WATERMELONS OF ALL SHAPES & SIZES IN YAMANAKAKO, JAPAN

Okay, so this is something I just had to share with you all. My dear friend Shawna was in the Yamanashi prefecture of Yamanakako, Japan this week and she spotted these watermelons in a variety of peculiar shapes and sizes. Clockwise from top left is a pyramid shaped watermelon for $500, yes folks $500, a trapezoid watermelon for $400, a cubed watermelon for $200, and last but not least, the two fancy heart-shaped watermelons going for $200 for the small, and $350 for the large. Wow, these sure are some pricey shaped watermelons. Although I am a big fan of the fruit, I would have to say that for $350, I would rather have the Botkier Lita Lambskin Clutch in gorgeous fuschia at Neiman's, even over the emerald seedless heart-shaped watermelon in Yamanakako. But the pyramid watermelon, well that may be a whole different story.