Last week marked our final obon odori practice. (Read my post on obon.) As was our weekly routine for the past month: Bebe E and I attended practice with my Mom and our friends, Bebe E would enjoy a popsicle during the break, we would miss the second half because of bebe-bedtime, and then she and I would spend the night at my parents home to avoid having to drive late at night. On the evening of obon practice, each week my Mom would prepare...
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There are a handful of signature salads that I enjoy eating when I dine out, and the Chinois chicken salad is one such salad. A few years ago, I met my BFF (best friend forever), aka, Auntie S, at Wolfgang Puck’s Chinois Cafe in South Coast Plaza. She shared with me that she really enjoys their chicken salad so I decided to give it a try. I’m a huge fan of Asian inspired chicken salad, but I am p-i-c-k-y! There are very few Asian...
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There’s nothing more traditional in Japanese cuisine than cold tofu simply garnished with sliced green onions, katsuobushi (dried shaved bonito) and fresh grated ginger. This is exactly how my Mom served hiyayakko (cold tofu) to us all the years my brother and I were growing up. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) Hiyayakko often made an appearance at dinner as an accompaniment to a meal of grilled fish, steamed rice, miso shiru (soup), and...
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Growing up, one of my favorite vegetable dishes was yaki nasu, or grilled Japanese eggplant, simply served with shoyu and garnished with katsuo bushi and fresh grated ginger. (Photo Credit: Hideki Ueha) Most kids don’t like eggplant, and I might be deemed weird, but growing-up, I loved most all vegetables with the exception of the “forbidden three”: brussels sprouts, bell peppers and bitter melon. My favorite was eggplant,...
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How about them LAKERS?!? ALL season, I haven’t blogged a peep about a single game played by my favorite L.A. Lakers – – – a complete anomaly! Right?!? (My past Lakers posts can be found under the Category section “Lakers”, if you are interested.) I admit that I was turned off by the lockout at the beginning of this season, coupled with the fact that Phil was no longer our fearless leader (I was slightly...
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Today, I share with you a Chinese style pickled cucumber that is very easy to make and it’s so simple that you’ll definitely want to give it a try. I love the flavor of fresh cucumber slices, and chyuka kyuri no tsukemono is one of my favorite ways to enjoy cucumber. In Japanese cuisine, there are so many variations of kyuri no tsukemono, or pickled cucumbers, it will make your head spin. I’ve eaten countless variations...
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At one time or another, all of us are probably guilty of throwing out leftovers and senselessly wasting food. I know I’m guilty, unfortunately, on more than one occasion. I recently read a post by a foodie friend at Kimchi Mom which reminded me that I needed to renew my efforts to not waste food. I’ve been trying to change my ways for a while. For example, since Bebe E and I are typically home for lunch during the week, we...
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The other night I had leftovers from an okonomiyaki dinner we had with my brother (who was a bachelor for the weekend) and my “sista-from-another-mother” (a.k.a – Aya-chan) and her boyfriend, N. That night, I made my family’s Hiroshima – style okonomiyaki, but with the leftovers I made Kansai – style okonomiyaki. Several key ingredients had already been consumed, namely the soba noodles, moyashi (bean...
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