Sakura kit

I’m equipped for the cherry blossom season that is looming… It’s really early this year. I’ve seen only pink ones so far, but within a few days, the country will be white.

Japanese sakura sweets are flavored with pickles made the year before. I should make mines maybe, but well I’ve bought some. さくらの花(塩漬け), cherry blossom, pickled in salt.

The leaves are also pickled but less salty.

The flowers in the bin.

They need a rinsing.

Then you add petals to some food, let a pair of hours and they are magically flavored. You’ll see that in future posts.

干菓子higashi (dry sweets) to go with matcha. I didn’t make those either.

Wagashi Saga : Japanese sweet posts and tutorials.

Tsubomina, bud veggie

つぼみ菜 Another Japanese special vegetable. Tsubomi means bud. It’s the symbol of early Spring.
Well it seems the complete name is Hakata tsubomina as there exist another plant called tsubomina. Hakata is an alternative name of Fukuoka, the city of Kyushu.

This page gives some details.

They are the bud of a type of large size mustard green. The whole plant makes 3 to 5 kg but only the buds are gathered. The season is February~March.

I ate them in salad and in soup before. I think that most recipes for Brussel sprouts could be use. But they are particularly excellent in tempura.

The inside is white and creamy.

Tofu : tout !

Reblog from the “tofu page”

It’s compilation on the tofu topic…I add data regularly.

3 main tofu textures :

You have Japanese tofu that is :
kinu-dofu, silky tofu
momen-dofu, cotton tofu (translated as *firm tofu* in English)
Both are soft and watery. The first is very soft like egg pudding, the second is soft like starch pudding.
Really firm and dry tofu, the one that has a texture closer to meat is popular in China. It’s uncommon in Japan, except ….

Bottom line : If you like firm tofu…

Kuri 1, the Japanese chestnut (via gourmande in Osaka)

L.Y. Grilled Japanese chestnut + 5 recipes…

White forrest of mushrooms (via Gourmande in Osaka)

They are not aliens, but mushrooms… with funny names. Yamabushi-take. Mountain monk mushrooms. The Yamabushi mountain monks are old men, they have long hair and beard… well in the legend. Under the kimono. This is a hanabi-take. A firework mushroom. These are called bunapee. The full name is "white buna-shimeji", so they shortened it. Addition : They all grow in a farm. They are totally white. Recently new colors have been created for nearly … Read More