This icho-imo yam is incredibly enormously gooey when it is grated. Look at and compare these two photos. Well, in fact, both may look a little weird to you. The top photo shows the grated yamaimo which presents a watery and slimy texture. The bottom one is grated icho-imo. It is so thick and gooey that I had to peel it off from the grater. Icho-imo has slightly more flavor than its sister, and is rather delicious eaten raw, grated, or cooked. Some of the most...
Read MoreYou have to watch this!
watch?v=dU6M-G87L9o Taken by Dan Schumacher at American Masara. You hear the voice of Dan, Suvir Saran and...
Read MoreAgain Yam!
I have introduced you nagaimo yam in my previous okonomiyaki blog – it is the long potato-like vegetable that becomes watery-slimy when grated. In this photo you cann see here a very fresh, whole nagaimo yam. Looks like a baseball bat. The skin is thin and rough. The cut surface shows moist, wet and somewhat bubbly appearance. Nagaimo, which originally came from China to Japan at the beginning of our civilization, is easily available here in America at Chinese...
Read MoreFinally oven-baked Agemochi
After taking mochi cakes out of the plastic package, I left them on a plate to dry them out completely. It took nine days. Today I used a small mallet and crumbled them. Instead of deep-frying them, I tossed mochi pieces with little olive oil and baked in the oven. The result was great – crisp, golden yet light. 2 ounce mochi pieces (completely dried) 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil or other cooking oil Sea salt, freshly ground pepper Place the rice cake crumbles in a...
Read MoreOshiruko
Today I unpacked rice cake from the package and prepared rice cake soup, oshiruko. This is Buzz showing off how gooey the mochi is. He says he is happy to keep this ritual just once a year. Oshiruko 4 servings 2 cups cooked azuki beans (one 15oz/425g can) 1/2 cup sugar 1 tablespoon honey Four 2-inch square mochi (rice cake) Pinch sea salt In a medium pot add the beans, sugar and honey along with 1 cup water. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook the beans over...
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