Preparing for Koromo-gae Season

I grew up in Tokyo. Summer is hot and unbearably humid. Climate change is exacerbating the issue today, according to my sister, who lives in the city.

Every summer, after confirming the end of tsuyu, rainy season, I helped my mother transform our living space from winter & spring to a summer one.

We call it a ‘living space-koromo-gae’.

The above painting depicts the October Koromogae 十月 at the ancient imperial court. They could afford to do koromogae every month!

Image courtesy of the “Kujirōku' illustrations” housed in the Library of the Imperial Household Agency's Archives and Mausolea Department.

Quick & Light Summer Dishes

In addition to the living space, we also introduce meals with a summer theme at the table, utilizing fresh, seasonal ingredients, quick and light cooking methods, focusing on refreshing flavors, and serving some of the dishes cold. 

Sunomono 酢の物 (pictured above) is a vinegared dish in which vegetables, seafood, and other ingredients, dressed in a rice vinegar-based sauce, is one of the summertime favorites.

The main ingredient of the sauce, rice vinegar, known as komezu 米酢, has numerous health benefits beyond providing a tart and refreshing flavor to prepared summer dishes.

Balancing Cold with Heat

While these cold dishes are tempting in hot weather, overconsumption of cold dishes can cause the body, especially the stomach, to become overcooled, weakening the digestive system. 

Yakuzen, the Japanese counterpart of Traditional Chinese Medicine, recommends adding ingredients with warming properties.

These ingredients include such items as ginger, shiso leaves, scallions, mustard, and garlic, to cold dishes to balance their temperature. 

We refer to these warming herbs as yakumi 薬味, or medicinal herbs, because they possess either antibacterial or antimicrobial properties, making them suitable for consumption during the hot months. 

My Koromo-gae season recipes include a sunomono salad, a namban chicken, and a somen in hiyashi-chukasoba style.

Kakigori: Japanese Shaved Ice

Let me introduce you to the ultimate summer snack—kakigori. 

Kakigori is a finely shaved ice served in a glass cup. Snow-white ice is drizzled with sweet fruit syrups, sweetened milk, or served with cream or another topping. 

My favorite one is Ujikintoki 宇治金時 – the shaved ice topped with sweetened azuki beans and drizzled with unsweetened matcha sauce.

When visiting Japan during summer, please pay attention to a small square flag with the kanji character ‘ice 氷’ in red color on the background of blue and white cotton cloth flying in the air at a sweet shop. 

This flag is telling you that the store has begun serving a summer specialty, kakigori!

When the summer ends, the flag is removed from the storefront. Naniwaya store, founded in 1909 in Azabu Juban, Tokyo, is where I would religiously commute every summer to enjoy the best Ujikintoki in the city.

See my Instagram Post about Naniwaya

A Lesson from the Asagao

Lastly, I cannot end this newsletter without mentioning asagao 朝顔 (morning glory). Asagao was introduced from China and has been a cherished flower since ancient times.

During the Edo Period (1603-1868), a boom in the cultivation and breeding of the flower led to the development of numerous new varieties. Asagao, as a summer subject, appeared in multiple woodblock prints, paintings, poems, haiku, and songs.

This particular haiku from the Edo Period was written by a woman named Chiyo-ni. It teaches us to respect nature and be kind to neighbors:

Asagao ni/ya Tsurube Torarete Moraimizu.

The haiku depicts a young woman in the early morning, her well bucket caught by the morning glory’s vines, and unable to use it to draw water from the well. She, instead, walks to the neighbor and gets water.

Asagao – characterized by delicate petals of deep blue, purplish-pink or greyish-blue hue – possesses an elegant appearance. The climbing vines are rhythmical and energetic.

Asagao was indeed my favorite summer flower and the first choice of flower for a summer elementary school oshibana project (pressing and drying flowers between paper).

Enjoy summer and stay hydrated and safe!

Above image credit: data.ukiyo-e.org