Radish and Black soybean

Farmers are drying radishes by hanging on 'Ha-de-gi' before they make pickles of radish.

Click change !


These are plants of soybean that are also hung on 'Ha-de-gi'.
After they become dry ones, farmers pat them with a tool and take beans out of the sheath.
And they select good beans from bad ones.

This black soybeans are indispensable for our special dish for the New Year holidays in Japan !

Dried radish

Dried radish　06　2/3

Shizusan made dried radish.

First she peeled off the skin of the radish.
Next she put them in the hot water.
And they were hung like this picture.

06  1/18

About two weeks later, these radish were dried like the picture above .
We cut them into pieces and cook them .

Rolled sushi

Today is Se-tsu-bu-n, before the first day of spring.

We have a habit of scattering parched beans, shouting
     'Out with the demon and in with the fortune !'

And recently we eat rolled sushi without cutting, facing toward a lucky direction of this year without saying anything.

The south-southeast is the lucky direction of this  year.

Special product

This Japanese-style confection  is  'Fu-ji-to ma-n-jyu-u.'

It is a sweet bean paste covered with a film of rice cake.
It is like 'O-te ma-n-jyu' which is also one of the famous confections in Okayama.
Different from 'O-te ma-n-jyu', they use film that contains 'a-ma-za-ke' and the bun is a special product of Genji and Heike's old battlefield of Fu-ji-to.

I was presented this one by a guest to my house the other day.
It is very delicious with a cup of Japanese green tea.

 

 

 

 

 

Black soybean 2

Shizusan is drying these black soybeans.
They are being spread on the sheet called 'Mu-shi-ro' that is made of rice-plants.
My dead father in-law made them using a knitting machine long ago.

I will cook these dried soybeans for 'Special New Year's food' too.
I hear they are good for our health, especially for lady ! 

 

 

 

Fish

　One of our relatives presented us these fish today.

He retired from his job recently, so he has much time.
Now fishing becomes one of his hobbies.
He sometimes go fishing to the sea near his house with his wife.


Today he caught many fish and he brought us part of them.
In spring, he gave us lots of little-neck clams.

As soon as he left my house, my husband and Shizusan cleaned them.
Next, I deep-fried them to make tempura.
At the same time, I also grilled a few big fish.


As they were so fresh, they were so tasty !!

Peach

  My acquaintance came with a box of peach last Sunday afternoon.
Peach is one of the special products in Okayama prefecture.
So we have a fairy tale of Momotaro.

She said these peaches had been grown by her father and had been picked from a tree .
So it was very juicy and delicious!!

She went to China to learn Chinese this April.
She said that she was staying her home during summer vacation now and that she would go to China in September again.

As she is young yet, she will be able to speak Chinese very well soon and have many friends from various foreign countries.

She is enjoying her life and leading a fruitful life for the future dream.

Melon

The other day I was presented these melons as a Midyear gift .

 According to a message in the card, the date of good for eating is around August 8. But I haven't eaten them yet as they are hard and don't smell sweet yet.
I'll eat tomorrow.

They were grown at Furano in Hokkaido famous for lavender .
Color of flesh seems to be orange.

May it be delicious!!

Day of Ox at midsummer

　Today is 'the Day of Ox at midsummer'.

We have a custom to eat eels this day in Japan.

The custom seemed to have begun at Edo period.
There was a eel shop, but the owner couldn't sell eels so much.
So he consulted Hiraga Gennai who was a very famous scholar about the way of selling well.
Then he hit a good idea of eating eels this day.

In fact eels are very nutritious and rich in vitamine A, E, B and so on.

Let's eat eels for summer heat prevention !!

Japanese cake

This Japanese cake is the product of this confectionery.

The Japanese values the sense of the season very much.
So the Japanese-style confection workmen create the cakes with full of the sense of each season.
This is also the seasonable one.
Wrapping of the cake looks like a carp streamer and the basket made of bamboo is nice too.

Of course, it tasted good!!

The taste of spring

I was presented these bamboo shoots today.

They are in season from now and begin to appear on the store.

We make tempra, wakatake-soup, boiled food, bud dressing and so on.
They can be used for Chinese cuicine too.

They are said to be well-nourished food.
There are much protein, dietary fiber and the vitamins, etc.

So they are good for our health and beauty!!

Strawberry

I was presented these strawberries a few days ago.

They looked very fresh and were good to eat.
It was the first time to eat it this year.

We can eat it all year round these days as farmers grow it in the greenhouses.
Though it is applicable to many vegetables and fruits, I wonder it is good or bad.
If we grow it under natural conditions, we can eat it only May.

Candy

There are many souvenir stores along the approach to the Inari Shrine.

They sell various kinds of goods.
Among them I saw these colorful candies at a small candy shop.
Though I took pictures, I didn't buy any of them.
I'm sorry !!



　

La France

I was given these fruits as a year-end present.

The name of this fruit is 'La France' and is the special product in Yamagata prefecture.

It doesn't look delicious, but it tastes mellow and sweet.
It is like an apple a little.
The smell is also good.

I like this fruit too.

Shortcake

Today I had a small Christmas party at my friend's house.

We ate these shortcakes made and sold at 'Wohl Wollen' near my house.
They are very popular around here because of the taste and being nice to look at.