tummy rumbles

Meiji Hokkaido Tasty Crunch

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 01:04:00 +0000

Meiji has once again provided a worthy candidate for my peculiar obsession with kooky Japanese sweets. Tasty Crunch are nuggets of Hokkaido milk chocolate studded with (the packaging doesn't lie) salted french fry potato chips. And to be honest, it actually doesn't taste half bad!

I have spotted this snack in the Great Eastern (Russell St) and Central Grocery (Melbourne Central) stores around town. So if ya hankerin for both a sweet and savoury snack, this this will surely satisfy - on both fronts - in the one snack.

Recorded Music Salon

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:00:00 +0000

11 Collins Street, Melbourne
Phone 03 9650 3821

Waiting for public transport (which, by the way, is fast becoming a Melbournian pastime) is not such a bad thing occassionally.

I was catching up with some mates for a Laotian dinner over in Bridge Rd, and patiently waiting for my ride to arrive at the corner of Collins and Spring Street tram stop. My eyes wandered to the left. Urgh...cowhide cowboy boots are so not cool. My eyes wandered to the right. When is this bloody tram going to get here? My eyes wandered upwards. Hmm. Funky people drinking it up in a rather innocuous second story window, above which the sign, Recorded Music Salon, catches my eye. What the?

Okay, yeah. I may be a little slow on the uptake here, as apparently this one has been around for a wee while (see here and here). But it's newish to me, so I returned a few days later to sample their lunch.

It's one of those places that instantly feels "cool". I hate ascribing to that tenet, because such "feeling" is so overtly contrived. But the designers got it bang on - it is sophisticatedly retro in a seventies kind of way. Think polished timber, earthy walls, natural vinyls (no pun intended), bronze features, and the most kick-arse pottery light features (are they vases and plates?).

But on to the food. EG went the pizza with jamon and manchego. Just look at it. Does anything else need to be said how good those two ingredients on a pizza can be?

I went with a more sedate toasted ciabatta filled with chicken, rocket, roasted peppers and manchego cheese. It too was pretty good with solid ingredients, although at $12ish perhaps a little on the pricey side (for a regular weekday lunch anyway).

I'd like to come back and check this place out at night - but I fear I may be overrun with the-too-cool-for-school crowd; an unfortunate side-effect of such funky places.

Inspired by Invita - a recipe for Scrambled Tofu

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 23:03:00 +0000

Queen Victoria Market
76 Therry Street, Melbourne
Phone: 03 9329 1267

Both EG and I absolutely adore tofu - silken, firm, puffed or frozen. We eat it dressed with tamari and sesame oil, or pan fried in teriyaki ginger sauce, or stuffed with fish paste in a soup, or cubed in miso. I could go on. In fact...I will. I have even converted EG into the delights of tofu mixed in with our morning breakfast of five grain porridge!

So we were quite impressed when we came upon this scrambled tofu dish at Invita, an outdoor cafe at the Queen Victoria Market that professes a somewhat healthy, fresh and organic bent. My only problem with the place is my comfort level in the winter. It really is quite chilling to place ones arse on their cold metal seats and basque in the glory of their tofuness.

Despite that, their coffee is hot (and a good brew to boot), and I can highly recommend their fruit toast as well. The not-bacon on the other hand is an acquired taste and should be avoided at all cost. What travesty.

Anyway, back to the scrambled tofu. The first thing that hit me was the sweetness of caramalised onion and carrot - those babies had been cooking for quite some time. Then rehydrated shitake added some earthiness, tumeric some pepperyness, and wilted spinach some body. And it was all freshened up with long thin slices of cucumber. Some toasted sourdough to the side, and baby, it was health on a plate.

I was so inspired after that (..and Invita, don't hate me), I decided to recreate the dish at home. Well...they are not bloody open for dinner, are they?

RECIPE: Scrambled Tofu (Invita-style)

1 block of firm organic tofu
2 tbs olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced
1 medium carrot, grated
4 dried shitake mushrooms, rehydrated in hot water for 30 minutes, sliced
A couple of handfuls of baby spinach
1 tsp turmeric
Cracked black pepper and sea salt (to taste)
1 red chilli (optional)
1 cucumber, sliced into strips
Coriander leaves for garnish
Whatever bread you love, toasted

Place olive oil, onions and carrots into a fry pan and cook gently on a low heat for approx 10-15 minutes (you want these to caramalise and sweeten). Add the chilli, turmeric, shitake and spinach and cook until the spinach begins to wilt. Crumble the tofu into the pan and heat through, perhaps turning the heat up just a little to give it a last burst of heat. Note: be careful not to turn the tofu into mush. Season with cracked black pepper and salt.

To serve: place the scrambles on a warmed plate and garnish with cucumber and coriander. Add a toasted bagel or some sour dough and dig in.

Hori Corn Chocolate

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:06:00 +0000

EG's parents took a recent trip to Hokkaido, and bought us back some local treats. So let me present one of the specialities of the region, Hori Corn Chocolate.

The gift box contains the same chocolate done two ways - in a long finger and a bite sized nugget.

It was a rather interesting snack consisting of popped corn and other chewy corn kernel bits smothered in Hokkaido milk white chocolate. It apparently comes in a regular milk chocolate variety as well.

And taste? Well, my feelings are a little ambivalent. The puffed corn is a little on the stale side, although it does amazingly taste corny (in a good way). The chocolate is also sweeter than we would probably have it here.

I give it points for uniqueness, but wouldn't be too fussed not to have it again.

Mochi, Wagashi and err...Moffles?

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 11:06:00 +0000

Fuji Bakery
Phone (02) 9975 1095

I picked up the most gorgeous mochi (rice cakes) at the recent Japan Festival in Box Hill. After developing an appreciation for such things in Japan, I was quite upset that I couldn't seem to find any freshly-made artisan ones here in Melbourne. Alas, we probably still can't find them as these ones came all the way from New South Wales.

This is a Sakura (cherry blossom) flavoured mochi wrapped in a real pickled cherry blossom leaf. It imparts a definite fragrance and saltiness to the sweet rice dumpling which is filled with sweetened azuki (red bean) paste. Unlike many of the mochi I have seen, the grains of the rice remain intact instead of being pounded to a paste. Isn't it just beautiful?

These are kashiwa mochi so named after the oak leaf they are wrapped in. They are traditionally made on the 5th May to celebrate Children's Day in Japan. Like the sakura mochi above, you are not meant to eat the leaf. Inside the pounded glutinous rice exterior was the same sweetened azuki (red bean) paste, although I detected a definite honey flavour to it.

Finally, an assorted pack of mochi, although I don't know whether some of these might be called something else (wagashi perhaps?). Towards the back was a green mochi filled with azuki, perhaps flavoured with mugwort (I'm guessing here). To the front were two rather unusual sweets. The one to the left was filled with the honey azuki paste mentioned earlier and the exterior was gingerbread in flavour. Yup, that's right. Gingerbread. And the one to the right tasted just like white bread, and it too was filled with azuki paste and sprinkled with goma (black sesame seeds). Traditional? Hmm...perhaps someone can enlighten me?

Just as an aside, apparently a new craze has hit Japan, and that is the moffle - a cross between a mochi and a waffle. Ooh...I must try me some! Sugoi!

Sette Bello

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 22:55:00 +0000

Corner Hardware Lane & Little Bourke Streets,
Phone not connected yet (I think)

Sette Bello, a rather funky mish mash of modern styling and retro cool, is an Italianesque cafe that is practically within throwing distance of where I live. I can't tell you how happy I am to have a decent cafe nearby. My only gripe - they're not open for Sunday breakfast! Ooh, what I'd give for a decent Sunday brekky joint in the CBD. And before you say it, no, Golden Tower is *not* an option.

Claire over at Melbourne Gastronome was the first to blow the lid on this little gem, and I certainly agree with her sentiments.

The first time we visited was for a post-shopping pick-me-up coffee and cannoli (we already know how much I love a good cannoli). The coffee provided the required hit of caffeine with a decent crema, and the cannoli, crunchy chocolate pastry piped full of citron studded ricotta was absolutely da business.

Impressed as we were with what we had experienced already, we decided to go back for breakfast on Saturday. The choice is small but sufficient - toasted brioche with marmalada (that being from the Italian meaning "jam" and not "marmalade"), tomato baked eggs in cazuela (terracotta dish) with spinach or prosciutto, or breakfast pizettes with egg and spinach or prosciutto. There is also a very good selection of will-power-weakening pastries, fruit brioche etc. to tempt those with a sweeter tooth (which is usually me, but on this occassion I needed eggs).

Our breakfast eggs were delightfully simple - two perfectly baked googies nestled deep into freshly wilted spinach and sweet tomato sugo (sauce). It arrived unseasoned - but it really only needed some cracked black pepper as the warm chunks of foccaccia were liberally sprinkled with flakes of sea salt. I really enjoyed this - more so because it wasn't crappy, greasy bacon and eggs.

So take that as a warning breakfast people. Don't go expecting a big menu with fry ups, french toast, pancake stacks, bircher museli or fruit salad. What you will get will be done well, and it may take just a little time to reach you (I don't quite think they've hit their food-serving mojo yet - but cut them a little slack, they're still new). But if you take a loved one and settle in for some good conversation, or mull over a newspaper with a coffee or two, it'll be just fine.

Three More Kit Kats

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 07:02:00 +0000

This is the 20th different flavoured Kit Kat I've managed to sample (not including versions we get in Australia), and I'm restraining myself from jumping on ebay to order more to fuel my sick obsession (there is apparently a soy sauce flavoured version!). The first two in this post were sourced locally from Great Eastern on Russell St.

First up is Strawberry flavour, which is not my favourite. It is a little too sweet and fruity and kind of like doing a triple shot Strawberry Quik.

Simple white chocolate Kit Kat - simple in design and taste.

This Bitter Green Tea Kit Kat came via EG's parents who recently came back from Hokkaido. They found it at Narita airport, and apparenty it is limited to the Tokyo region.

I absolutely adore the green tea flavour, which happens to just go ever so well with chocolate in the Kit Kat form. I think this version was done in conjunction with Itoh Kyuemon, a famous sweets shop in Kyoto.

You can look at my other Kit Kat posts here, here, and, oh yes, here.

Takayama Morning Market

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 02:01:00 +0000

Two morning markets are held in Takayama daily, the Jinya-mae and the Miyagawa market held along the Miyagawa River in the old part of town. They started in the Edo period and sell everything from fresh fruits and vegetables to pickles, fish, flowers and crafts.

You can sample most of the food too, which made the walk around very enjoyable indeed. The table above was covered with Japanese pickles, which is something I sorely miss. Why can't we get good, fresh, msg-free and artificial colouring-free pickles in this town? Well we can...I just have to learn to make them!

These beautiful silver saltwater fish come from the smelt family. They are usually grilled and filled with fish roe, commonly known as shishamo. You eat them whole from tip to tail (and yes, that means the head also!). Mmmm...good.

I think this is dried cuttlefish, athough it could very well be another form of cephalopod. I'm not too sure what they do with it, but we did see them shredded and seasoned to eat as a type of beer snack.

Some unusually shaped gourds...

...and some regularly shaped gourds.

And these? I have no idea. If anyone does, please feel free to tell me in the comments.

Dried magnolia leaves (hoba) are popular in the region, both for making the local hoba miso (below) and for cooking miso on a hibachi brazier (see breakfast at Sosuke).

The magnolia leaf acts to permeate the dark red miso with a leafy fragrance, especially when cooked on the brazier.

Small purply black nasu (eggplants). Did you know that eggplants contain nicotine? And eating 20 pounds of them equates to smoking one cigarette? Well...now you do.

Super fresh daikon for 100 yen (equivalent $1AU) each. Look how perky their tops are. They must have been pulled out of the garden fresh that morning.

Three types of dried corn. I'm not too sure if these were for decoration or eating.

Fresh red chillis strung up with leaves (or is it stalk or fronds?) of rice.

Perfect little cherry tomatoes still on the stalk.

Cute cape gooseberries doing their best interpretation of a cherry tomato.

Fresh edamame (soy beans) at $2AU a bag. I could seriously eat a truckload of these things.

Fuji apples of varying quality and weights (and prices). What an excellent selection! And they are so much darker and sweeter than the insipid Fuji varieties we get here.

Now I must admit I wouldn't have recognised this if I hadn't been a fan of Iron Chef. These are the famed matsutake mushrooms, which are kind of like the truffle of Japan. The wild specimens had been picked locally from the pine groves and were $50AU a tray. The seller was very excited and impressed when I pointed at them and timidly enquired "Matsutake?". Arigato Iron Chef.

Takayama Ramen

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 15:45:00 +0000

Hands down, one of the best bowls of ramen I had in Japan had to be the hia chuka in Takayama (EG may well disagree on this point though). The soup itself was shoyu based, which was simple, flavoursome and seasoned just right. The chashu (sliced pork) was lean and tender and the sliced green onion added a bit of bite. I must admit I have trouble finishing a heavy tonkotsu (porky) ramen, so this suited me just fine.

EG went a more wholesome bowl of goodness with a couple of extra slices of chashu (sliced pork), sliced egg, wakame (seaweed) and enoki mushrooms.

The kitchen was very small - just this Chef and his kitchenhand chopping, slicing, boiling, spooning, draining and plating. Economy of space is something they do so well, especially considering those stock pots took up half the space!

Takayama Street Food: Various

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 01:54:00 +0000

There was a real carnival atmosphere on the streets of Takayama, with many stall fronts offering a myriad of food for hungry festival-goers. It was an interesting mix of the traditional and the not-so-traditional (as this post will capture). I always find fascinating what people eat during celebrations.

These conch (sea snails) were bubbling away in their own brine, apeture side up, over hot coals. The molluscy gastropods were very popular - the big pile of empty shells testament to that fact.

These local river fish were salted, spiked, smoked over ruddy coals and absolutely delectable. In the days of yore, the fish were cooked over the irori, or traditional hearths found in Japanese homes (especially the thatched ones). We had them for dinner one night, and I practically picked the bones clean.

The okonomiyaki I am used to are normally round, thick, flat and covered with katsuobushi shavings and aonori. This version had been rolled around a stick (for ease of eating on the street I guess), and came with ketchup and mayonnaise or okonomiyaki sauce and mayonnaise.

A cute way of deconstructing a potato for crisps - sliced thinly, skewered and deep-fried.

Some more deep-fried goodness, this time wedges of yellow sweet potato, sprinkled with salt and sugar.

EG couldn't resist a foot-long grilled hot dog, smeared with tomato sauce.

What the? Toffee apples in Japan?! I guess I shouldn't be surprised considering the proliferation of other Western imports into the country. We didn't sample these (if memory serves me correctly, I was eating a choco-banana at the time), but looking back, I wonder what flavour the opaque white toffee could have been?

Choco-bananas are pretty self explanatory. Banana, spiked and dipped in chocolate and decorated with different flavoured/coloured chocolate splodges. I actually saw these for sale at the recent Box Hill Japan Festival.

Don't these toffeed grapes look like jewels? OMG..they were absolutely wonderful. Plump, juicy tom-bowler sized black grapes, covered in crisp toffee that shattered when you bit into them.

Japan Festival

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Mon, 19 May 2008 22:03:00 +0000

Japan Festival in Melbourne
Sunday 18th May 2008 - Box Hill Town Hall & Tafe
http://www.jcv.org.au/japanfestival/

I'll take a little break from my Japan posts to report on...er...the Melbourne Japan Festival. Held last Sunday at the Box Hill Town Hall and TAFE, it is an annual celebration of all things Japanese. Amidst displays of bonsai, ikebana, taiko drumming, kimono contests, market stalls, Japanese language schools, tea ceremony schools (to be blogged shortly) and aikido (to name just a few), there was of course, the food.

This charcaol hibachi was whipping up a furious smoke - the smell of yakitori drawing all and sundry for tasty sticks of teriyaki chicken.

As you can see, they were delectably caramalised and awesomely good.

Takoyaki (octopus balls) were a popular snack at the festival - about four or five different vendors were selling them. Some chose to deep fry the little balls, but these guys were using a more traditional method utilising cast iron skillets (like what we witnessed in Osaka here).

They were actually pretty darn good, though I did miss the usual garnish of katsuobushi shavings. Surprisingly both the batter and the chunks of octopus were really tender.

Little bowls of ramen were a hot ticket item - a small bowl of miso or shoyu based stock and noodles for $5. The shoyu ramen was heavy with shitake flavour, which was an unusual little addition to a traditionally salty soy stock.

The yakisoba were absolutely fantastic. Fried on a BBQ hotplate, they are seasoned with (of all things) worstershire sauce! Large chunks of onion and cabbage had been stirfried into the mix, and it was garnished with aonori (seaweed flakes), beni shoga (picked red ginger) and Japanese mayonnaise.

I thought this was an interesting selection of treats. On the one hand you have the battered hot dog (American Dog) and a curry croquet, and on the other, takoyaki and lobster miso. An interesting blend of the traditional and the not so traditional.

Takayama: Sosuke Dinner (night three)

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Sun, 18 May 2008 01:25:00 +0000

1-50-30, Sowamachi, Takayama-shi, Gifu-ken
Website http://hida-yado.net/yado/sosuke/english.htm

Here are the pics and thoughts from our last dinner at Sosuke - what a way to go out!

Crisp vegetable tempura; shitake, yam, shiso, kabocha (pumpkin) and potato. A little patty cake foil contained a seasoned salt, which I liberally sprinkled over my veggies. The shiso especially was a great ingredient to tempura.

Now just a little warning for those uninitiated in the ways of squid sashimi. The dish must be approached singularly and with caution. See how the flesh is cut into strips? Take that as a very definite instruction. If one or two strips are consumed, you will be met with a chewy squishiness that is quite firm to the bite - quite pleasant and palatable. But if you whack the whole thing in your mouth, well, the proteins in the flesh get kind of excited and they bind and knit to become one big fat glob in your mouth. No shit...poor EG was chewing for like 10 minutes!

Another bowl of yomogi udon, similar to what we had on night one.

These little ebi (shrimps) were deep-fried and salted, and could be eaten whole and in one bite. They were absolutely fantastic, and would make a great beer snack.

Chawan mushi is an egg-custard steamed in a bowl or tea cup. The egg mixture was seasoned with dashi and mirin, and infused with tender gingko nuts and small boiled shrimp. A swirly slice of kamaboko (fish cake) floated on top, along with a bright green celery leaf.

Hmm....I wonder what has been baked in this Hoba leaf parcel?

The fish course was a lemon and salt baked mackeral fillet. It had been cooked on the iron before being placed in the leaf, but the Hoba infused a delicate leafy fragrance. It was truly the taste of Autumn.

Takayama: Sosuke Dinner (night two)

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Sat, 17 May 2008 01:23:00 +0000

1-50-30, Sowamachi, Takayama-shi, Gifu-ken
Website http://hida-yado.net/yado/sosuke/english.htm

Dinner on the second night was just as fantastic as the first.

This local river fish had been smoked and salted, and I just about picked the bones clean it was so moreish (we had seen these cooking on a walk around the market earlier that morning). On the side was was a pickled bamboo shoot, a knot of sansai (mountain vegetable), some candied and skewered gingko nuts and a takoyaki (octopus ball).

A bowl of simple hand-made udon was light but warming, especially as it was rather chilly in the mountainous air of Takayama.

Lightly salted edamame always have me hankering for beer. It was so lovely to eat these fresh. The frozen ones we get here are such a poor imitation.

This long bamboo shaped ceramic dish contained a rather large panko crumbed ebi (prawn), a side of mayonnaisey potato salad and a cute-as-a-button cherry tomato.

This was an interesting take on a nasu dengaku, or grilled eggplant with miso. Usually eggplant is topped with a paste of white miso, sake, mirin and bonito, and grilled. But on top of this, a layer of cheddar cheese had been melted. It actually tasted pretty good! I'll have to try this one at home.

Our hibachi (fire bowl) dish of the evening was another Hida beef braise, this time rich with enoki and shitake. A beaten egg was added as it simmered towards the end to thicken the delicate mushroom sauce.

Along with rice, pickles and miso, another meal was complete.

Takayama: Sosuke Dinner (night one)

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Wed, 14 May 2008 01:16:00 +0000

1-50-30, Sowamachi, Takayama-shi, Gifu-ken
Website http://hida-yado.net/yado/sosuke/english.htm

Just like the breakfasts written about previously, the dinners at Sosuke Minshuku were just as impressive. The theme of traditional home style dining prevailed, and we were able to sample further specialities of the region including Hida beef and yomogi udon.

We were also treated to a little something extra on our first dinner - a film crew taping a very loud and obnoxious travel guide (the lass in green) pontificating about her dinner. Anyway...

Sashimi course consisted of exquisite slices of white fish, sitting on a perky shiso leaf and doused in a dressing of yuzu and some unfamiliar herb (possibly mugwort?). The taste was as mouth-watering as it looks. Language was a bit of a barrier to ask what type of fish was on offer - but I'm thinking some kind of kingfish for at least one of them.

Agedashi tofu sat in a briney dashi and wakame broth. On top of the block sat a deep-fried pastry-ish round. The tofu in Takayama was great - quite creamy with a hint of whey to it.

One of the specialities of the region is yomogi udon. The noodles contain boiled and mashed buds of mugwort collected in early spring, and like most udon, are chewy yet smooth. It was served in a seasoned dashi with strips of wakame and sliced baby leeks.

This was an unusual little dish, more so because it seemed quite western. The aluminium bom-bom parcel contained chicken and broccoli in a cheesy white sauce. The braising liquor was sweet with mirin and sake balanced by a dash of shoyu.

I am a little unsure what this vegetable was exactly, but I think it was some sort of sansai (mountain vegetable). It was firm to the bite with a little bit of crunch (like a green bean) and had been pickled with a chilli.

A little hibachi (fire bowl) was topped with a ceramic dish containing Hida beef, beanshoots, eggplant, mushrooms, and local green chillis. When we arrived it was covered with a ceramic lid, and it cooked and bubbled in front of us in a delicious sweet soy braise.

And a meal is not complete without sake, served warm as it was quite cold and rainy outside. Takayama is well know for this alcoholic brew (as evidenced by Helen over at Grab Your Fork). A perfect accompaniment to our great meal.

Takayama: Sosuke Minshuku - Breakfasts

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Mon, 12 May 2008 00:35:00 +0000

1-50-30, Sowamachi, Takayama-shi, Gifu-ken
Website http://hida-yado.net/yado/sosuke/english.htm

We stayed at the most wonderful minshuku (family run guest house) in Takayama called Sosuke. Part of what made it so wonderful was the food; traditional Japanese breakfasts and dinners served in Sosuke's tatami'd dining room. I'll blog the dinners shortly, but following are three breakfasts we had the pleasure of consuming.

Breakfast on day one consisted of the essentials: Japanese pearl rice (to the tooth), small rectangular seasoned toasted nori sheets in which to dip in soy and envelop chopstick-full bites of rice, and an earthy reddish miso soup spiked with spring onions, wakame and blocks of tofu.

The extra day one items included slices of deep-fried firm tofu, slices of kamaboko (fish cake) beside a knob of wasabi, a dish of pickled hakusai (chinese cabbage), kinpira gobo (braised burdock root and carrot), and a dish of boiled and lightly seasoned azuki (red beans).

We also had this dashi poached egg in a ceramic dish, which came after I'd taken the first photo above (and after I had already dug in).

Day two breakfast consisted of the essentials mentioned above (athough this time you can see the seasoned nori sheets in their original packaging), with a sunny-side-up fried egg, steamed mirin/shoyu seasoned kabocha (pumpkin), blocks of silken tofu dressed with shavings of bonito and spring onions, plain boiled sansai (mountain vegetables) and the pickled hakusai (chinese cabbage).

Breakfast on day three provided us with one of the specialities of the Hida region; Hoba miso. Miso and sliced leeks are placed on a sun dried magnolia leaf which sits on foil over a little hibachi (fire bowl). Once the miso gets a cookin', the magnolia leaf imparts a definite pleasant fragrance to the paste, which was just delightfully salty and fresh when scooped up with a mouthful of rice.

We also had tamago, and oh my god, this was fabulous. For the uninitiated, tamago is a rolled layered omelette that is flavoured with dashi, soy, mirin and sugar. You sometimes see it cold and sliced thinly on top of sushi, but this version had been freshly made, and was juicy and flavourful in all the right ways. I must learn to make this myself one day.

Once again another little dish of sansai (mountain vegetables), this time dressed in a creamy white sauce (which was not mayonnaisey).

And lastly was a different sansai (mountain vegetables), this time braised with carrots.

One thing I love about Japanese breakfasts (like the ones experienced here) is the variety. I love having five or six little dishes to eat from - you feel that you are satiated on a physical, spiritual and nutritional plane. A little bit of protein, some vegetables, soy (in one or two different guises), rice and soup. A perfect healthy way to start the day.

Kani Doraku Honten

noreply@blogger.com (ElegantGourmand) — Sun, 11 May 2008 05:48:00 +0000

1-6-18 Dotombori Chuo-ku

6211 8975

http://www.douraku.co.jp/kansai/shop/honten.html (Japanese only)

Osaka's Dotombori area is full of giant neon billboards, many of which advertise a restaurant's particular specialisation. There are giant blowfish (for fugu) and giant octopus (for takoyaki). And of course, there has to be a giant mechanical crab, glaringly proclaiming the bill of fare of the institutional Kani Doraku Honten. A Japan-wide chain that specialises in crab banquets (duh!), the Dotombori eatery is the original edition. Feeling somewhat crabby after looking at some at the Osaka Aquarium, Mellie and I decided to check it out for dinner.

The restaurant has several levels and discrete dining areas. We were seated with a great view of the Dotombori canal, which didn't smell so bad behind glass. Despite the somewhat formal look of the place, Kani Doraku had a pretty casual vibe.

We went one of the crab banquets. Funnily enough, the waitress didn't advise us that you had to order two banquets for two people; we assumed that they would automatically provide enough for the both of us. Alas, we got to share the one banquet, which meant fighting Mellie for the crab legs!! First course was crab sashimi, served on the shell. The meat was very sweet indeed, a characteristic of the crab variety that they serve here (spider crab). These crabs are evil, alien looking things in real life, which we witnessed first hand at the aquarium. They kind of freaked me out then, which made me glad that I was having revenge on them by feasting on their sweet sweet flavour.

Second course was boiled crab legs, which went a treat with a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of the salt/pepper mix you see on the green plate. I was very impressed by the sweetness of the meat, but there simply wasn't enough of it for the both of us - doh. This course also came with some rather good chawan mushi (steamed egg custard).

Next course was tempura crab and vegetables. The batter was light, crunchy and not too oily.

The hot plate on our table was turned on for the next course of grill-yourself crab. As you can see from the picture, we were also offered the green goopy contents of the crab's head, also known as kanimiso. We declined to touch it with extreme prejudice.

The grilled crab meat had a nice smokey taste, but again the legs were too scrawny to contain much meat. Spider crabs should get into the gym and do some leg curls or squats.

This course was accompanied by some crab rice - rice that had been cooked with the flavour of crab. This was very tasty, and went well with a bowl of miso soup.

Our meal finished with excellent green tea ice-cream, made with the matcha (powdered tea) that imparted a bitter-sweet flavour to the dessert. Very nice indeed.

If you're a crab fan, Kani Doraku is highly recommended. Spider crab is certainly one of the sweetest crab meats I have ever tasted. Just make sure you order enough food for your dining party! We also noticed other tables tucking into various hotpots, which looked and smelled fantastic. Alas we didn't have enough time to go back and try these. However, you can't go wrong with the banquets and this place seems to be quite good for groups if you are in the mood for a bang-up crab feast!

Takayama Food: Hida Milk

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Fri, 02 May 2008 01:57:00 +0000

We purchased these cute little bottles of Hida milk in Takayama for AU$1. How delightful is the old-style packaging, sealed with waxed cardboard and protected with cellophane? As I pulled back the top I smiled - the milk was non-homogenised and a thick layer of buttercup yellow cream sat delectably on top, the milk itself, full bodied and sweet.

Milk is not as common in Japan as it is in Australia, due in part to the traditional dietary habits of the Japanese and the reduced agricultural availability of farming land. Unfortunately, with an increase in the cost of cattle feed (corn, barley, oats etc.) of late, the dairy industry is in real trouble. Worrisome times ahead.

Takayama Street Food: Imagawayaki and Taiyaki

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 01:49:00 +0000

You may have noticed a particular penchant in some of my posts - a penchant for the sweeter things in life. Not that I am a big cake eater. But give me a cute little macaron, a delicate pastry, a luscious truffle, some choux filled with custard, or a sweet yeasty dough, and I'm in heaven. Therefore it should come as no surprise that these imagawayaki hit my sweet spot.

Traditionally these festival treats are filled with red bean azuki paste, but we also found ones pumped full of custard, green tea flavoured bean paste, yam/taro and even a chocolate custard version.

The sweet batter is poured into a heated cast cast iron mould, and when the bottoms are browned, the filling is placed on one side and the other side is flipped over on top. It is left to finish cooking and heat through.

As you can see, the imagawayaki are a delicious and filling snack, and certainly not shy on the red bean paste (mmm). As a side note, imagawayaki also go by many different regional names such as obanyaki and taikoyaki, and these days even come in savoury versions (eww).

Another variation is the taiyaki, or sea bream fish shaped cake. Same batter, same filling. And yes, I ate this one too. Just to make sure.

There is much discussion about the origin of taiyaki, but they have apparently been made at Naniwa in Tokyo since 1909.

These smaller taiyaki are being filled with a green bean paste, and come in a small, medium or large bag. I didn't eat these ones as I was full on my other two indulgences.

Do these look familiar? Yes, they are similar to the Emperor's Puff we had in Sydney last year, and are basically a cooked sweet batter. Kept warm over a hot plate, shovelfuls are heaped into bags for festivalgoers. These were particularly popular with the locals.

Takayama Street Food: Owara Tamaten

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 01:47:00 +0000

I just fell in love with this happy chappy, the purveyor of owara tamaten, little cubes of grilled honey-flavoured meringuey/marshmallowy goodness. His cheeky chuckle brought a smile to our faces as I held up two fingers and said "owara tamaten o futatsu kudasai" ("I'll have two please").

A delightful translation of this unusual little treat was posted above the street stall for the benefit of tourists (such as us). Interesting to note that agar-agar, a vegetable gelatin derived from seaweed, is used as the setting agent.

The dexterity he displayed as he picked up the soft meringue cubes with chopsticks was very impressive. They were submerged into a mixture of egg yolk, honey and mirin (for colour and taste), allowed to drip dry and then deposited on a hot plate to toast.

They taste as amazing as they sound and look - cloudy puffs of eggy sweetness, tinged with a sweet honeyed outer coating. You can purchase them in take-away packs, but to eat them straight off the grill became one of those eye-closing, mouth-savouring moments.

I am S for Stoked

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 21:39:00 +0000

Thank you Sarah from the "equally-excellent" Sarah Cooks and Sarah Discovers How to Eat, for awarding me an E for Excellent Blog Award. Sarah's mouth watering posts often have me pining for great food and reminiscing about my recent trip to Japan (which she also did last year).

I'd like to throw this award to a couple of my favorite blogs, Claire (aka mutemonkey) from downtown Melbourne Gastronome, and Cindy and Michael from where's the beef.

Takayama Street Food: Hida Beef Kushiyaki

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 01:56:00 +0000

This street stall along the picturesque Miyagawa River was cooking up mouth-watering kushiyaki (skewers) of Hida beef - a local speciality of the region. Hida beef are raised in the meadows of the Hida plateau for about two years, and are known for their fatty tissue and rich flavor.

The skewers were grilled on the coals and dipped periodically into a tub of sweet Japanese style BBQ sauce. The flavour of the meat was intensely good, battling even the flavour of the baste.

Read about why we were in Takayama (Japan) here.

Takayama Street Food: Mitarashi-dango

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 03:13:00 +0000

One of the more popular street snacks in Takayama are mitarashi-dango, skewers of grilled rice dumplings (mochi) coated in a soya based sauce. In fact, the unmistakable smell of burning vegemite will certainly lead you to their location.

They are excessively salty and extraordinarily chewy, and will keep you chomping for a good five minutes.

Read about why we were in Takayama (Japan) here.

Takayama and the Autumn Hachiman Matsuri

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 01:38:00 +0000

When we were in Japan last year, we were lucky enough to coincide our visits with a number of matsuri (festivals). Our first such experience was in the township of Takayama, a quaint little village in the mountainous Hida region of the Gifu prefecture - five hours from Tokyo by train.

The Autumn Hachiman Matusri is the annual celebration of the Sakurayama Hachimangu Shrine. In essence it is a procession of a dozen heavily decorated yatai (festival floats) that are paraded/pulled through the streets (usually by sake soddled citizens) over the course of a couple of days.

The yatai (floats) are absolutely huge, and take real effort to move and manoeuvre. This poor gent obviously provided aesthetic as opposed to any real pulling power.

Several of the floats are installed with karakuri ningyo, mechanical marionettes that move and dance by pulling on ropes and levers within the float. This is a very popular performance, and unfortunately I couldn't get close enough to snap a good shot. But they were lovely to watch, even from our distance away.

On the evening of the first day the yatai (floats) are pulled through the streets of the old town. The yomatsuri (evening festival) is also a highlight - the cacophany of beating drums, clapping hands, chanting and singing enlivens everyone into a festivitous mood. It was awesome.

Now you are probably saying to yourself - but Mellie, why aren't you talking about food? Well the next few posts will be dedicated to looking at the food we found in this gorgeous little township, from the markets to the festival street food.

Shoya - Kaisen Chirashi

noreply@blogger.com (mellie) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 05:56:00 +0000

25 Market Lane, Melbourne
Phone: 03 9650 0848

The simple things in life are often the best, such as the Kaisen Chirashi ($21.80) lunchtime set at Shoya. Fat tiles of tuna, swordfish, kingfish, salmon, arc shell (perhaps?!?), prawn, tobiko and a few other unknown piscatorial treats. All of it fresh. All of it tasting like the sea. Sitting on top perfect grains of bitey white rice and spikey slivers of toasted nori.

You can read about a previous visit to Shoya here.

Pacific BBQ Cafe Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (ElegantGourmand) — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 07:51:00 +0000

213 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Phone: 03 9663 9288

Standing in line at the packed-to-the-rafters Pacific BBQ Cafe, we felt like Elaine in the 1992 Seinfeld episode "The Suicide". After fasting for 3 days for a medical test, she deliriously exclaimed at the hospital, "But here it was: mountains of duck, and not Fatty duck either, but juicy tender breasts of duck, beautifully sliced, you can takes as much as you want." We salivated for Pacific's speciality of Cantonese roast duck too, especially since the line was cruelly next to where the glistening birds were masterfully chopped up, plated and sent out to eager patrons.

Thankfully, as with many Chinese restaurants, turnover of tables is quick and after 15 minutes or so, the three of us were seated. As you can see from the picture above, the space inside is pretty large and brightly lit and coloured. We really liked the student buzz and vibe of the place, a nice change from the Lonsdale Street Greek precinct crowd who frequent Pacific's neighbours. Pacific also has siblings located in South Yarra and Richmond.

You will never lose sight of the menu either, as it laid under glass on top of the table - a great idea! Pacific serves Hong Kong cafe-style food, including various stuff on rice (like moreish pork chops), hot pots, fried rice, soup noodles, and things like spaghetti (baked or fried) and sandwiches. Even Spam was on the menu! Of course, they are also famous for their roast meats, which include duck, soy chicken, roast pork and BBQ pork. A range of drinks like ice milk tea and bubble tea round out the Canto-pop experience.

So what did we order? Well, after pining for it whilst waiting for a table, we couldn't go past the roast duck, which was $19 for half a duck. It was certainly one of the best versions of this dish I've ever had! The duck arrived nicely plated, skin glistening with sauce. The meat was tender and smokey, not dried out as some ducks can be; the skin was crisp and beautifully marinated. The sauce was piquant and redolent with spices. One special mention has to go to the chilli oil (lar chiu yeow) that was on every table - one of the best chilli oils I've had which went beautifully with the duck. Two thumbs up! As only the roast duck was available on the night we visited (Pacific had only recently opened), we made a point to go back again in the future to try their other roast meats!

A chicken with ginger and shallot hot pot ($18) arrived piping hot, with pieces of moist tender chicken and big ginger pieces swimming in a beautiful gravy that went a treat with plain rice.

A plate of stir fried seasonal vegetables ($15), which in this case turned out to be bok choy, rounded out the meal nicely. Bok choy is one of the best veg to accompany roast duck.

Service was efficient though brusque, understandably because the cafe relies on turnover of tables to accommodate its already immense popularity. They coped admirably on a busy Friday night, with dishes whipped out to our table in record time and a pay at the counter policy ensuring no long waits for the bill.

Pacific is highly recommended; the roast duck itself is worth the price of admission! We can't wait to go back and try out their other roast meats. We definitely won't be satiating our duck cravings as Elaine did, by eating Newman's Drake's coffee cake!