A market of farmers

I don't know what has taken me so long to get there, but I finally did.  I guess my biggest excuse is that our Saturdays are usually booked way in advance with activities to see the sights and explore Tokyo.  I think we could live here for over 10 years and I still would not have seen it all.  Who has time to go to the market on the weekend?  I rarely do!

But the thing is, I have always loved farmer's markets.  The direct connection to the farmer, bright colors of freshness, and palpable passion for what one puts in their mouth, leaves me feeling practically giddy.  In Seattle, my husband and I had a list of our favorite markets and we would make the rounds whenever we had the chance.

When we didn't have any plans today, I kept reiterating that I'd really like to go to the market.  When I pointed out that the boys could go to Toshimaen to ride the roller coaster while I shopped, attitudes finally changed and everyone thought going was a good idea.

I was forewarned that it was a very small market.  But when I arrived to find only 5 booths, I raised my eyebrows in surprise.  Was this really worth the 20 minute bike ride?  But I kept the smile on my face so the boys wouldn't change their optimism.

I started at the fish booth, where the gentleman was selling smoked and frozen fish.  He and my husband chatted while I tasted various kinds of fish.  Knowing that it was a quick and easy dinner, I bought 3 fish for us to enjoy.

The next three booths featured vegetables.

At the first produce booth the garlic was huge and the cabbage looked great.  But what really got my attention was the autumn bamboo shoots.  They are only available 2 weeks out of the year and are a rare find.  Soon I was purchasing bamboo shoots, mushrooms, young ginger, a couple end of season cucumbers, a jar of ginger jam, and hoshigaki.  The farmer was appreciative of my big purchase and gave me an onion as a thank you gift.  He also excitedly told my husband that I should freeze the mushrooms for a short time to increase the umami flavor in them.  I had never heard this before.*

The second booth had a rainbow of produce wrapped in plastic.  It saddens me to see the beautiful colors hidden behind a plastic bag, but it is the way they do things here.  I do my best to resist plastic wrapped produce, but I could not pass up the purple mizuna, a green with a pleasant bitter taste.  We eat it in salads, nabe, and even sautéed.  To preserve the purple color, we'll eat this bunch raw.

The third produce booth was selling daikon, sweet potatoes, and other root vegetables.  I purchased one daikon, which I will most likely use to make Nerima spaghetti since my son asks for it regularly.

The final booth at the market was still being set up when we were there.  The farmer didn't have his stuff unpacked and people were asking him questions, requiring his focus to be taken away from the task at hand.  As soon as he opened a box of apples to set out, people started lining up.  He explained that the variety was one of the parent varieties of the Fuji apple.  He told the people in front of us not to peel the apple, as it is very juicy and it would loose some of the precious moisture by doing so.  As I was buying 6 apples, I noticed he was not just selling honey in his booth.  He also had bee pollen, something that is really hard to find in Japan.  Although it was expensive, I bought a large jar for us to eat on yogurt and other ways.  When I bought it, he mentioned that I could cook it in rice.  I have never heard of this, so I will have to do some research.

Not surprisingly, I walked away from the Toshimaen Farmer's Market with a huge smile on my face.  My son and I couldn't wait and bit into one of the apples.  It was so juicy and delicious.  It tasted exactly like my dreams tell me apples should taste like - sweet and crisp.

My husband and son went and played at the theme park while I went home and had some quiet time.  Later in the evening, I made an amazing dinner with a beef, bamboo shoot, and mushroom concoction; celery, apple, and persimmon salad; and a baked sweet potato from our new favorite sweet potato roaster.  It was a beautiful fall flavored meal, made with amazing ingredients from the farmer's market.

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* I ended up freezing the mushrooms for about 2 hours before chopping them up and sautéing them for dinner.  They tasted fantastic, but I don't know if it was because I froze them first.

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Beef, Bamboo Shoot, and Mushroom Concoction

1 lb thinly sliced beef
2 autumn bamboo shoots, cleaned
1 robust head wild mushrooms, approximately the size of two fists
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
3 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil

1. Pour 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce over the beef and let sit while cutting up the vegetables.
2. Julienne the bamboo shoots and cut the mushrooms into preferred bite size pieces.
3. Mix remaining 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce, all of the sweet chili sauce, and 2 teaspoons of sesame oil in a small bowl.  Set aside.
4. Heat skillet with 2 teaspoons sesame oil.  Cook beef until brown.  Remove beef from the pan and put on a plate or in a bowl.
5. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons sesame oil.  Cook mushrooms until brown, then add bamboo shoots and rested beef.  Add the sauce and cook for a minute or two before turning off the heat.
6. Serve with rice.