A sprinkle of red

I still can’t get used to the fact that leaves just turn later in Tokyo than they do in Seattle. I expect the trees to reveal their beautiful colors in October, not the end of November.

Man bright yellow ginkgoes in Hikarigaoka Park are almost gone. Last week’s winds blew most of the leaves into beautiful quilts covering the paths that were quickly swept away by the ground crew.

I love the fall leaves. I’m always sad to see them go. I love that November tends to be very dry, so the trees keep their leaves much, much longer than in Seattle.

I don’t mind going the extra distance to seek and view these beauties. So, when a friend told me about some red maples making their annual showing of splendor at a temple about an hour’s bike ride away, I excitedly told my husband about it. She forewarned me that they wouldn’t reach their peak colors until the first week of December, but I simply couldn’t wait!

After spending the morning chatting on FaceTime with a friend, my family headed out the door to explore. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to charge my bike battery. When I turned it on as we headed out, it read a disappointing 20%. I had already postponed our adventure by an hour so I could talk to my friend. I didn’t want to hold us up any longer. So, I turned it off, crossed my fingers, and put the pedal to the metal. While it sounds silly that I rely on my bike battery so much, my bike is actually really heavy and, therefore, really hard to ride without the assist.

Although I didn’t know it when we left, the ride was relatively flat. I had to hop off twice to push it up a couple long slopes, but otherwise I did alright. However, I still cursed myself quite a bit on the ride for not charging the darn thing. When I was almost out of steam I asked my husband how much further and he replied “less than 2 kilometers.” Thanking my lucky stars, I continued on because I knew I could make it that far.

Before we went into the temple, we ducked into a small restaurant for lunch. They make udon (thick, chewy noodles made from wheat) with carrots. All three of us wanted to try the bright orange noodles.

While the carrots didn’t add much flavor, they did provide a colorful plate and were delicious. It was a lovely representation of an autumn plate.

The entrance to Heirinji Temple was half a block away from the restaurant. We had to pay to enter the temple grounds. At first I thought this was strange, but then recalled we have paid to get into several temples over the years. ¥1200/$11.50 for the three of us didn’t seem that expensive (I think my husband and I were ¥500 each and our son was ¥200).

Right away, we were treated to some beautiful red maples. The scene of the trees surrounding the temple gates and buildings was a delight to my eyes. It was a bit cloudy during our visit, but the sun would suddenly peak through the clouds and the trees would be illuminated, like putting a filter on a camera. The red (and yellow) trees would suddenly be glowing.

Heirinji Temple is home to a strict form of Buddhism that requires a vow of silence as part of the monk’s training process. Therefore, parts of the temple are off limits to visitors, as they would be very distracting to the training monks. Even though we couldn’t visit every corner of the property, there was plenty to see.

Some of the statues on the property date back to the Edo period.

Do you see my son's little friend?

View through a fence.

There was still a lot of green left in the trees, making me want to take a trip back in a couple weeks. I can’t imagine enjoying it more than I already did, but I'm sure that as more trees turned red, I would appreciate it even more.

After about an hour, we decided we were ready to head back home. I still rode without my battery, but this time it was even easier because the hills were now aimed down instead of up. Next time, I will remember to charge my battery before heading out.

Pluck and pull

I’ve been making an effort to get out of the house more. I fear another lockdown is coming our way as coronavirus diagnoses are on the rise again. We have been beating records again and again. Yesterday over 2,100 new cases were reported in Japan. While this number isn’t anything compared to many other countries around the world, it is the most Japan has ever seen. I can’t help feeling like I need to take in as much oxygen as I can before another deep dive into the unknown.

I have been meeting with friends in the park for picnics, strolls, and chats. Outdoors is best for many things, including getting a dose of vitamin D. So, I’m getting my allotment of both interaction with humans as well as desperately needed immunity boosting vitamins.

I’ve also been trying to say yes more, instead of staying secluded at home. So when a family friend invited us out for a day at a farm, we jumped at the chance. I wasn’t willing to carpool, but my husband was willing to rent a car to have a day out in the countryside.

The friend’s family participates in a tax program, called Furosato Noze (foo-row-saw-toe no-zay), where they pay taxes in a city they do not reside in and they are rewarded with gifts. Something like 91% of people in Japan live in major cities. So small towns struggle to survive due to a lack of tax funding for infrastructure. By creating this tax program, the country can spread the wealth a bit. Participating in the program takes a little bit of work to set it up. So, to entice people to pay their taxes in their town, incentives that are special to the region are offered. Many people chose programs that send them gifts of food. Our friend selected a program where he can take his family out to a farm eight or nine times a year to plant and harvest produce. They can invite people to go with to share their rewards, if they so desire.

We headed out early in our rental car, following the friend’s car, for the hour and a half drive. It didn’t feel long at all before we were surrounded by farmed fields and tree covered hills. We parked in a grassy area in the middle of a farm. The kids quickly disappeared toward a play area while the adults got situated and our friend registered everyone.

This farm day featured two popular fall treats - picking kiwi and pulling daikon. Although we picked kiwi just the week before, we were excited to do it again in the beautiful setting of the farm. The kiwi vines were small in quantity, but the fruit was extremely plentiful. Obviously the plant loves having the space and healthy soil of the countryside. It didn’t take long for the kids to fill the bag given to us by the farmers - the amount allotted for each family participating in the tax program.

Next, we headed over to the daikon field. Our friends had planted a row of daikon earlier in the year and now we were getting to harvest them. We were given shovels to aid in getting the long root vegetables out of the ground. Not wanting to break them, we loosened the dirt and the kids wiggled the daikon until it could be easily pulled out. We harvested 20 or so daikon and only broke one of them. These kids are professionals!

The day before our excursion, I contacted our friend to ask what we should do for lunch. We had the option of going out to eat or having a BBQ. I wanted to have a BBQ, so I called and got details because a BBQ in Japan is very different than in the US. The farm had a BBQ area where we could rent a grill for ¥1500 ($14.50USD) for the afternoon. We decided to bring yakiniku (grilled meat and vegetables) as well as yakisoba (grilled noodles with meat and vegetables). The BBQ area was very nice.

The adults settled in to cook while the kids ran up a huge hill and rode a huge roller slide back down several times. I even went on it more than once. It was so much fun.

The time spent at the farm was so much fun. The kids all had a blast and the adults had plenty of time to relax and enjoy the outdoors. What a great way to get more mileage out of your tax dollars!



*****************************************



Once home, I looked up recipes for daikon. I wanted to use the daikon, as well as yuzu that another friend brought me as a gift. I ended up making this one - which was a huge hit - based on a iheartumami.com recipe.


DAIKON WITH CHICKEN IN YUZU SAUCE

INGREDIENTS
1 lb Daikon radish
1 lb Chicken thighs, boneless and skinless
10 mushrooms, optional
1 tbsp potato starch
1.5 tbsp olive oil
2.5 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp coarse sea salt, plus more to taste
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
1.5 tbsp yuzu juice
1.5 tbsp soysauce
2 tbsp green onions, chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Slice off both ends of the daikon radish. Peel off the outer skin. Dice it to cube shape, about 1 to 1 ½ -inch cubes.
2. Dice the chicken to 1 ½ -inch bite sizes.
3. Slice off the bottom end of the mushrooms and break them to pieces, if using.
4. In a small bowl, make a slurry with starch and 1 tbsp water.
5. Preheat a large stir-fry pan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the oil, chicken, ginger, and 1 tsp salt. Sauté for about 3 minutes.
6. Add stock, daikon radish, and mushrooms. Make sure the radish cubes are in contact with the liquid. Cover with a lid and bring it to boil, about 3-4 minutes.
7. Then lower the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the daikon turns soft and can easily be poked through with a fork or chopstick. The color will turn from pale to translucent. Stir the pot periodically to ensure even cooking.
8. Season with yuzu juice and soy sauce. Stir the slurry one more time before adding it to the pot. Gently toss for 30 seconds to thicken the sauce. Off heat, taste and add more salt, if desired.
9. Garnish with green onions. Serve warm.

Little green fruit

Growing up in the northwestern corner of the US, I never knew when kiwi season was. Apples were ripe in the fall and cherries premiered in early summer. But kiwis are rarely grown in the Pacific Northwest. As an imported fruit, they were pretty much always in the grocery store. Sometimes the fruit would be sweet, but mostly they were so sour they forced your mouth into a tight pucker.

My siblings and I always debated whether or not to eat the hairy exterior. It is edible, just an acquired texture.

Regardless if we ate the skin, kiwis always felt like a special treat. They were small enough, we didn’t have to share, and unique enough to feel luxurious.

Kiwis are a very common fruit in Japan. They are grown here both commercially and in family gardens. They are in season from October through December, ripening on vines often trellised similarly to grapes, creating lovely shade in the hot summers.

We were fortunate to be selected to join a kiwi picking outing (it was based on a lottery) and dining experience put on by the city. Over 100 people applied to join the tour, and only two groups of 15 people were selected. While excited for the whole outing, I was most excited about the harvesting. I have never picked kiwi, but I’m always ready to enjoy freshly picked fruit and vegetables.

The farmer met us at the field. He didn’t tell us any secrets to growing kiwi. He told us he grew it because he had the space. His honesty made me laugh. I think most people wouldn’t have said that.

I was surprised to learn that kiwi cannot be eaten immediately after picking. The need to rest for at least 8 days before they are ready for consumption. To quicken the process, the fruit can be put in a bag with an apple. Otherwise, it is pick and wait.

He told us to look for fruit that the sun was shining directly on it, as these would be the sweetest kiwi. The farmer had kindly placed overturned milk crates and stools throughout the field for shorter individuals to use. This allowed my son to be able to reach up and grab his fruit without a lift from mom or dad.

The kiwi picking didn’t take us very long. It was fun, but I started to wonder what I would do with all the kiwis. We would eat many of them raw, but did we pick enough that I needed a plan B? Maybe I’ll be making kiwi jam or kiwi sauce pretty soon with all the kiwi! We picked (and paid for) just shy of 2 kilograms, which is 4.4 pounds.

After picking, we walked over to the Cadenza Hotel where we would enjoy a chef prepared meal featuring the fruit of the day. This was going to be a test of our son’s fine dining etiquette. His dad had prepared him by telling him the basics of table manners in a nice establishment.

The chef came out to introduce the 3 courses. Each one had been created to feature the fruit of the day - kiwi. I’ve never had pasta with a fruit sauce and prosciutto, but I did and it was good. The chicken course was delectable, featuring a kiwi sauce, asparagus, potato gratin, and a pumpkin soup that was simply divine. The final course, a cold kiwi “soup” with sorbet in the center, was unique, but tasty.

Our son ate and ate, using the proper forks and remembering to sit up nicely. We were both so impressed with his attention span and determination to eat nicely.

When it was time for dessert, the patisserie came out to describe it. What appeared to be a huge pile of whipped cream with cookies sticking out of it, turned out to be a strongly flavored foam featuring a fair amount of alcohol. One bite, and our son quickly said he had eaten enough and didn’t want his dessert.

The kiwis are hiding under all the foam.

Now we head home with a huge bag of freshly picked kiwis. The waiting has begun to eat some really fresh kiwi. I hope we found all the sweet ones and not the super sour ones!

My heart belongs to miso

There are certain flavors that just scream Japanese food. Miso is at the top of that list. It is probably the second most consumed ingredient in Japan, after rice. (This is my opinion. I do not have facts to back this up.) Miso soup is consumed as part of a healthy breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It does not discriminate based on the hour of the day.

Besides soup, miso is also used as an ingredient in some dishes. For example, miso pork is one of my favorites. Just mix miso and sugar to taste. Then marinate the pork chops or thinly sliced pork for up to a couple hours (sometimes I freeze the meat this way, so it marinates as it thaws). Cook in a hot skillet and serve.

Almost 2 years ago, I was fortunate to join a miso making class. It was so much fun and gave me the confidence to make miso at home. Since then, I’ve successfully made it by myself. This is, in my opinion, a true accomplishment because it takes MONTHS from start to finish. So, although easy to make, it is still scary not knowing if it will turn out or not.

Since taking the class, I’ve wanted to go visit the instructor’s miso company. It is a family business, currently operated by the 7th generation of the same family! In addition to this, they are the only company that makes miso in Tokyo prefecture. On top of these amazing facts, the miso is so delicious. My family enjoys it very much.

My husband recently took a day off of work to just spend the day together. We didn’t have any plans, just to hang out. Looking outside and seeing the weather was super nice, we decided to go for a ride. Always wanting a destination, he decided we should finally go to the shop. We both expressed a desire to see them making the miso, but knew it probably wasn’t in the cards.

After arriving, we found a table sitting in front of the building with a menu of miso for sale. We selected the miso we wanted and proceeded to chat with the owners. After a while, my husband asked about tours. They said we needed to pre-register, but they offered tours on Wednesday and Thursdays. He then signed me up for a tour two days later. Our son would be in school and he would be working, but I was available.

I arrived right at 9 am that Wednesday, eager to see how they made huge amounts of miso. I didn’t know what to expect, but I was still rearing to go. I was the only guest that morning, which meant I could ask as many questions as I wanted!

At first, my host showed me around the old building, pointing out the huge cauldrons used for boiling soybeans, the stacks and stacks of carefully weighed koji and salt, and the enormous grinder.

I was really intrigued by the koji room, where they allow the rice to ferment (it is actually a fungus) in small stacked trays. They use the traditional method of stacking trays with lots of space between them in a temperature and humidity controlled room (similar to a cheese cave). They let me enter the small room, which felt like such an honor. The koji room is the heart of the miso making process. Without it, there is no miso. After all, miso is made with three ingredients: soybeans, koji, and salt.

They were making white miso that day, meaning they were both boiling and steaming soybeans in a two part process to fully cook the beans. I learned that red miso is made from only steaming the beans - otherwise it is the exact same process.

I was a little nervous seeing such a huge pressure cooker doing it’s duty of steaming the beans, but it was also thrilling. When they were done, the owner’s son released the pressure. Steam came screaming out of the top just like my InstaPot, but much, much louder. The hot, moist air raced to the ceiling and escaped through open vents in the ceiling. I smiled as I thought of all the steam that has vacated the premises in the same route for generation after generation.

Once the pot was opened, they dumped the beans into a large cooling container. I got to help move the beans around with a paddle in front of big fans. It was fun to be a part of the finely choreographed dance that was taking place. While another woman and I cooled the beans, two guys were busy moving a second batch of beans from the boiler (cauldron) to the steamer/pressure cooker. Soon, the owner came out and rinsed the grinder with boiling water.

Then, the real dance began. I stood back as an observer, not wanting to get in the way of the seamless flow of motion.

One person weighed the beans. Another person added a bit of water. A third person put the beans in the grinder. Once the beans were all weighed, the first person left that station and started to put the ground beans into a mixer with koji and salt.  They also tossed in a scoop full of finished miso, as it helps jumpstart the fermenting process.  I will be trying this in future attempts at miso making.  Soon, the second (water) person joined them at the mixer.

After a bit of mixing a trap door near the bottom of the mixer was opened. A small amount of miso was let out and put back into the mixer on the top to ensure it was thoroughly mixed. They then filled buckets with the product and hauled to a huge storage tank in another room.

I didn't get to see the final part, but it was explained to me. Once all the miso has been put into this tank for fermenting, they would don special boots to stomp it down, similar to stomping grapes to make wine. It will then ferment for several months before it is ready to be packaged and sold.

I was so impressed with how everyone worked together, doing their part and constantly changing jobs in order to move everything along in the process.

My visit gave me insight into a much beloved part of Japanese cuisine. But instead of satiating me, it left me hungry for more! I loved participating in making this special ingredient. I want to go back again and again. Heck, I'd love to do an internship there!

Since the tour, I have been making so much miso soup. My husband and son are thrilled to eat it almost daily for breakfast and dinner! It never gets old because I use different vegetables every time.