B-kyu Gurume: Tebasaki Karaage from Nagoya

Nagoya is famous for many types of street foods, including hitsumabushi (grilled eel on rice) and various udon and flat noodles, as well as a delicious fried chicken dish called Tebasaki Karaage.

If you’re familiar with Japanese dishes, you might be familiar with a version of karaage that is bite-sized pieces of marinated chicken. Tebasaki karaage however, uses the whole chicken wing, bone and all, and each piece is deep-fried before a sweet, sticky glaze finishes off the dish. Tebasaki translates to “wingtips”, which refers to the cut and the name of the dish. If you love chicken wings, this Japanese style of the famous dish satisfies that same meaty craving.

The dish is said to have originated in the 1960’s at the restaurant bar “Furaibo” when there was a shortage of the usual karaage meat, and wings were offered instead. Believe it or not, the wings were originally discarded as livestock feed, but this happy accident turned the dish into a fan-favorite at many eateries across Nagoya, as well as all over Japan.

Each wing is deep fried without batter and coated in a sweet and salty sauce. Even though the dish is not breaded and has no formal crust, the wings are usually double dipped into the fryer and the skin fries to a crisp. Once coated, it is finished with spices and sesame seeds resulting in a crispy and juicy dish.  Sounds delicious right?

The sauce is similar to a teriyaki sauce, but flavored with ginger and garlic. This mixture is simmered until it is rich and sticky to coat the deep-fried chicken. It is recommended to dip the chicken wings as soon as they are removed from the hot oil. This method allows the sauce to caramelize without making the wing soggy.

The wings retain their crisp for a half hour, and many people will fry the chicken once and wait for the second deep-fry until they are closer to eating the meal. Serve with a cold beer, cabbage leaves, veggies, cucumbers, or celery sticks.

If you’re looking to make this dish at home, check out this video from No Recipes:

Where You Can Find Tebasaki Karaage

  • Furaibo: considered to be the creators of this dish
  • Torikai Sohonke Meieki Minami Branch: This branch uses one of the top kinds of chicken in Japan and a unique red wine-based sauce.
  • Sekai no Yamachan: Known for being heavily seasoned and for their large portions

Let us know if you try any of these restaurants or make this dish at home by tagging Zojirushi on your photos with #zojirushi on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram!

B-kyu Gurume: Sobameshi from Hyogo

Image link: https://www.chopstickchronicles.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Sobameshi-11.jpg

When you think of street food in Japan, you probably think of noodles or fried rice. But, have you ever heard of Sobameshi?  Sobameshi derives from the words for both noodles and rice: yakisoba and yakimeshi – coming together to make the ultimate street food, comfort dish.

This delicious meal is said to have originated in Hyogo in 1957, when a customer brought cold rice from their lunch box to a shop and asked the owner to heat it up for him. The owner then added the rice to the soba dish that was in the middle of being prepared, and voilà! This shop is believed to be Aomori located in Nagata ward, Kobe City, which is still serving their delicious creation to this date.

Another story suggests that the dish was invented by women factory workers, who mixed the rice and noodles they brought for lunch with sauces on grills at okonomiyaki restaurants close to their work.

Whatever the origin, the dish has become a fan favorite across the country. The main ingredients? Rice, noodles, and beef – with many variations available at each establishment.

The meal is generally prepared by placing a bowl of rice on top of the grill, along with a pile of noodles. Next, there is a sweet and salty mixture of meat, some cabbage, and then a delicious sauce. All ingredients are chopped and grilled. The dish is finished with more sauce that was used to cook the dish, and sometimes other sauces are offered as options (from mild to spicy, depending on your taste preferences).

Sobameshi is often considered to be a must-eat when visiting Kobe, renowned as the most famous cheap-and-easy local dish in a town known for its many gourmet dishes. You can find the dish at okonomiyaki restaurants or grill-it-yourself (or grilled live in front of you) dine-ins. Dining in this type of eatery is often a social affair, where regulars and new patrons sit at the counter and socialize while they enjoy their meals. In front of the guests is a large griddle where everything is cooked and served. It’s a sight to watch the ingredients being chopped and prepared in front of you, and an enjoyable scene to see the community of people enjoy their meal together.

If you’re looking to make the dish at home, take a look at this easy-to-follow recipe on YouTube, with English and Japanese subtitles:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZV_hdjy87A

Where You Can Find Sobameshi

  • Aomori: Considered to be the creators of this dish.
  • Kobe Entrecote (Teppanyaki): Menu available in English, where sobameshi is available as a side to the fine tenderloin steaks they’re known for.
  • Nagata Tank Suji: Known for their sobameshi, which features many sauce options to pair with and top the dish.

Let us know if you try any of these restaurants, or make this dish at home by tagging Zojirushi on your photos with #zojirushi on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram!

B-kyu Gurume: Kanazawa Curry from Kanazawa, Ishikawa

 

 

Curry in Japan vs Kanazawa Curry

Curry in Japan is widely considered as a comfort food.  It’s occasionally spicy and full of flavor, and served with rice and meat. In Kanazawa, the curry is a unique experience.

Kanazawa Curry is different from most curries because of its thick texture. It is gooey and made with caramel, has a dark brown color, and is often enjoyed with a fork or spork. This Kanazawa Curry style

 can be dated to the 1950s as a specialty in western-style restaurants in Japan. This means the dish is relatively new in terms of the history of the country, but it actually didn’t catch widespread popularity until around 2005, when the restaurant chain, Champion Curry, featured the dish in their establishment.

How Kanazawa Curry Is Served

This curry is standardly served with rice and katsu, a breaded cutlet, with sauce on top and shredded cabbage on the side. Some restaurants allow you to add additional cutlets, boiled eggs, fried shrimp, sausages, scrambled eggs, cream croquettes, and more. The meal is served on stainless dishes, because the curry is heavy and needs a strong base to be served on.

Where You Can Find Kanazawa Curry

According to Food in Japan, the best places to grab this dish when you’re visiting the region would be:

  • Champion Curry: Considered the forefathers of the dish, they have several varieties of the curry. You order on a vending machine outside the restaurant and then bring your paid ticket to the shop and order with the team that’s working in the store.
  • Go-Go Curry: Another chain that contributed to Kanazawa’s regional popularity. While this restaurant’s curry is slightly spicier than other chains, they have a kid’s version that is milder.
  • Gold Curry: This restaurant features a curry that’s uniquely sweet and focuses on using local ingredients.

Make Kanazawa Curry at Home

Curious on how Kanazawa Curry tastes?  Try it out for yourself in the comfort of your own home with this ingredient list:

  • Olive oil
  • Onions
  • Garlic
  • Ginger
  • Black honey
  • Water
  • Chutney Paste
  • Tomato Puree
  • Garam Masala
  • Cumin
  • Curry Powder
  • Curry Roux
  • Bouquet Garni

You’ll also need to make plain white rice, have a breaded cutlet, and some shredded cabbage when assembling the dish.

Here are some of our favorite recipes to make the roux at home: Travel Monitor | Cook Pad

Let us know if you try any of these restaurants, or make this dish at home by tagging Zojirushi on your photos with #zojirushi on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram!

 

 

 

B-kyu Gurume: Kushikatsu from Shinsekai, Osaka

(source: Just One Cookbook)

Have you ever tried Kushikatsu?  Kushikatsu, also known as Kushiage, is a famous and delicious Japanese dish of deep-fried meat and vegetables served on a skewer. In fact, kushi actually refers to the bamboo skewers used to assemble this dish and katsu refers to the deep-fried cutlets.

The dish is most commonly made with chicken, pork, seafood and a variety of seasonal vegetables. The ingredients are dipped in egg and flour, and breaded with panko then deep-fried to be golden brown.

Kushikatsu is said to have originated in downtown Osaka in Shinsekai in 1929, and was primarily made for blue-collar workers. The skewers made the dish a fast food of sorts and were both inexpensive and filling for the locals of the region. While skewers are popular across Japan, the Osaka region’s Kushiage is particular in a few ways.

First, they offer one type of ingredient per skewer, whereas other regions might interchange their meats with vegetables, or place more than one type of meat per skewer. Secondly, the Shinsekai skewers are generally a bit smaller than other regions, because it is customary to order several for each meal. Lastly, in Osaka, the skewers are served standalone and are usually dipped in a shared pot of sauce before eating, to thinly coat the skewer (double-dipping is strictly prohibited). Other regions are known to instead serve the skewers with ginger, sauces, or other meats on the side of the skewer.

Some places in Japan offer Kushikatsu as a fondue-style meal, where you dip and prepare your own skewers at the table. If that sounds fun to you and you are ready to make this famous dish at home, here is a great video with the recipe for you to learn the ropes.

If you’re visiting Osaka and are looking for the best places to find Kushikatsu, give these a try!

  • Daruma Shinsekai Sohonten is known as one of the most popular places to grab Kushikatsu in Osaka. There are 14 of these across the region, so it will be easy for you to access on your trip.
  • Ueshima is located in Amemura, and they have no menu or price listed. The master chef will prepare the freshest ingredients they were able to find for the guests. When you are full, make sure to inform them!  It is advised to tell the chef your budget in advance if that might be a concern, so he knows how to keep the experience in your budget.
  • Rokkakutei Kuromon Honten is a more high-end Kushikatsu restaurant, with one-Michelin star. Similar to Ueshima there is no menu or price, and the day’s freshest ingredients are featured in the meal.

Let us know if you try (or make) any of these dishes by tagging Zojirushi on your photos with #zojirushiamerica on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram!

 

B-kyu Gurume: Okinawa Soba from Okinawa, Japan

Welcome to our last summer B-Kyu Gurume blog post of the year, Zo fans!  Today, we’re going to introduce you to Okinawa Soba.

Okinawa is Japan’s southernmost prefecture, comprised of 160 islands, and the name of the largest island in the geographical collection. If you’re planning a visit to Japan in the future, you definitely want to try and visit this subtropical climate known for its white sand, magnificent beaches, undersea life and tropical jungles. After snorkeling amongst an amazing array of coral, we recommend ending your day by grabbing a delicious bowl of Okinawa Soba.

In this region, there is a saying that translates as, “One who eats plain food is healthy”. Fun fact: Okinawa’s residents live to be some of the oldest people in the world! One of the reasons for this is their tendency to consume low-calorie, high carbohydrate food such as the soba they are so famous for. Japanese soba is made with buckwheat flour while Okinawan soba is made with wheat flour. The flat, broad and wavy noodles are paired with an assortment of proteins, such as tofu, pork, and/or vegetables, all served in a flavorful broth topped with green onions, fish cakes, fish paste, pickled ginger, and egg.

The first recorded mention of the dish was in 1902, but it was not popularized until the 1960s. What might have once been considered street food is now enjoyed across all classes and in all communities of the city, served in a traditional pot and eaten with chopsticks. Okinawa Soba is ultimate Japanese soul food, a noodle soup packed with umami goodness.

If you’re curious on how you might be able to make this famous dish at home, here is a great recipe for you to learn the ropes:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3gjNdnRSAs&feature=emb_title

And if you’re visiting Japan, here are three places where you can eat Okinawa Soba when you’re in town:

  • Doraemon is a five-minute walk from the Kenchomae station’s monorail. They have a hint of dashi broth and are known for simple and authentic soba.
  • Shuri Horikawa is famous for their elegant presentation, which is a departure from what people think of when they think of this comfort food. The noodles are cooked right after they are ordered, so they take a little longer to make than other establishments but are said to be worth the wait.
  • Yanbaru Soba is about fifteen minutes from Okinawa’s famous Churaumi Aquarium. Their exterior is incredibly plain with no frills, but there is generally a line to experience their famous dish.

Let us know if you try (or make) any of these dishes by tagging Zojirushi on your photos with #zojirushiamerica on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram!