Tai Meshi Chidori: Sea Bream Rice is a Wonderful Japanese Dish

Tai Meshi is rice that has been cooked with sea bream. Although there are many types of fish available in Japan, tai or sea bream is the most often used for this dish. The mild taste and the leanness of the fish make it perfect to be slow cooked with Japanese short-grained rice. Jinenjo Tororo to Tai Meshi Chidori is a restaurant in Mozo Mall in Nagoya where one can try this delicate dish. Jinenjo tororo (grated mountain yam) is also a specialty of this restaurant but I was after the tai meshi this time.

The ladies set meal (1580 yen) came with a choice of 4 types of tai meshi, a choice of main dish, miso soup, Japanese pickles, a roast beef salad and a small dessert. I chose the simple salt seasoned tai meshi and the shio koji (fermented rice) marinated chicken.

The rice was so simple but flavourful with the sea bream after mixing it. It wasn't fishy or oily at all, it turns out sea bream is the perfect fish to add to rice. The chicken was almost like ham with the salted fermented rice marinade, but the shio koji added some depth and umami. The thick slices of roast beef gave volume to the salad and made this small looking meal rather filling.

It was a busy restaurant but the tables are spaced apart so it doesn't feel crowded at all. The food came out quickly. Overall I was happy with the meal and would like to go back to try the other types of tai meshi.

Area: 6-min walk from Kami Otai Station (上小田井駅), North exit (北口）
Restaurant: Jinenjo Tororo to Tai Meshi Chidori 自然薯とろろと鯛めしちどり
Website and Info: https://enso.ne.jp/chidori/mozo/
Hours: 11am-10pm (LO 9:15pm)

Kit Kat: Cheesecake Flavour

I came across another convenience store Kit Kat flavour at 7-Eleven, and this time it was cheesecake!
It was sweet like white chocolate is, and had just a hint of cheese. I'd say it was more of a chocolate mixed with a rare cheesecake which is milder in cheesiness.

Yakiniku Ran: For a Very Satisfying and Affordable Steak Lunch

Not all yakiniku, or Korean BBQ restaurants are open for lunch so it's interesting to see what's on the menu for lunches. At Yakiniku Ran there's only one option for menu, teppan grilled steak. You can choose the weight though, 100g (1000 yen), 150g (1500 yen) or 200g (about 2000 yen). For lunch the chef grills it for you and it is brought to your table in a hot skillet along with sides of potato salad, napolitan (Japanese ketchup pasta), and veggies. Being Nagoya, where napolitan is often served in a hot skillet with egg poured underneath, here too, egg was added into the hot cast iron skillet. Lastly, rice and a clear broth soup with wakame seaweed was also included. 

The meat definitely was wagyu (a Japanese breed of cow), and was so soft you wouldn't need a knife. You can use chopsticks and bite into the large thick pieces of meat. Once you sink your teeth in, the juice just succulently bursts out into the mouth. 

Area: West side of Nagoya Station, 3-min walk southeast of Kamejima Station 亀島駅
Restaurant: Yakiniku Ran 焼肉欄
Map and Info: https://tabelog.com/aichi/A2301/A230101/23002384/

Gari-Gari Kun: Rich Salt Chinsuko Cookie Popsicle

 Gari-Gari Kun has come out with another interesting flavour. This ice cream popsicle actually a cross between ice cream and kakigori (shaved ice dessert). Chinsuko is a cookie coming from Okinawa, made from just flour, sugar and lard. Sometimes salt is added for accent and is called Shio Chinsuko. This Gari-Gari Kun uses chunks of shio chinsuko and there is a hint of caramel in the ice cream. It might seem a bit similar to cookie dough ice cream, but less creamy since it is more like kakigori.

Tirol Chocolate Flavour #23: Shiro Noir (2020 Version)

 23. Shiro Noir (2020 Version)

Shiro Noir is the signature dessert found at the Nagoya-based chain cafe, Komeda Kissaten. It's a danish pastry topped with soft ice cream and served with a sweet syrup that you can pour over whenever and however much you like. Tirol collaborated with them a while ago but this is the 2020 version, bigger and sold individually.

Flavours: White chocolate, butterscotch, flakey cookie

Although it's supposed to be a maple syrup, I thought the overall flavour was of butterscotch! This one had bits of those cigar or roll cookies in it so there's also a crunch and strong flavour from that as well. The white chocolate bottom gives the essence of soft ice cream. I honestly can't remember if this was any different from last year's version, but it was bigger for sure, allowing for a bigger flavour burst!

Oden, a Japanese Homecooking Favourite

 Oden is a favourite dish in Japan when winter comes along. It can be found in restaurants, convenience stores and in home kitchens when the weather starts to cool after Fall sets in. Items such as fish cakes, beef tendon, thick slices of daikon, konnyaku, fried tofu bags filled with mochi and hard boiled eggs are simmered for hours in a flavourful broth. The long cooking process makes the contents absorb all the flavours right down to the centre, makes the fish cakes burst with juicy broth, and the beef tendon so soft you don't need teeth to eat it. 

Tirol Chocolate Flavour #22: Milk 30th Anniversary Limited Edition

 22. Milk 30th Anniversary Limited Edition (2020)

The regular Milk flavour was first sold in 1990, so to honor that Tirol Chocolates has come up with a limited edition version.

Flavours: milk chocolate, cream

The original Milk has an outer layer completely made of milk chocolate, while the inside is a rich milk flavour. This limited edition version has a white chocolate layer on the bottom so it has an overall even creamier feel in addition to being possibly slightly sweeter.

Canules: The Latest Patisserie Trend in Japan

One of the pastries that I've found has made a quiet appearance but is quite trendy now in Japan is the canule. It's a French pastry made with lots of egg yolks, so it's almost like a bread pudding.

Canules always seem to have the same shape, like a tall mini bundt cake.

Here's a canule I recently bought from a patisserie called Amanda Sweets Gallery near Honjin Station in Nagoya. 

The outside layer was quite thick with a nice chewy texture and even a little crispy. It tasted almost like pudding, I guess due to all the eggs used in the batter, and it had a very prominent rum flavour...yum!

Some of the other pastries:

Roll Cake

Apple rare cheesecake

Area: Honjin Station (Higashiyama line) 本陣駅（東山線）
Shop: Amanda Sweets Gallery
Website: https://www.amandasweets.com
Hours: 10am-7pm, closed Wed and every 1st and 3rd Thurs of the month

Summer Trendy Item: Handy Fan

Summer is almost over and Autumn is creeping in, but one trendy item that got me through summer is the "Handy Fan". This is a portable fan, rechargeable with a USB cord. It's small enough to fit in a purse, has 2 or 3 fan speed settings, and this particular one has a blue LED light for when it's dark. You'll see many people walking around in Japan with these electric fans instead of using the traditional folding fan nowadays. It's actually much more cooling than expending energy with the folding fan!

Banana Juice, the Next Trend in Drinks?

 The past couple of years have seen the surge of "tapioca tea", or bubble tea in Japan. Perhaps not as popular but still trendy is the banana juice. The most basic ones being just a blend of real banana and milk. Since they can be so easily made, you can see them on menus of many cafes as well, but one thing that confirms their trendiness is the emerge of banana juice specialty shops. These places search for the sweetest bananas and most suitable ingredients for their drinks. 

Just recently a new specialty banana cafe has opened in Nagoya called Banana O-Koku バナナ王国, 0-koku meaning kingdom. The menu consists of banana juice with a choice of milk, almond milk, amazake (a fermented rice drink), soy milk and banana mixed with other fruits such as berry. Food items include banana curry, banana pie, banana waffle, cheesecake, pancakes and fried banana.

This is the banana juice made with almond milk. If you like almonds, this one might be for you as the flavour of almonds is very prominent. I think next time I'll go for the regular milk so the milk isn't clashing with the banana.

Before opening in the morning

Area: a couple blocks east of Honjin Station, 本陣駅（東山線)
Shop: Banana O-Koku バナナ王国
Map and Info: https://jouhou.nagoya/banana-oukoku/
Hours: 11am-6pm, closed Mondays

Tirol Chocolate Flavour #21: Cream Soda

 21. Cream Soda (2020)

When I think of cream soda I think of a very sweet soda drink. This new Tirol Chocolate is not only successful in recreating the sweetness, it also gives you a soda feel! Keep reading to see what I mean.

Flavours: watermelon, white chocolate

For some reason, the flavour that came to mind was watermelon rather than the cream soda that I am used to. I have not had cream soda in Japan since I'm not such a big pop drinker, but perhaps this is what it is like here. The most impressive part of this chocolate is the layer of pop rocks that explode in the mouth. It was really smart of Tirol to use this. So that's what I meant by having a soda feel!

More Kit Kats in Japan

In my previous post about Kit Kats in Japan I mentioned that the interesting flavours are hard to find without having to buy a large package, but I've found a couple more loose Kit Kats sold in the convenience store lately.

The first is a lemon flavour. It is sweet and lemony with a accents of slight sourness and salt. The tanginess and the salt to bring out the sweetness make it actually quite nice. 

The second find was a hojicha, or a roasted green tea flavour. I found this one goes exceptionally well with the characteristic wafer of a Kit Kat. The package says this is an "adult's chocolate", meaning it is not as sweet as the regular ones, and this is perfect to bring out the toastiness of hojicha. 

Tirol Chocolate Flavour #20: Vanilla Soft Cream

20. Vanilla Soft Cream (2020)

Who doesn't like a scoop of vanilla soft ice cream? Although it's not cold, Tirol Chocolate made the perfect flavour to remind you of a hot summer day.

Flavours: cigar cookies, cream, vanilla

The overall flavour I got was that of those delicate and buttery cigar cookies, or I guess they may be called rolled wafers as well. This must have come from the feuilletine flakes (French pastry crunch), that were on the ingredient list. It's strange that vanilla was not on this list, but I assume it was part of the flakes. The chocolate was creamy and felt like melted ice cream on the tongue.

Yoshinoya For a Traditional Japanese Breakfast

 There are two types of breakfast in Japan, the Western one involving bread and the traditional one involving rice. For me I find it easier to stick a piece of bread in the toaster, cut up some fruit and scoop out some yogurt into a cup in the mornings. I do however enjoy the Japanese breakfast, usually when I stay over at a hotel. 

Did you know the famous, widespread chain, Yoshinoya, famous for their gyu-don (beef bowls) serve up a very affordable Japanese breakfast? They open quite early for those that have to get to work early, and the breakfast menu is available until 11am. Items on the menu include salmon, mackerel, salad, a small bowl of their simmered beef, natto, ham and eggs. All of their set meals include rice and miso soup. It's a simple breakfast that at a hotel would cost you a bit, but Yoshinoya is also known for their very affordable prices, so you could eat a full breakfast for only 338-548 yen!

Here I ordered the salmon, natto and natto breakfast (538 yen) and swapped the miso soup with asari jiru (miso soup with clams) for an extra 93 yen. This particular branch also had a side of jako oroshi (small Japanese sardines with grated daikon). Although nothing really stands out besides the volume and price, it sure was a satisfying breakfast of champs.

Tirol Chocolate Flavour #19: Sesame Biscuit

19. Sesame Biscuit (2020)

I'm not sure if I've ever had a sesame biscuit before but this Tirol Chocolate makes me want to have one! Sesame really does work in sweets...

Flavours: white chocolate, sesame, cookie

The outer white chocolate layer has a creamy sesame flavour, while the inside is crunchy with real roasted sesame and bits of biscuit. This might be the healthiest of the Tirol chocolates with a lower calorie count and the health benefits of sesame!

Japanese Snacks Made From Sandwich Bread Crust!

Have you ever noticed how sandwiches in Japan often have their crusts cut off? Ever thought that it was a waste of food? Well here’s one use for them. Rusk is a popular snack food that many bakeries and confectioneries sell. It’s basically bread that has been toasted with lots of butter and sugar.

Lunch Pack is a popular sandwich made by the Yamazaki company and is sold in any grocery or convenience store. The two slices of bread are fused together with some sort of filling and the crusts are always cut off. The company obviously didn’t want those crusts to go to waste; they found a perfectly good use for them in their rusk snacks! Crusts are great to use for rusk because you really get that toasty flavour. The one pictured here is french toast flavour, but it also comes in chocolate, peanut, matcha and honey. 

French toast flavour

Sandwich bread crust rusk