Japanese Food! Comments, suggestions, feedback!

[kyon.haruhi.suzumiya]

Originally Posted by Tri-ring

Actually I am a moderate "nanchatte" Kansai-jin who resides on the southern part of the eastern capital.
I have been to various monjayaki shops in tsukudajima, at least the places that I have been creates the same okonomiyaki as in Osaka.
(Yeah, they use tap water instead of using Kastuo-dashin and sake to thin out the batter to enrich the flavor but the basics are the same)
I really do not know what a kanto style okonomiyaki is.(not really enthusiastic about finding out either.)

I'm from Hyogo. Between Kobe and Osaka.
Tap water!? They use tap water...? Hmm... no wonder the texture is different. I'm no purist, so it's ok, so long as they don't call it okonomiyaki.

[Mystique]

Uhh... somehow i doubt running water through a filter or taking it from a tap is gonna be an overkill difference while making okonomiyaki.
Tokyo is no diff from Osaka except perhaps in method, and local flavours.
But flour is flour, meat is meat, squid is squid and all the other trimmings you can add, i'm sure nationwide are available.
Obvious difference being the small subtleties, but Okayama, Osaka or Tokyo, all okonomiyaki tastes good to me, no matter how it's made.

Monjayaki, is something really really diff (okonomiyaki isn't that sticky for starters, lol)
So i wouldn't be so fast to shove them in the same boat.

[kyon.haruhi.suzumiya]

Originally Posted by Mystique

Uhh... somehow i doubt running water through a filter or taking it from a tap is gonna be an overkill difference while making okonomiyaki.
Tokyo is no diff from Osaka except perhaps in method, and local flavours.
But flour is flour, meat is meat, squid is squid and all the other trimmings you can add, i'm sure nationwide are available.
Obvious difference being the small subtleties, but Okayama, Osaka or Tokyo, all okonomiyaki tastes good to me, no matter how it's made.

Monjayaki, is something really really diff (okonomiyaki isn't that sticky for starters, lol)
So i wouldn't be so fast to shove them in the same boat.

As long as they retain their separate identities, it'll be fine with me.

[Vexx]

"dashi" definitely adds more flavor to the cake than "tap water" (if I understood correctly). I recommend using some kind of dashi in the batter.

[kyon.haruhi.suzumiya]

Originally Posted by Vexx

"dashi" definitely adds more flavor to the cake than "tap water" (if I understood correctly). I recommend using some kind of dashi in the batter.

I have to agree. But some unscrupulous ones use diluted dashi...

[christine_cute]

i have only eaten sushi, onigiri, noodles, momos...........they are great^^

[Spectacular_Insanity]

My favorite dish is ramen (or maybe udon). There's a japanese restaurant near my house, and it's good, but I kinda avoid the sushi because I don't trust uncooked things. But I swear, the ramen bowls they serve are WAY too much food to eat. Even the smaller sizes/portions are like twice the size of my head.

[Leviathan.5]

mmm *Yum* I wouldnt mind eating Yakisoba, Takoyaki, Ramen, Sushi, Gyoza. All of them are soo nice *Dwoolz* ITADAKIMASU.

[Solafighter]

I have eaten Ramen and miso soup in a small restaurant, recently. Was very good.

I would like to try tayaki, as well.

Hope i can find it somewhere.

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by Solafighter

I have eaten Ramen and miso soup in a small restaurant, recently. Was very good.

I would like to try tayaki, as well.

Hope i can find it somewhere.

Just a warning - you can find *packaged* taiyaki at import grocery stores. Don't bother with them, they taste terrible compared to the real thing.

Your best bet is hitting some asian/japanese festival where a live taiyaki stand is in operation - fresh taiyaki is best. If they have more than one filling available try one of each though most like the traditional sweet red bean filling.

Same goes for takoyaki (octopus "balls" - kind of like hushpuppies in design) -- they're best hot off the grill.

[Nosauz]

If your lucky and you have an asian super market they tend to have a food court that caters to asian tastes. Great place to get a taste of asia if you don't want to cook the actual food or if you don't have the time, of course its not as authentic but it gets pretty damn close. Though most of the asian supermarkets tend to cater to chinese tastes, there are some that actually have udon stalls within em.

[Hs Vi Germania]

ramen is awesome, but i dislike the too strange taste of sushi - a bit sour and spicy through (because of the wasabi??) and not really delicious

[Nosauz]

Originally Posted by Hs Vi Germania

ramen is awesome, but i dislike the too strange taste of sushi - a bit sour and spicy through (because of the wasabi??) and not really delicious

depends on the sushi you have. Sushi is really dependent on quality and freshness, where as other things can be masked in the cooking process so it really depends. Also it depends on what type of sushi you get, there is maki, nigiri or inari (there others but these are the most associated with sushi) Nigiri is my personal favorite, its usually some slice of fish/seafood sashimi style with a little wasbi on top of sushi rice. On the note taht its spicy and sour, well the rice is cooled down with rice vinegar which gives the rice a sweet and sour taste, and if its nigiri the a little wasbi is put on the back of the fish to hieghten the flavor of the fish. In maki which is typically rolled with nori(dried seaweed) only vegetables/fish/egg omelete/ are added and no seasonings are added.

[Tri-ring]

Originally Posted by Vexx

Same goes for takoyaki (octopus "balls" - kind of like hushpuppies in design) -- they're best hot off the grill.

There are some "Frozen" tokoyaki which aren't bad if you re-heat it correctly. (No the microwave IS NOT the best solution.)

If you re-heat them by deep frying them then you get a delicious out come with a crunchy exterior with a creamy interior.

[Mirakuru]

I had udon and spicy tuna rolls for dinner today... deeelicious. =9 Many of my friends can't stand raw fish, but I love it so much haha.

Ah~ I've eaten taiyaki since I was very young. I love anything with red bean too, as well as mochi! ^^ And I like ramen but I can't eat it too often anymore. I think I ate it too much when I was younger. =P

[Alchemist007]

I've had some candies, seaweed, pocky, and of course ramen. I'm vegetarian so I'll probably find it difficult when I get down to the serious food.

[Nosauz]

Originally Posted by Mirakuru

I had udon and spicy tuna rolls for dinner today... deeelicious. =9 Many of my friends can't stand raw fish, but I love it so much haha.

Ah~ I've eaten taiyaki since I was very young. I love anything with red bean too, as well as mochi! ^^ And I like ramen but I can't eat it too often anymore. I think I ate it too much when I was younger. =P

when you get to college, ramen becomes your best friend, no matter how good the cafeteria is touted to be its usually slop and ramen makes for an awesome cheap alternative

[Vexx]

Be aware that package ramen is cheap but is a mere shadow of fresh ramen from a restaurant.

I tell people to use the package ramen and throw out the spice package (too much crap in it). Get a decent selection of your own japanese spices and add proper amounts to the broth. In a pinch, yeah use the packet but you only really need about 1/3 to half of the spice contents.
Supplement the ramen with veggie bits and fishcake, sliced boiled egg, or sliced beef.

[Nosauz]

plus if you get korean/asian ramen the noodle quality is way better than say top ramen. honestly all you need for seasoning is salt, soy sauce, seasme oil if you got it, green onion, and you already have a great bowl of ramen, at leeast with asian brand ramen, the flavoring packets are at least edible and not bland like the plain over salinated chicken. But yea Ramen is soo cheap, considering when eating out is around 10 bucks a meal and dining halls are usually completely garbage, its nice to have an nice freshly cooked bowl of ramen.

[aohige]

Japanese style Tonkatsu (battered deep fried pork) Curry rice >>>>>>>>>> life of a newborn baby >>>>>>>>>>> everything else in life