Somewhat similar to negi, nira Garlic chives or Chinese chives are quite pungent, garlicky, and are added mainly to ohitashi or used in itamemono stir fries. They also make an excellent dressing. Nira are generally perceived to be ingredients in Korean cuisine, and indeed some Korean food stores here […]
Negi spring onion or Welsh onion is very widely used, primarily as a nabemono or soup ingredient, or as sarashinegi an addition to tsuyu dipping sauces for noodles. In Kanto only the white part of the the shironegi or naganegi is used. Negi from Tokyo’s Nerima ward has a long […]
Napa or Na leafy greens are cultivated leaf vegetables that fulfill similar roles to the likes of lettuce, spinach, cabbage, chard, kale, chicory and so forth in Western kitchens. They have similar, or even superior, health-giving qualities to their Western cousins. In Japanese cuisine they are primarily used in o-hitashi […]
Watercress sushi leafy greensMizuna aka Kyo-na, pot herb mustard, mibuna a variety of wild mustard and itona are all furry-leafed greens used in soups, aemono, and nabemono. They lose their taste if overheated. Kuresson water cress is generally used as a garnish and to add a peppery bite to soups […]
Hakusai Chinese cabbage, literally the ‘white vegetable’ is the big daddy of Japan’s leafy greens, and is used much as cabbage in the west. It is a winter vegetable, best eaten between November and February. Added fresh from the field to a simple but good dashi stock with tofu and […]
Nori, the Dried Seaweed That’s Delicious in Any Form Despite its rather unassuming deportment, nori (dried seaweed) is an essential component of many Japanese dishes, including makizushi (sushi rolls) and onigiri (rice balls). Its relatively nondescript appearance belies an impressive variety of flavors and styles which can be used in […]
What’s the word with this Bean Curd? Not that long ago tofu was oft- maligned in Western countries, largely as a result of the plastic-wrapped, porridge-like goo that was passed off in its name in health-food stores in the 70’s. Now tofu bean-curd is firmly on the world’s stage as […]
Japan boasts a huge variety of nasu eggplants. The Kyoyasai (Kyoto specialty vegetable) Kamo nasu is roundish, with firm flesh, great cooked as dengaku, that is to say,topped with miso paste. They are still cultivated today, as they have been for centuries, in the Kamigamo area in the North of […]
Leafy greens Komatsuna mustard spinach used in nabemono, o-hitashi, and even in fried itamemono. It gets its name from Komatsugawa, Tokyo, where it was originally harvested in the early Edo period. Mostly picked in winter, it is used in o-zoni at Kanto’s New Year celebrations. It is primarily cultivated in […]