this and that

McD's came out with a Mcflurry with kinokonoyama & takenoko no sato mixed in

Since we don't go to McD's...I recreated it...

I wanted the vanilla soft serve from Family Mart, but they only had the strawberry version...

We used hazelnut spread and also just used kinokonoyama because that is the one we like more.

It had been awhile since we had kinokonoyama...I would make this again.

Tokyo People...the laziest cleaning dude...he picks up rubbish then walks over to the next apartment building next door to the one he is supposed to be cleaning and throws the rubbish into their sewer grate!

So if they get flooding the next time we actually have heavy rain you know who to blame...

Tokyo People...firefighters bicycling to work.

1450 calories...this plate at Denny's had everything!

Hamburger, bacon, cheese, fries, avocado, french toast, pancakes and an egg!

I had actually wanted to try their pancake tower but decided that for 2200 yen, I should get something with more “nutrients” besides carbs (pancakes & fruits)

Satoshi had their club house sandwich which was 900-something calories!

Takoyaki sauce is not the same as Okonomiyaki sauce...but if you are like me, you didn't think they were different...apparently takoyaki is sweeter

Leave it to Satoshi to know, when he ate the sauce he could tell it was takoyaki sauce...

Thank goodness this takoyaki sauce is smaller, after we use this one, I’ll get okonomiyaki sauce online since I cannot find the one I like at the store

Hijiki simmering liquid turned into nikujaga

Robai at the Ikegami Baien...we usually go to the baien when the ume are blooming, so it was nice to see all the robai blooming instead

the ume just starting to bloom...Ikegami Baien

Tokyo Furry People...keeping warm

scrambled egg topped with the last of the hijiki...love eating hijiki/kinpira like this.

shrinkflation...the corn dogs at the convenience store are getting smaller as well as the squeeze thingy they give with the catsup & mustard in

nikujaga turned into curry...

supposed to warm up a little next week and then go back to cold after that

have a safe weekend

viral

There was a viral “cheesecake” that everyone was making which apparently started in Japan

All you needed was greek yogurt and your favorite cookies 

Stick the cookies into the yogurt then put it into the refrigerator for 4 hours to overnight

I used my favorite greek yogurt & found a teeny package of biscoff

And we tried it

The cookies get mushy and replicates the “crust”

The tartness from the yogurt replicates “cheesecake”

It was fun to try something different

Would I make it again? probably not but I’m glad I tried it

hijiki

Finally got around to making the hijiki we bought in Mie

The expiry date was a couple years past, whoops

Anyway…

Soak the whole thing in water for about an hour, to bring it back to “life”

The hijiki in Mie is different from the type I usually see because their version is l-o-n-g and a little thick

After it is reconstituted, rinse several times to make sure there is no sand, set aside

Prepare the other “stuff”

Pour over hot water over the aburaage to take off some of the oil, then cut into bite sized pieces

I had thought to grate carrots but ended up slicing them thin then into sticks because my grater seemed to make the carrots a little too thin

Heat a pan with a tablespoon of oil and sauté the hijiki, aburaage and carrots

Add 2.5 cups of dashi (stock), bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes

Turn down heat to medium then add

4.5 tablespoons sugar

3.75 tablespoons shoyu

2.5 tablespoons mirin

Put an oshibuta (drop lid) on and cook for at least 20 minutes

NOTES: the directions didn’t really say how long it should be cooked, just until tender

I noticed other recipes online that said to cook until all the liquid evaporates, but decided to just cook everything for at least 20 minutes so that the mirin could burn off

we ate this (twice) over rice...I hope to use the last of it to top tamagoyaki (rolled omelette)

overall it was pretty easy to make...I want to use up the simmering liquid and am thinking to make nikujaga with it.

hey

Sorry it has been quiet here.

Satoshi caught something and then I caught it

lots of runny noses, coughing & icky phlegm

You may have heard, the other Friday our train lines (JR & Keikyu) were affected by a power outage

Luckily Satoshi was not on the train when it happened

Not only were the trains packed, but they couldn’t open the windows, nor call for help!

Lots of people were feeling woozy when they were finally rescued

You should’ve seen the crowds in the train stations as well as the areas around the train stations

The lines for taxis were long, long, long! 

I felt bad for all the tourists that had to be somewhere, since it took over 8 hours to fix 

And then there is a cold wave sending mountains of snow especially to the Japan Sea side of Honshu

The cold wave is supposed to be for a week! or more?!

Tokyo unfortunately is just dry and fahreezing, would’ve at least been nice to see flurries

Anyway, hope to be up posting again soon, appreciate everyone that checked in on us

asakusa

Over the weekend the temps went up, up, up...I think they were saying April?!

There were some things we wanted to see in Asakusa, so we headed out

Stumbled on this ukulele maker...they have been in business since 1919, but were only record player makers back then, they started making ukuleles in 1955...still cool!
 

We wanted to see Yasaki Inari Shrine because they have 100 colored drawings of shogun and their horses...especially since the lunar sign this year is the Year of the Horse.

Apparently this shrine was built to protect Tokyo’s Sanjusangendo

Unfortunately Tokyo’s Sanjusangendo which was located near Monzen Nakacho was destroyed in 1872

These panels were cool to see

FYI: shoes must be removed to enter this building AND socks/stockings must be worn…no bare feet!

Lunch was at Monburan, which is known for their hamburg

After putting your name on the waiting list, look over the menu and order, the wait staff will call in your order so that when you finally get seated (maybe a half an hour or so after that), your meal should come out pretty quick.

I chose their hamburg stew with half rice

it doesn't look like it but there is a ton of noodles at the bottom

the sauce is a rich demi glace

The hamburg is so moist and tender, I enjoyed this

Satoshi chose their ebi fry curry...he said he enjoyed it (no photo)

After lunch we walked around so I could show Satoshi where the Edo Kiriko class was held at and the tabi shoes that A bought.

We then walked along a big street to try Suzukien's matcha gelato, which was on my “to try” list

Choose between 1 to 7 for the potency of the matcha gelato, 1 being the least potent

They also have other flavors like hojicha, black sesame and other seasonal flavors too

Satoshi chose the 1 and 7....I chose 7 and black sesame

7 is so potent! but delicious. I enjoyed the black sesame too!

After all that eating we walked back to JR Ueno to catch the train home.

With the warm weather, it was nice to be out and about.

Monburan

1-8-6 Asakusa

Taito, Tokyo

Closed Wednesdays

Hours: 11:00-21:30

Suzukien

3-4-3 Asakusa

Taito, Tokyo

Hours: 11:00-17:00

this and that

Mother Nature has been having fun...we've been having many large-ish earthquakes lately...keeping us all on our toes I guess...stay safe everyone!
 

Yoshinoya's thick sliced kakuni...melt in your mouth!

You seriously do not teeth to eat this...ha!

I wish the green onions were a little "wilted" than just thrown onto the hot plate before serving...the chili crisp was totally unnecessary for me.

I also wish this entree was sold on its own instead of having to be ordered as a teishoku (set)...didn't need the miso soup and it was given to Satoshi, who ordered a gyudon...

My favorite supermarket does not make ono inarizushi (cone sushi)...this tasted like it was missing an ingredient AND it wasn't "juicy"

Since it seems wasteful and it doesn't work making another batch of pickles,  I have been wondering what I could use the used chikin mu brine for.

So I added a little shoyu and cooked chicken and veggies in it.

A little salty but it was similar to shoyu chicken.

I am thinking by adding a "watery" veggie like daikon, it might balance things out...will keep you posted.

Been enjoying the egg salad sandwich from Vie de France.

They sell the sandwich in halves and the bread is so soft! not dried out like some of the conbini sandwiches can be

Satoshi bought some Tochiaika strawberries for our anniversary. 

These orbs are huge! about the size of a golf ball...these were sweet

I made chocolate covered strawberries with Benihoppe.

This was a little tart

If you have dried persimmon, make a slit, take out seeds and add some cream cheese, so good with wine!

Have a safe weekend

thanks for today

Friend Val was visiting with her friend J

On Saturday, we checked out Shibuya

Not having been to Shibuya for some time, I didn’t know that everything opens at 11!

Luckily Donki is open 24 hours so we hung out and shopped there until everything else opened up.

We also checked out the Jump store in Parco and Tower Records 

Lunch was at Miyashita Park’s food court's Pizza Slice.

Their pizzas are on display in the showcase, tell them what you want and they'll heat it up

The crust is so crisp!

Satoshi and I shared this mushroom slice and a slice of their supreme type...I enjoyed the mushroom one more

J bought her lunch at VegeGo...bibimbap, it looked ono but took so long for her to get her order!

After lunch it was more shopping at Akihabara and even more shopping at Yaesu Underground Shopping Arcade

Yesterday, we checked out Akasaka Aono that has been in business for over 120 years, since 1899

They are known for their Akasaka mochi, a soft warabi mochi with walnuts in it and is covered with LOTS of kinako

It is also strawberry season, so we also tried their ichigo daifuku

Both were so ono!

There is also Azabu Aono, which has been in business a little longer than Akasaka Aono, I hope to check out their sweets soon.

It was nice meeting J and catching up with Val.

They head back to Hawaii tomorrow and I hope they enjoyed their stay.

Thanks for today Val & J

Pizza Slice

Miyashita Park South 3F

Shibuya, Tokyo

Hours: 11:00-22:00

Akasaka Aono : Akasaka Mitsuke shop

3-1-11 Akasaka

Minato, Tokyo

Hours: 9:30-19:00 (Mondays-Fridays), 9:30-18:00 (Saturdays), 10:00-17:00 (Sundays & Holidays)