Nihon no Tabemono I (free-form)

Welcome to the world of Japanese food. Read at your own risk (of getting extremely hungry and/or drooling on your computer). Some of the food looks more questionable, but let me assure you that if it does not taste good, I will put it on a separate post saying "what not to eat in Japan." The above picture is of a small garden placed at the back of a manju (Japanese baked sweet) shop in Okayama. Complementary tea is available to guests who wish to enjoy the quiet serenity of the garden as they eat - assuming they are not afraid of giant carp....

This is said manju, the Okayama manju (quite famous) along with fresh tea. The presentation was prepared by the grandmother in my second host family, who practices ikebana (flower arrangement). I must say, it is gorgeous, and for a second (half a second, really - which is about as long as it took me to take this picture) I hesitated to eat it.

Perhaps this is less appetizing in appearance, but it is essentially my favorite desert turned inside out. The inside is white rice, the outside a thick coating of creamy red bean paste. Note that the bean skins are visible in the bean paste - there is also a type of bean paste where the skins are removed, and it is a topic of hot debate here which is the appropriate way to prepare your red bean paste. Go figure. I'll eat it either way, so whoever loses...send me the leftovers.

Another famous Okayama food is Okanamiyaki. The Okayama version has distinct layers, including soba noodles, eggs, their famous sauce, green onions, and some other fillings (depending on your order). Mine, not surprisingly, was filled with seafood, including ebi (shrimp) and squid. The Kyoto version is distinct in that everything is mixed before grilling, making for a more solid composition of egg encrusted deliciousness. Either way, I find it delicious, but I prefer the Okayama version - again, for those who know me, I always pick apart my food, so that is most likely not surprising. The food is grilled and then placed on a grill in front of you, where it is ingeniously kept warm while you eat it bit by bit. Industrious. I want one of these in my house.

One really annoying aspect of photographing food - pictures like this, where my perfectly delicious taco (octopus) is blurry but the menu behind it crystal clear. Go ahead, read the menu. This was too small for 800 yen, but based on the other food, that is a reflection only on the expense of the raw materials. It was worth the price to try it.

Now this, my friends, is what Ramen should look like! Fish, eggs, and rice, served with a delicious soy sauce based broth. Ramen shops are all over Kyoto, and some are better than others. This one is on Higashiyoji, just left from Imadegawa. Enjoy.

And what food blog would be complete with out Om-rice, or the famous Japanese rice omelet. This one is a seafood omelet (I have also had the ketchup covered version) replete with shrimp, squid, octopus, and various things whose names I do not know. Amazing.

Japan is also famous for its dango. These are squishy balls of pounded rice that are virtually flavorless without the sweet sauce that coats them (powders and other things are also used, especially on less firm versions of the sweet like the Okayama kiwi dango). They also go in order of body parts, with the end of the stick being the head. Yes, I had this conversation with the ojisan who sold them to me, as I was the only one eating at his tiny shop at the time (there is no front door, just many red-clothed benches). Those kinds of shops are fun, incidentally, as he served me tea and we chatted as I ate. It was fun. On the other hand, I bought some larger dango on a long bus trip and made myself sick off of them (I only ate 4). The rest are currently molding in the corner of my room, so be careful not to buy more than you can eat.

To finish up with a better image than that of moldy dango, here is a waffle served at a flower shop in Kyoto. Those are apples and cream, coated with just the perfect spices to give that classic "Autumn" feeling. The waffle had a rich flavor of eggs and cream as well. Mmmm, good.
Look forward to more in the future.