Showing posts with label Baking and Confections. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baking and Confections. Show all posts

Tuesday, 3 June 2014

Chopsticks

English: Chopsticks for cooking Français : boi...
English: Chopsticks for cooking Français : bois à manger (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

You are probably well aware that in Japan rather than using knives or forks, chopsticks are the most common eating implement. How much do you really know about chopsticks?


The chopsticks お箸(Ohashi)

At the home in Japan, each family has their own chopsticks. Parents tend to use long chopsticks and children use short chopsticks. There are a variety of colors and designs in department and other stores in Japan.

Many Japanese people carry around their own set of chopsticks. By doing this they avoid having to use the cheap throw away chopsticks (waribashi) that are often supplied at bento shops. Most Japanese find chopsticks easier to use that a knife and fork.

When eating at a restaurant in Japan you will see a Chopstick rest (箸置き hashioki) on the table. If there is no chopstick rest and you need to put your chopsticks down then simple fold the wrapper your chopsticks came in, into an accordion shape and use that as the rest.

Never ever ever

  1. Lift chopstick above mouth height.
  2. Tear food apart by holding one chopstick in each hand
  3. Shake off liquid on tip of chopstick.
  4. Swing hand that is holding chopstick.
  5. Shovel food into mouth with chopsticks, with the edge of you mouth on the rice bowl
  6. Let chopsticks roam around plate while you are deciding what next to eat.
  7. Hold chopsticks with hand that is already holding dish.
  8. Put food in your mouth that is dripping.
  9. Lick cop sticks.
  10. Use chopsticks upside-down.
  11. Eat with unmatched pair of chopsticks.
  12. Tap plate with chopsticks.
  13. Pass food from one person to another using chopsticks.
  14. Use as toothpick.

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Saturday, 31 May 2014

New Updates for Blog

The main website has had a few updates and now it's time for the blog to do the same. Our current mascots Kate, Chloe and the gang are being redone by none other than Lorrainiaful!
So in the coming weeks you'll be seeing transformations such as:

into ->





so please stay tuned and look forward to these fantastic upgrades!


Friday, 4 April 2014

Miso Soup


Hello! I'm Chloe and this is my kitchen!
A bowl of miso soup
A bowl of miso soup (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Here we talk about cool Japanese foods and I even give you recipes! Today's cool Japanese food is....
Miso
 (みそ)
ヒラツメガニの味噌汁(miso soup)
ヒラツメガニの味噌汁(miso soup) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Miso Soup
Miso Soup (Photo credit: carlosj)

Miso is just one of those awesome Japanese seasonings that not everyone has heard of. It is made by fermenting soybeans with salt and a fungus known as kōjikin in Japan. Sometimes rice is included to make the delicious gloopy paste. Just add a little dashi soup stock and you have some tasty miso soup (misoshiru) on your hands! Surely the king of staple foods.

Miso is rich in vitamins and high in proteins and was even around in feudal Japan. Most of the time it has a delicious salty taste but both the taste and smell change depending on how it was fermented.
Miso has quite a lot of variety so it's worth
experimenting with.

Miso Soup
Miso Soup (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Here is a simple recipe for Miso Soup that I hope you will enjoy!
Vegetarian Friendly!

Ingredients:

4 cups water
1/3 cup miso
3 green onions (scallions), chopped
1 tbsp shredded nori or wakame seaweed
1/2 block firm silken tofu, cut into 1 inch cubes
dash soy sauce (optional)
1/2 tsp sesame oil (optional)

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Yield: Serves: 3-4

Instructions:


  1. Get a medium sized saucepan and put in you water and dashi packet (be sure to give it a good stir!).
  2. Bring it to boil on medium heat. When it boils reduce it to a simmer for approximately five minutes.
  3. Make sure you've gotten rid of that Dashi packet. Get a Tbsp. of miso and mix it in with your dashi. Kepp on doing it till all of the miso is used up.
  4. you can try adding tofu to dilute it if you like. Just cut it into neat cubes and plop it in, give it a gentle stir. You of course don't have too but it is tasty.
  5. Get some lovely soak dried wakame and put it in some water for a good ten minutes or so.
  6. While that's soaking slice up a nice green onion and serve it in a bowl with your wakame when you're ready,
  7. Put you miso soup on simmer till it heated through and then serve.
Top Tips
Kombu Dashi is the best for vegetarians.
Don't boil the miso because it ruins the taste.
Taste as you go!

I hope you enjoyed this lesson! Why don't you post a response on Smiletalk about your experience making miso soup!


Return to Classroom
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Saturday, 29 March 2014

Fred's Phrases

Hello and welcome to the classroom. This is where you can find phrases from lessons listed to date. The list keeps on growing and growing! if you have any suggestions comment below or send an email to bigonecomic@gmail.com with the subject 'Smiletalk'

Lesson 1: Greetings
Lesson 2: Phrases for Eating
Lesson 3: Kanji Crunch: Nature
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Wednesday, 19 March 2014

30 More Talking Prompts

Octopus ice cream, made in Japan.
Octopus ice cream, made in Japan. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
It's the picture of Italian ice-cream in a sho...
It's the picture of Italian ice-cream in a shop of Rome, Italy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Henley Ice Cream Henley Ice Cream is ...
English: Henley Ice Cream Henley Ice Cream is the home of the original Henley Ice Cream dating back to 1934. http://www.henleyicecream.co.uk/ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Can't think of anything to talk about?
Used all our last 30 talking prompts?
Well here are 30 more to keep you going!

Easy Topics

  1. Read a Poem you enjoy
  2. How to say sorry and the like
  3. Discuss Why You Do Something
  4. What were you doing before you logged on
  5. An Urban Legend
  6. The happiest day of your life
  7. Your favorite maxim
  8. Difference between ''your'' and ''you're'' 
  9. What are Palindromes
  10. Five item to your right and why they are there
Intermediate Topics
  1. The Last Time You Ate Out
  2. An animal you adore
  3. Count to fifty
  4. Lyrics from your favorite songs
  5. A movie you really enjoyed
  6. What makes you smile
  7. your favorite kanji
  8. describe an ice cream
  9. define the word 'the'
  10. Your favorite accessory.
Hard Topics
  1. What to do in a bar
  2. How you decide where to eat out
  3. Your religion
  4. Describe pasta
  5. 20 random facts
  6. Talk about sushi
  7. What You Find Hardest About Japanese.
  8. Favorite Japanese ghost story
  9. Differences between Japan and where you live
  10. Talk about your surname

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