Japanese Hot Pots: Comforting One-Pot Meals Review

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(More customer reviews)After living in Japan for three years, I was pining for something Japanese besides sushi. This book more than fills that need. It is beautifully laid out with lots of photos and easy-to-follow directions. The authors recognize that some of the ingredients and tools for these recipes could be difficult to find, so not only do they give suitable substitutes, they also provide websites of vendors who carry the unique items. There are plenty of sidebars offering explanations of why some things are done a certain way, including the right way to slice cabbage and why hot pot ingredients are added in a particular order. Another thing I love about a cookbook is when I can learn something about the dish, along with getting the recipe. I enjoy learning the origin of the recipe and/or why it's unique to a certain region. EVERY RECIPE has a story to go with it and many have serving options along with suggested side dishes.
Japanese hot pot meals are very family-oriented. In a Japanese home, the hot pot meal is cooked right at the dining table using a portable butane stove. Everyone just digs in or cooks their own favorites in the broth. Although a portable butane stove isn't something commonly found in an American home, it is easy enough to find either here at Amazon.com or at an oriental market. I have two of them, and they have been real lifesavers at pot lucks and during power outages. It's like taking my gas range with me, no matter where I go. So if you decide to invest in the butane stove, know that you will use it for more than the hot pot meals!!

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Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go Review

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(More customer reviews)I run two food blogs, one focused mainly on Japanese cooking, the other just on bento lunches. (I'm Japanese but live outside of Japan.) I finally got around to taking a look at this book.
The pros: it's a nice visual introduction to fairly traditional bento lunch boxes. (Keep in mind that 'bento' can be something other than a portable lunch.) The presentation is very attractive.
The cons: even as someone familiar with the ingredients and cooking methods I thought that this book looked rather intimidating, because just about every single recipe calls for ingredients that are only available from Japanese groceries. Actually quite a lot of the recipes call for ingredientat that would be very hard to get outside of Japan. Clearly this is a translation of a Japanese bento book, and no consideration is given at all to how available certain ingredients may be or not. (This is something I always try to keep in mind on my sites.)
The presentation feels just a bit outdated to me. Current bento books in Japan have a much simpler, modern feel. The instructions are also rather abbreviated, as if the intended audience is the fairly experienced Japanese cook (which it probably was when it was written originally).
So, I think for most people who don't live in Japan this would be a nice picture book to have around, perhaps as inspiration and eye candy, but perhaps not too useful for everyday lunch making for a typical American.


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This book offers an elegant way to enjoy delicious, healthy food on the run.Includes more than 40 main dish recipes and step-by-step illustrations.

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Nagatanien Instant Miso Soup Sampler - Aka Red & Awasa Mix Miso (3 Flavors) - 2x10 Servings Review

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(More customer reviews)One of my favorites, you could consider it too. Available in a lower sodium content for those who prefer, this is a 'show stopper' for the mid-morning snack, for the very light lunch, for whenever you'd prefer a bowl of soup.
This requires no equipment, no special machines, no special Japanese bowl, in fact you can make it out of the 'hot' side of the water cooler in a little less than the time it takes to get it back to your desk. This is perfect for what it is, a variant of "Dashi No Moto" ... I have purchased this several times, always from the same people, never had any problem, always quick delivery.
Order today so you don't run out ;-) Whether you're Diabetic, carb counting, caloie watching, whatever this is the single best soup for a next to no impact.

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