“Wat is het heerlijk thuis te komen en het eten voor 10 personen staat klaar met vooraf heerlijke Japanse hapjes en een overweldigend gedekte tafel. Iedereen smulde ervan.
Nadat de visite weg was, hoefde alles alleen in kratten gezet te worden en dat werd ongewassen de volgende dag opgehaald.
De prijs meer dan waard en buiten de deur hetzelde eten is zeker 2x zo duur.” June 27, 2011 from Jan.

“I have hired Yukari to do the catering for a mixed party (ages varying between 13 and 75) of 19 people for a birthday party. The food was exquisite and there was not only plenty but also such a variation that everybody found something they liked, the styling beautiful, the service fantastic and the personallity of the cook charming and helpful. I would not only hire her again for any kind of party but I can wholeheartedly recommend anybody else to do the same.” May 20, 2011 from Jacqueline

“Yukari put on a tremendous spread at my house for a private party. The food was delicious and beautifully presented. Exceptional value for money. And Yukari even conjured me up a special fish dish without knowing I was going to ask for it. There can surely be no better service available in this category in Amsterdam or region.” May 17, 2011 from Andrew

“I met Yukari first during a birthday dinner with a friend of mine. I was so impressed with her cooking and the idea of someone cooking in your own kitchen, that I invited her to cook at my place for 13 guests. It was an absolute success. Besides the beautiful table wear, my guests loved the very original, delicious meals Yukari cooked. The whole evening was very relaxing while Yukari was cooking, serving and leaving the kitchen as she found it…. Besides the fact that Yukari is a very pleasant person, she keeps her promises, is very puntual and above all an excellent Japanese cook. Hiring Yukari to cook for you certainly will surprise your guests with plenty of delicious Japanes food for a very decent price!” December 22, 2010 from Masha

My family in Japan grows their own tea. Usually early May is the harvest time, but this year it was 2 weeks later due to the colder weather in March – May than normal. In Japan we can only pick tea leaves once a year. Fresh green tea leaves are start growing in early April, almost the same time when cherry blossom starts to bloom. Once fresh leaves are like below, it is time to harvest. It would be ideal if they are picked up by hands, but nowadays mostly done by machines.

How green tea is processed. Simply said, Steaming -> Rolling/twisting -> Drying. Green tea undergoes the least oxidation process and this steaming stops oxidation and keeps its green colour.

The important two elements to make nice green tea:

1) temperature of the hot water  - if you have a high quality tea, then please use 50degree hot water. The higher temperature water doesn’t make beautiful green colour

2) good water – if it is available in your area, please use soft water. In Amsterdam it is hard water, the taste of green tea is so different from the one in Japan. But if you want to drink good coffee, hard water is better!

It is such a luxury that I receive home-made green tea once a year and I keep them in the freezer in sealed container to keep the green colour and aroma. Our  family in Amsterdam can enjoy green tea for the rest of this year….

Presentation of the dish is important in every cuisine to create excitement and good appetite, but there is difference between Japanese cuisine and West European cuisine like French for example.  French cuisine often uses white plate (or simple color or simple form plate), which is a canvas for dishes like painting. Japanese cuisine, it is important to select right form and color and material plate for dishes!

Above was served at Sekitei in Hiroshima. Amazing ryokan and food. We have our wedding reception last year.  This dish was two type of gratin, one traditional and the other miso paste.

Starter – you can feel the spring by the look..

In summer I plan to go and visit Arita, Imari in Kyushu area and hope to “meet” wonderful plates to spice up my kitchen and give joy to our customer’s eyes too.

Everybody was shocked to see what has happened and are having difficulties accepting what is happening right at this moment. Surely everybody’s mind goes to how we can help or support. I have been thinking myself what I can do..  Beside donation, one thing I would like to do is to appreciate more what we are having and do not take them for granted.

Victims of earthquake and Tsunami have very limited access to water. In Japan we normally have plenty of water and people tend not to think about saving them. But no only the crisis time in Japan, but one of four city residents worldwide, 789 million in total, lives without access to improved sanitation facilities. Yesterday was World Water Day. I thank for having a drinkable water from the tap and do not drink bottled water. I love the phrase in twitter.  Save Water, Shower Together!

Same goes for food. It is so precise that we can eat everyday almost everything we wish for.. Knowing the fact every 6 seconds, a small child is passing away due to starvation. I scold my children when they throw food on the floor or treat food with less respect and I hope they will soon understand how luckily their circumstances are.

My favorite Japanese words before and after each meal.  Before the meal is Itadaki masu, literal meaning is “I am going to eat ” and after the meal is Gochisou sama, literal meaning is “that was a great meal”  But both expression show the appreciation how luckily we are.

But  nowadays we celebrate this day in our style. I would like to use this day to thank all my friends (especially girls) and plan something fun. On 3 March at work, I received a beautifully packed gift from my friend who was in Amsterdam during her business trip. Inside was ” rice cracker ” (“arare” in Japanese).  Thank you Izumi!!

Tomorrow I get together with two girlfriends to have a cooking sunday… Here is what I have selected to celebrate our day!  Sparkling sake with beautiful plum pink color.

Two days late, but I would love to say, Arigato to all my girlfriends.. And of course we wish our daugther’s well being.

Oh.. please do not worry,,, there is a Boys day in May.

Poor man’s Sukiyaki (we normally say, Soboro-don)

Normally we use thinly sliced & very tender beef for Sukiyaki, but you can use minced beef for this receipt.

Ingredients: (for 4 person) :   

Beef minced meat : 400g

Onion : 250g

Green beans : 50g 

Cooked rice : as much as you like!

Sugar : large table spoon 2.5

Soya sauce : large table spoon 3

Dashi (only if you have) or water : 10 – 20ml

Graded ginger (if you like) : 10g

Sunflower (soybean) oil : to bake

 How to make :  Preparation time 15 mins

1) Slice the onion 2-3mm width. Boil green beans and cut them into 3-4cm length.

2) Put 1-2 large tablespoon oil into flying pan and bake minced meat. Once the meat turns its color, add sugar and soy sauce and cook for 1-2 minutes. Then add sliced onion and cook them until onion gets soft. Add Dash (if you have) and grated ginger (if you like).

3) Serve this on top of cooked rice, with boiled green beans for nice color and crunchiness.

Itadaki masu!! Enjoy!

As the start of the new year, I review my previous year and set objectives for the new year.

My 2011 year objectives are “Professionalism” & “Communication”

Professionalism: Last November I had a chance to have lunch at Old Sluis, which was mind-blowing experience. Putting small amusée into my mouth, my tongue and brain experienced multiple tastes like you play piano. A huge shock that somebody on earth can create this level of food and I want myself to be even inch-closer this year.

Communicating: I want to share my thoughts, receipts, cultural aspects more this year… by updating this blog more and via another source.

I’ve heard from a good friend of mine that 2011 is a very good year for everybody. Let’s believe that, shall we? 

The holiday season is coming up and it is exciting!!… but also a headache?

For some time and for some people, choosing presents is easy, but for most of the time and for many people, it is not an easy job.

But do you really need another thing in the house? If you are lucky enough to live in the developed world, you have almost everything, right?

What I have been asking to my family and friends for the last couple of years on my birthday and on Christmas, is I want a gift of spending time with each other. A “Do something fun together” present!  

Some friends took me to the museum and had lunch afterwards, went to spa together and so on.  Isn’t that nice? So one of my suggestion is, why don’t you give a voucher of cooking workshop to your family or your friend?  

Or if you are looking for more exclusive present – why not a group seated dinner for 10 at your home? For example, wedding gift, 50 years birthday present etc

If you want to know more about this, please check my service page or please contact me for any suggestions.

Hope you like this idea!

Honestly speaking, I cannot drink much of alcohol, but only one exception! That is “Umeshu” （in Japanese 梅酒）-  the plum wine, which is rather sweet and refreshing drink. You can buy this product at the shop, but it is quite common to make it at home in Japan. And that is very easy.

Here is the standard receipt  – you need three things ;

1) Plum (still green but slightly ripe one) : 500g

2) Kori Zatou  (Big rock sugar) – 250-400g

3) Shochu (about alcohol 35%)  : about 700 ml 

Unripe plum, you can find here in Amsterdam and in Europe, but two others are not easy to get…. But do not worry! You can use good alternatives. For Kori zatou, , you can use honey (same amount). For Shochu, you can use whiskey, vodka, white wine, sake etc.  The only thing you have to be careful is, if you use something which alcohol % is not as hight as 35%, then you cannot keep that umeshu for a long period of time. Try to drink it within 6 months or so. If you use high alchohol % drink, then you can keep up to several years. The long you keep, the deepened the taste is, they say. 

I cannot wait to try my own Umeshu! I think mine will be ready to taste in 2-3 months..
My favorite way to drink is ON THE ROCK. Mmmmmm….

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