New Claytonian Vids: Akihabara and Okonomiyaki

I have such a backlog of footage; Japan just won't stop being interesting long enough for me to catch up. These two HD videos are what I've had time to edit together recently.

In the first, I visit my favorite place in Akihabara. It's probably not that hard to guess for propa otakus.



And next up, we have a fast one of a guy making okonomiyaki en mass. The song matches quite well, I feel.

Yama Udo and Bulgur

I have never knowingly seen 山うど before, but I caught sight of some in the store last night and tried them out. It was pretty good. I cooked them like onions and mixed them with something a hippy friend gave me, called bulgur, which I never really knew before either, and made a really unique and tasty dish. Then I took a pic, so, bam:
Unfortunately, I am now out of bulgur, which is a shame considering I can actually cook it correctly.
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I may have a job blogging somewhere soon. And like get payed for it. But speaking of my websploits, here is my coverage of CGM night the third at the Probe.
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Also, someone was concerned that I don't write about myself here enough anymore. I found it kind of amusing...

I Try Sugar Natto

Not so bad. Annotation-subs are up if you don't speak Japanese!

Cute Dog Teaches Japanese Recipies

This series, besides having the obvious humorous backdrop of a French poodle teaching how to cook Japanese food, really is pretty good at teaching these recipes. I think I will try one of these tonight!

Kakiage Soba:


Temaki-zushi (watch the dog's reaction at the end!):


Bukkake Udon (just for the Google-hits "bukkake" brings ;):

There are many more vids, so I subbed to this dog. BTW, I think Ken Tanaka did the voice...

Weird foods I have eaten in the last 8 months

This is one long and straight video.

These gyouza are clean!

I never saw this promo before; I think other fans of LOST will dig it.
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The parents came to watch as classes were conducted at the elementary school yesterday. I think I came off pretty well except for the boy that started crying during the "What time is it, Mr. Wolf" game and had to be comforted by his mother.
But the highlight of my school day was, while sitting with the 2nd graders for lunch, we heard the announcement "This food is not from China." We weren't having Chinese-made gyouza, which are in the news right now for having too much pesticide in them and making people sick, but a food called Shumai (thanks for the reminder on the name Laura). Anyways, I thought it was funny.

Hunger surrounds the drop of goodness

What's on my mind, acourding to them. Check your name.

Fewd

♪It's saag it's saag... it's taste make your head a'splode!

(I thought of spicing up the post with a picture, but google image search only yeilded things that looked like poo and corpulent women)
So I took my isolation from good Indian food into my own hands and made saag, which is an indian dish not unlike curry, and accompanying naan bread to scarf it down with. I'm not all that experienced dealing with peppers though, so it turned out really hot. I mean mind-numbingly hot. I took a bite, and my next door neighbor spontaniously combusted hot.
I loves me some hot, but in my old age, I find that heart burn is becoming an issue. Anyways, tonight, I am going to try to make pumpkin saag. I'll see you in the burn ward; I'll be the guy with gauze being packed into his butt.

Edit: Japanese pumpkin saag is very good, and sweet.

Jack Sauce? What's Jack sauce?

My predecessor left a few things food-wise that well... I'm not sure what they are. So I have a refrigerator of six-month old, scary things. And despite this flash (same guys that did that badger thing), I still don't quite know what Mango Chutney is. Is this just a bachelor thing, to have strange ancient foods in your fridge, or do the ladies have stuff sitting in their fridge too?
No matter how much food I buy, it's all gone within a couple days, and I'm left with the chutney in my fridge.

Hot cocoa recipe

Hey, if Benny can post cooking things, then so can the great and humble moi. Now I know that you're probably saying, "Clay, I thought cooking was only for attractive people, much like yourself," or, "but Clay, 67% of my body is covered in burns." Too true. But this recipe is so simple, even the homely and burned can do it (consult your doctor or plastic surgeon before beginning a new diet-cooking program).
Actually, I'm not even going to post the recipe. The real purpose of this post is to inform you that the best way to stir your hot-cocoa is with chopsticks, or as my Japanese brethren call them, poison tipped darts without poison. It sounds more elegant in Japanese. Seriously, chopsticks are much better than a spoon, because they scape the chocolate off the bottom of the mug.
Bon appétit, ugly.

Of Japanese fall, pumpkin soup, and maroon orange juice

Finally, I can say it truly feels like fall in Japan. I spent most of the day sleeping in with a satisfied smile on my face. But, I soon felt the urge to be domestic. I got down to cleaning, and eating as well.
In honor of the season, I chose to make pumpkin soup. Only a few barriers stood in my way: Japan lacks pumpkins, my stove has stopped working, and I've never cooked such a thing before. Far be it for me to stop doing something once I've decided though (us absentminded people are also single minded due to the fact that we forget our plans may not work). So I ended up cooking the following together in my hotpot (still grateful to Rachel for giving me that): A mystery gourd (you know, a squash-like thing), salt, butter, finely chopped onions, and a carrot, grated daikon-style. I added a little orange juice and pulp for taste, color, and texture too. It worked! I filled my tummy with happy.
As for that orange juice, the other day I went to a coworkers house to give them chocolate-covered pistachios to thank them for stuff. He invited me in, and gave me a giant bag of Tara oranges. Then his family served me diner. So ended up coming away owing him even more, which is ironic cause I went there to settle my karmic debts with the chocolates.
So we're talking about 40 oranges. I managed to juice about half of them tonight. Tara orange juice is suprisingly ruddy in color.

Older couple selling steamed somethings outside the supermarket.
Aforementioned Karmic-debt reduction chocolates.*
Refugees from the great kitsch expulsion. My predecessors left little statues and other "cute" things in my house, and I said, "No more! I'm a minimalist!" and turned them out on their ear. We'll see if the next typhoon takes them away.

*:A sentence never before uttered on Earth, I can confidentially say.

Unpleasent dead"pan" suprise

oy. Leave it to the Japanese to put sweet bean paste in the middle of a sesame seed bun. I need to open a gaijin restaraunt and show them how pan (pan=bread in nihongo) should be done.
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The rice fields are ripe, and I think harvest is soon upon us. Then it will be time for wheat to take the rice-fields' place. Gotta have wheat if they're gonna have beer. Bread, however, will remain rare and screwed up.
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To make a prarie it take one clover and one bee
One clover, one bee, and revilry

--Emily Dickinson

Last night the walmart click (as we are soon to become known if we keep the late-night shopping up) decided to make Dr. Pepper by combinging dry ice and prune juice. Results were more bitter than we expected, but it sure was fun making it. 

here we see the cauldron/sink in which we dumped the remaining dry ice