Hachikari Cooking School will renew its programming and reopen with more options for classes in the Spring of 2010.
One of our team members is on maternity leave until the Spring of 2010. In the meantime, we are putting ideas together to come up with wider class options. We are currently taking comments and suggestions to better our service. The blog postings will continue to be updated so please stay tuned!
Hachikari Cooking School team
2009/12/02
2009/06/06
What about those Chopsticks?
The use of wooden disposable chopsticks that are the subject of much scrutiny by environmentalists is based on the Japanese' great appreciation for the present and the passing of time. Disposable wooden chopsticks always accompany Kaiseki cuisine, which is the meal served during the traditional tea ceremony. This symbolizes the ephemeral nature of each moment and the appreciation that arises from knowing that this moment will never happen again. By expressing the fleeting nature of each moment, both the guests and the host may appreciate the unique moment in time that they are sharing together. In preparation for a formal tea ceremony, the host will go out and choose the branches from a tree and whittle them into their appropriate shapes himself. There are 4 styles of chopsticks used during Tea Kaiseki - Nakabushi, Motobushi, Ryoboso, and Sugibashi. Each style is distinguished according to the course and the type of dishes served. Nakabushi is used for grilled fish and hasun, which is equivalent to small shared plates much like tapas. Motobushi is used for shisakana, which are simple snacks that accompany alcohol. Ryoboso chopsticks are tapered at both ends and are used to serve many of the courses of the tea ceremony - such as the azukebachi (much like a tagine servingware used to serve simmered seafood and vegetables), shisakana, and pickles. Sugibashi is shorter and thinner than the rest, which made them perfect to serve condiments and smaller dishes.
2009/04/24
Hanami, bento box, the past, and the present
Spring is the season for hanami with sakura viewing festivities being the most popular past-time for the Japanese. The fleeting beauty of the sakuras have been the subject of countless poems and haikus.
「見渡せば、柳桜をこきまぜて都ぞ春の錦なりける」is translated,
"As one looks out, the Yanagi and Sakura are like a scenery painted on a Nishiki cloth."
Sakuras symbolize dazzling yet momentary beauty for they only bloom for 2 weeks. Often accompanied with sakura viewing is a picnic of bento boxes and endless supply of alcohol. This tradition of bento boxes for hanami viewing dates back to to the Momoyama period when simply arranged grilled, simmered, and boiled fish and vegetables accompanied by rice were served in wooden lacquered boxes. Bentos first originated to ease hunger, then became more elaborate as Japan became more prosperous. Makunouchi Bento became popular in the Edo Period as they were enjoyed by Kabuki goers in between Maku (sets). One of the most recent and widely popular is the Shokado Bento. Created in the Showa Era by Yuki Teiichi, the founder of Osaka's Kicho for a tea ceremony, it is a bento box divided with 4 quadrants, with each fitted with a single portion ceramic plate. IBM's Thinkpad laptop design was created out of the bento box.
「見渡せば、柳桜をこきまぜて都ぞ春の錦なりける」is translated,
"As one looks out, the Yanagi and Sakura are like a scenery painted on a Nishiki cloth."
Sakuras symbolize dazzling yet momentary beauty for they only bloom for 2 weeks. Often accompanied with sakura viewing is a picnic of bento boxes and endless supply of alcohol. This tradition of bento boxes for hanami viewing dates back to to the Momoyama period when simply arranged grilled, simmered, and boiled fish and vegetables accompanied by rice were served in wooden lacquered boxes. Bentos first originated to ease hunger, then became more elaborate as Japan became more prosperous. Makunouchi Bento became popular in the Edo Period as they were enjoyed by Kabuki goers in between Maku (sets). One of the most recent and widely popular is the Shokado Bento. Created in the Showa Era by Yuki Teiichi, the founder of Osaka's Kicho for a tea ceremony, it is a bento box divided with 4 quadrants, with each fitted with a single portion ceramic plate. IBM's Thinkpad laptop design was created out of the bento box.
