Category: Food

Birthday Day

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2, 1/125 sec, ISO3200
 “Birthday Dinner” Cedar Park, 2019

Today was my 51st birthday, and it was relaxing and fun! In the morning, I had some relax time as Mariko and our guests went out to visit some breweries. I thought about going as well, but I decided to take care of some things at home and enjoy some alone-time. Which included cutting and tying up a lot of cardboard from the massive boxes that Koa’s marimba shipped in. Fun! And after that I tried a new taco place nearby, then met everyone at the high school football stadium to watch the marching bands perform in the UIL contest. It was cool and I think our guest from out-of-town enjoyed the Texas high school marching band experience.

Later that evening, we went to a nearby Mexican restaurant, Jardin Corona, for a yummy dinner. I really like their carnitas, so it was my birthday dinner of choice. 😊 One of our guests lives in London, and another in Tokyo, and they don’t get Mexican food very often so I thought they might enjoy it. To complement the food, we had Texas beer (Shiner), Mexican beer (Negra Modelo), and margaritas. A truly satisfying meal!

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2, 1/125 sec, ISO2500
 “Carnitas Enchiladas” Cedar Park, 2019

I hope you had a nice day!

またね～

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/6.4, 1/900 sec, ISO200
 “Vista Ridge Ranger Band” Leander, 2019

Guests In Town

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 19mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO1000
 “Guests” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

For the next few days, we’re playing host to a group of friends who are also fermentation experts. I don’t understand it too much, but they specialize in koji, which is like the starter for saké, and are teaching some fermenation/cooking classes around Austin, and attending the Austin Fermentation Festival. It’s really great that they also prepared an amazing dinner for us. 😊 It was super-delicious!

I’m looking forward to the rest of their visit very much, and I hope they enjoy their sightseeing around town as well.

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/100 sec, ISO800
 “Chef” Cedar Park, 2019

またね～

Sushi Request

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/17 sec, ISO3200
 “Fancy Sushi” Austin, 2019

Bay is visiting us for the long weekend, and he had three dinner requests: Carbonara, karaage, and Komé (our favorite Japanese restaurant). We tend to order our favorites, which for me includes saba and ankimo. When I first started eating sushi in my early 20s, I’d always get maguro and California roll, but I rarely eat those any more. Sometimes I will have some maguro sashimi, but never nigiri. Tastes change and that’s part of the fun – I wonder what will be my favorite sushi ten years from now…

Pumpkin Spice Season

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Photo info: motorola moto g(6), 3.95mm, f/1.8, 1/30 sec, ISO285
 “Wall of Pumpkin Spice” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Good news if you like all things Pumpkin spice – the season is in full-swing! I was at my local supermarket and noticed they have a wall of Autumn-flavored “foods”. It’s interesting to see how food-designers and marketers up their game year-over-year to take advantage of the pumpkin-spice craze to sell their goods. Alas, I myself only like pumpkin pie and salted pumpkin seeds (and will drink a pumpkin beer if offered) so I am not tempted by the Pumpkin Spice Wall. 🎃 I suppose that’s good for my wallet.

またね～

Curry Time

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO1600
 “Pork Curry” Cedar Park, 2019

Tonight we had Japanese curry カレーライス, made with pork. But what made it special was that this recipe is a favorite of Mariko’s friend, and includes plenty of fresh puréed apples. The sweetness tasted great, but I had to add a Serrano pepper (not pictured) from the garden to my curry to bring up the heat level to my liking. 🌶️ 🔥 😄

Now that the weather is changing, it’s time for our favorite Japanese cool-weather foods: curry, oden, and nabé. Those are good anytime, but especially welcome in the colder months.

またね～