カテゴリー: cooking

 These days I hardly see the pear “Twentieth Century” in a supermarket

Now it’s twenty-first century. But when I was a kid, it was twentieth century. Interestingly enough, there was one kind of pears whose name was “Nijyusseiki”. This “Nijyusseiki” means “Twentieth Century（二十世紀）”. When I was a kid, I had eaten that pear quite often, because it was a major pear in Japan. But recent years, it is very rare to see the “Twentieth Century” on the shelves in supermarkets. According to a book that I bought recently, the percentages of planting areas are as follows : 幸水(Kousui) 40%, 豊水(Housui) 27%, 新高(Niitaka) 9%, 二十世紀(Nijyusseiki) 9%*. In my impression, those major pears like Kousui and Housui are sweeter than Nijyusseiki. I think that is the reason why Nijyusseiki is no longer a major pear in the supermarkets in Japan.

There is a small corner in the supermarket where I go once in two days. The corner sells products coming through the more direct supply route from farmers. I found that the pear “Twentieth Century” was being sold by 500 JPY in that corner. There were four in one package. It was rare and I just wanted to taste what I ate in my childhood again. I bought one package.

Oh, by the way, I really want you to know that a grilled fish must be placed with its head towards LEFT. It is one of the very basics of Japanese cuisine. However, you see in the above photo, the fish’s head facing right. It is natural to place the grilled fish with its belly in front, and its back in the back. So, this type of flounder (鰈：カレイ) is put on a dish so that it would face right. Otherwise, the fish would be up-side-down. In the other type of flounder (平目：ヒラメ) is put on a dish facing left like other fishes.

*伴野潔ほか、”農学基礎シリーズ 果樹園芸学の基礎”, 一般社団法人 農村漁村文化協会, 2013.10.25, p24, 図2-II-3

I found Two Roses blooming in my Garden. What a Peaceful Autumn Day

I worked in my garden in the morning hours, went to a supermarket for shopping in the afternoon, practiced piano at 4p.m., and cooked supper. Now today is going to end.

White flower of climbing rose

This rose’s name is “Princesse de Monaco”

Persimmons on the tree are getting color

What I bought today. I have already eaten the horse mackerels by grilling

Oh, by the way, I wrapped one persimmon three days ago in order to get rid of bitterness. I didn’t expect, but it had turned to be soft. If I had waited some days more, it would have melted. So, I have already eaten it just before. It was not good. Soft but not sweet. I guess that is because the persimmon was not ripened well. I will try again to remove bitterness of persimmons with fully yellow one.

Cooking from Scratch

I cook for me and my old mother every day. What I always try in my cooking is to avoid a processed food and to cook from the scratch. I go to a supermarket frequently and always buy food that is natural ingredients. I need to buy vegetables, fruits, fishes, egg, meat, and so on. luckily enough, I don’t need to buy green vegetables recently, because I can get them from my garden.

Daikon Leaves that I got from my Garden

Daikon leaves eventually become too hard to chew. So, it is important to use young leaves by thinning in early stage of their growing

I cook, because my mother can no longer cook, though it is still okay for her to boil water with a kettle, and to wash the dishes. Old people gradually lose their functions in daily life. It is more obvious in the case of dementia. The important thing is to let them do what they can do by using their remaining functions. My mother still has one important function, that is shopping. She can go to a supermarket and a convenience store nearby (, though she uses cash).

Salad that my mother bought today from a convenience store.

Going shopping by herself is basically good, however, here’s another problem. She buys what she wants to eat like oily food and/or processed food which her son is trying to avoid. When she comes back home, she shows me what she bought. And I always see those unhealthy foods. I wonder what is inside salad which says its expiry is the morning of the day after tomorrow. I feel the taste of chemical preservatives whenever eating a such salad.

A lot of chemicals are being used in the processed food

It seems that most people like the taste of processed food of convenience stores. But I don’t like them. For me, taste of those foods is just of chemical seasonings. Therefore, I cook by myself from the scratch with natural ingredients.

A single fruit of Persimmon, if it falls into the Earth

I found that a persimmon fell onto the ground in my garden this morning. Since its color was not orange but pale yellow, the fruit had not ripened enough yet. Although I was going to throw it at first, but changed my mind and decided to remove bitterness. I am expecting that I will be able to get some 20-30 fruits of persimmon within a month. Even though it’s just one persimmon, I thought it could be a practice of removing bitterness from persimmons.

Persimmon and strong alcohol (must be more than 40%)

Soak the stem part in alcohol.

Put into plastic bags and tightly seal them (I used three bags)

Let me wait for ten days. I will post about if it has become sweet or not.

Shiso seeds pickled in soy sauce

Shiso is a plant that is often used in Japanese food. We like its color and flavor. There are two types with purple and green leaves. I don’t grow them, but purple and green Shiso are in my garden as weeds. Today, I picked up some seeds and pickled them with soy sauce.

Green Shiso, it’s just a weed in my garden

Shiso Seeds with stems. It is easy to take them off from the stem using your fingers.

I poured Soy sauce into the Bottle

Soy sauce is too much. But I can use this extra soy sauce for seasoning of other food

By the way, the following is an episode when my grandma on father’s side died. She was a mother of five sons. After the funeral, people shared her relics. To do that, sons’ wives took what they wanted in the order from the first son, second, third, fourth, and fifth. My father was the third son. When my mother’s turn came, the first son’s wife and the second son’s wife had already taken valuable relics. Only “Shiso seeds pickled in soy sauce” remained there. So, my mother took it. I don’t know what the fourth and fifth wives got, but anyway, shiso seeds are not valuable stuff at all.

I confirmed this episode at the supper tonight. My mother said that she has a different personality from the first and second sons’ wives, so she didn’t care at all.

Today I made it. I will wait two or three days to make the taste better. Surely I will eat it putting on a white and hot rice.

40-Minute Walk under Cloudy Sky in Sunday Afternoon

The Left Peak is 1012 meter and the Right Peak is 1293 meter in Altitude

A Path on the River Bank

The Machine was left on the Ground, Probably because of Weekend

Gun-Hunting is Prohibited in this Area by Niigata Prefecture

Muddy Water in the River. Rainy days has continued Recently.

Rice Fields and Gozu Mountains

A Rice Field whose Rice has already been Harvested.

A view from the Bridge.

Learning how to teach after quitting the job as a teacher

Today, in the morning, I worked in my field. When it comes to growing vegetables in this autumn season, there is not much thing remaining. But I still have one thing to do. That is to plant onion’s seedlings and garlic’s bulbs. In order to plant them, I need to make one more ridge in the field. It will be five meter long; three meters for onions and two meters for garlic. What is tough is to get rid of roots of weeds from the place for the ridge and furrow. Since the place had been untouched for two years, now weeds’ roots in the ground are like spaghetti.

I worked in the field from 8 to 9:30 am. and then I got shower. From 10, I was watching a DVD that is about teaching Japanese as a second language. Actually, I had brought those DVD with me to the campus during the years I was teaching in a university. Watching the DVD today, I regret that I should have watched while I was teaching in the university. There are a lot of tips for teachers to teach a foreign language. For example, there is a concept of MMC for beginner’s level; the first M is mechanical training, the second M stands for meaningful training, and C for communicative activities. Did I do that? Usually, I didn’t extend my teaching to communicative activities. And there was no clear distinction between mechanical and meaningful trainings in my teaching. I would like to improve my teaching skill, but I don’t see any chance to apply improvements to my teaching in the future. I have already retired from the job as a Japanese teacher.

I had planned to go shopping in the afternoon. But it was hot like 34 Celsius degrees. So, I didn’t go to a supermarket, but continued to watch the DVD about teaching Japanese in the afternoon. I practiced my piano from 4 to 5 pm, cooked a supper from 5, had the supper at 6:30, and then I went shopping. I got back home at 8 pm, and started writing this.

What I Bought Tonight

A Little Excursion to a Town of Next Railway Station

Two-car Local Train on Shin’etsu Line

DIY store is called as “Home Center” in Japan. I just wanted to buy some items in a Home Center in the town next to my village. In this afternoon, I got on a local train.

The Train crossed a River

Tangerine Tree Seedlings

I saw a lot of fruit trees were being sold in a store. Though I went to three stores in the town, I didn’t buy anything. I don’t know why. Something in my mind prevented me from buying commodities. I went back to the station, got on a train, and got to my home at around 3 pm.

Vending machine on a platform of the station

I didn’t buy even one bottle of soft drink.

Walking along Rice Fields in Niigata Plain in Early September

The mountain is Kakuda-yama whose altitude is 482 meters.

As the rice grows, the top becomes downward due to the weight.

People always say that Japan is small. But I think the Niigata Plain is very wide area.

Red cockscombs are blooming by the Rice field. Farmers like to plant flowers at the spare area.

The train has only 2 cars, because it is a local train in rural area.

My Residence in the Campus; I had left there in July

I can’t get things in the past back. Most of the memory is just in my head. Some are still vivid, some have disappeared already. But here are some digital photos which I took in September 2019. I just upload them, because I haven’t been outside today due to rain nor took any photos.

Residence for International Students and Foreign Teachers

Living Room

Kitchen

Washing Machine and Bathroom

Bed room

Office

Though I hadn’t lived there for three and a half years because of the Pandemic, the rooms were mine for six years. While I was a Japanese company employee, I had moved so many times from city to city with interval of two to three years. So, six years in one place is a long experience in my life.

I think I was privileged because there was an air-conditioner in my bed room. We had many hot days in June and July. But unfortunately, there is no air-conditioner in the rooms of student’s dormitory. I feel sorry about that.