i have had so many people ask me about what i am eating here and somehow i keep forgetting to share. as i was diving into my lunch today i thought about this and actually paused to take a quick picture of my lunch. this is what i eat for lunch usually five days a week. though i have tried other things this is just the easiest and there is a bit of variety in it each day, though the rice and fish remain the same. i will try to tell you a bit about my lunch (hiru gohan, which translates to mid day rice) now.
this is called a go-hyaku en saba bento or ５００￥鯖弁と。 (i can actually read that too if you can believe it. the first four characters are kanjis; yen, fish, blue, ben and the last symbol is hiragana for 'to'. yes, it is that hard to read and yes it is one of a very few things that i can read. it has to do with food, major motivation for me to learn!) so what this breaks down into meaning is that the meal costs 500 yen (around five dollars) and has saba fish as its main staple. what this is is, starting with the rice and working clockwise;
*white rice, run of the mill stuff. nothing special or fancy. it comes from a rice cooker because EVERYBODY here cooks their rice in one except me. mine broke and i just dont see the need. it has an umeboshi on top of it which is the red ball you see there. it is a very sour plum and is traditionally eaten after the meal. i think it tastes like crap and ruins the lovely taste of lunch if you eat it at all. under the ume boshi are black sesame seeds on the rice and in the bottom left corner of the rice are some yellow pickles on a little plastic sheet of grass. these daikon radish pickles and are not too tasty either and i always leave them to the side. they again are sour but the japanese really believe in eating some pickles and umeboshi after a meal as they feel it aids digestion.
*there are four different items in the square above the rice on the left side. two of them are types of komaboko, which is japanese style fish patties. these are delicious and i have yet to find a type of komaboko that i dont like. sometimes there are shredded veggies in them too and they come in all shapes and sizes. seen here is a pink/white half-moon shaped one and a brown triangular one. in this square there are also some vegetables (potato and carrot) which have been boiled in sweet dashi (fish stock). they are quite delicious also.
*next is the main event, the saba fish. it shares its square with two other items from let to right which are, tamagoyaki (japanese style omlette. yum!) and a few pea pods served tempura style (battered lightly and fried quickly. very yum.) the saba (pacific mackerel) is served next to this. i always get two small bits of fish that are prepared pan fried with soy. it is quite good and has few bones to sort through. i have managed to get to know this fish quite well and can not only tell exactally where the bones will be but can also remove sans fingers using only my chopsticks. yup, im just that good.
*under the saba is a quarter of a mikan. these are wintertime japanese fruits that taste a bit like an cross between an orange and a mandarin fruit back home. they are really easy to peel, come into season about december and are pretty cheap eats. you can still buy a bag of about six or seven of them here on the island for less than an american dollar. they grow everywhere so most eaten in naru are local. sigh. good to know that. unfortunately though their season is almost done as i can tell by the slight decline in their taste in the last few weeks. i look forward to mikan season again next year...
*and lastly there is a little heap of boiled greens, served cold with mayonaise and sesame dressing (ohitashi). the greens are usually spinach but sometimes are traditional japanese greens. sorry i dont know the names of them yet.
*wash this all down with a nice cup of genmaicha tea (green tea mixed with toasted rice) and you have hiru gohan at its finest.
i will admit today that i ordered the 500 en bento for the first time in quite awhile. i usually get the 600 en bento which as you might guess is a bit bigger (more rice and more sides). i dont know what it was that made me go with only the 500 today, but i was still quite satisfied. maybe part of me does know that summer is around the corner...
so i hope this sheds a little light on what im eating here for those of you who are wondering. i will try to snap some more lunches in the coming days and give you the lowdown. i may even try to add a few of the japanese dishes that i have been cooking up in my own kitchen. they are coming along i am happy to say though it has not been easy. that is a whole 'nother post though.
OH and by the way for anyone that does wonder what else i am up to or culture stuff here. feel free to leave a question with me about what it is you are wondering about and i will do my best to report back on it. ask anything, god knows everyone here does!
itadakimas!
*
No comments:
Post a Comment