My Saturday started with the big cleaning job since I had some friends visiting in the evening. Feb 2 is the national day that celebrates the birthday of well-known poet Runeberg. It's a national day but doesn't bring us a holiday... After the clearning, I went out for grocery shopping then found several national flags in every building along the street. Yes, it was the day that everyone eats the Runeberg tarte - Runebergintorttu. I heard of it and saw it in everywhere. It has been sold siince a month ago, like selling Valentine chocolate. I am not crazy for sweets so haven't tried yet, but I should try before they stop selling it.
最近はあまり寒くないので、というより私が寒さに慣れたおかげか？マーケットまで歩くようにしている。このルーネベリさんのおかげで、雪が解けて汚れたシャーベットとかちかちアイスに覆われた道を踏みしめて歩きながら改めて思ったことがあります。それは日本のお祝いごとや季節にまつわる食文化の深さと豊かさだ。１月のおせち料理に始まり、年中通して何かある。２月３月は豆やあられも登場し、お赤飯や鯛のお頭で祝うことも数えれば、いつだって理由をつけて特別料理や食材を調達しそれを楽しむ。同じ祝い事でも、日本全国場所によって調理方法や味付けが変わる。アジア各国にもそういうのはいっぱい。たしかベトナムはハノイとホーチミンシティでは使うヌックマム（魚醤）の味と数が違うと聞いたことがある。同時に旧正月のごちそうでお腹がはちきれそうになり動けなくなっているシンガポールや中国にいる友人同僚の顔が浮かんできた。パイナップルパイがなつかしい。とまあ、思い出にふけてしまったのです。去年からずっとVappuやミッドサマーにはこれという食べ物があってもよさそうなのにと思っていた。周りの人に聞くと、帰ってくる答えはアルコールの飲み物とパーティーの数が増えるというのが現実らしくクリスマスほど特別な食卓を準備するわけではないらしい。食いしん坊の私にとってはちょっと残念。
It's not super cold nowadays, or at least I got used to the cold weather, so I walk to the market at weekend. Thanks for Runeberg, I realised something important while walked on the streets covered by both dirty melting sorbet and hard rock ice. It was an appreciation on the depath and richness of Japanese seasonal and occasional food culture. Starting with new year cook called OSECHI, there are beans and rice snacks that go with festivals in Febryary and March and others follow every month. Japanese do celebrate the special occasions with red-bean sticky rice or whole snapper. Snapper's head is somehow respected. There are many reasons and occasions that are linked to special cuisine and ingredients to enjoy. Even for the same reason, it differs from region to region. This is also the case in many Asian countries. I remember my Vietnamese colleague told me that Hanoi and Ho Chi Miing City use different taste and numbers of fish sauce.I was also thinking of my friends and collleagues in Singapore and China who must be stuffed with all goodies from Chinese New Year banquets. I miss Pineapple tarte! Everyone brought the packages of their made-by-my-mam cookies to the office before/after CNY. They were quite nice. Many memories to recall... anyway I have been thinking of why Finnish don't make any special dishes for Vappu or Mid summer. Many of my Finnish friends taught me that they had special drinks and more parties. I am very curious about foods, so it was a bit disappointing.
さて前置きが長くなりましたが、友達を招いたディナーの話をします。今日は友達のリクエストに答えて、完全ジャパニーズです。去年日本から買ってきた明太子やその他諸々で九州フュージョン料理。
After long prologue, here is some dinner pictures with my friends in my place. Upon one friend's request, I made all foods completely Japanese. Used a bit of my home town ingredients from the trip in last November, so I would say Kyushu-fusion-menu.
まずは前菜。IIttalaの美しいグラスに入って明太子登場。真ん中はホタテとブロッコリーの和え物そして右にあるのがゴマ豆腐。Appetisers start with mentaiko (cod rod from my home town) in the beautiful Iittala glass. The middle one is a marinated scroll with broccoli. Black sesam tofu is on the right.
メインは水炊きといきたかったけど、もも肉ってあまり売ってないので、どうしようと考えた結果考案したのが「プルプルみぞれ鍋」。コラーゲンの摂取と根菜で体をあたためるという一石二鳥をねらった鍋メニューです。 ところで、この写真手羽先がThumb Upしているように見えません？I wanted to make my home town chieckin dish in hot pot, but it is not so easy to find the chicken thigh meat here, so I made some combined recipe from chicken wings and grated daikon (white radish). This hot pot actually serves for two common concerns of most women - dry skin and cold body. Chicken wings bring collagen and root vegetable help generate body heat.
Is it only me who sees thumb-up by chicken wing in the picture? Or should I say wing-up?
ラッキーなことに、春菊をハカニエミのアジアンショップで偶然みつけたんです。フィンランドには白菜としいたけ以外に鍋に合う野菜がなかなか売ってないので、この春菊のおかげで日本で味合うお鍋に近くなりました。（と一緒に食べた友達も思ってくれていたらいいが）
I also found the chrysanthemum greens in Hakaniemi shop. In Finland, hakusai (Chinese cabbage) and shiitake muchrooms are only ingredients I can easily find for hot pot. Adding this vegetable made so Japanese. (and I hope my friends thought so, too).
準主役はこの大吟醸。 友達が持参してくれた愛知の地酒。うまかった！二人で３合あっという間でした。Best part of this dinner actually came from this sake bottle. My friend brought for two of us (out of 5 in dinner table) who drinks. We finished all before main course finished. It is the local sake from Aichi - my friend's home town. Thanks you!
最後になりましたが、一番おもしろかった話。一人がいきなり子供のころウサギにおしりを噛まれたときの母親の話をした。そのお母さんの武勇伝もおもしろかったけど、ウサギにおしりを噛まれること自体が本当にあった話なのかということで盛り上がったのです。凶暴ウサギと呼ばれ、地域の人を巻き込んで町をあげて警戒するようにと宣伝までされたんだって。日本にいるみなさん、今年はウサギ年であちこちで目にすることもあるかもしれませんが、もしものことを考えて気をつけてくださいね。ちなみに彼女は山口県出身です。Last story for today. The most interesting story out of our conversation over dinner. One of friends started talking about the bite by rabbit and her mother's brave fight against the rabbit in her childhood. It was a nice story of her mother, but we mostly discussed whether it was a true story and how come she was bit by rabbit. She explained the whole story and ended that the rabit was called 'fierce rabbit' in her town. The insidennt involved a lot of local poeple and they had to acknoledge the whole town that theie was such a fierce rabbit. We came to believe in. In case you are wondering where it happened, she is from Yamaguchi. It is a year of rabbit, so there may be a lot of occasions you (in Japan or China) may see them. Please be careful!
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