tokyo food file

Kansha lunch at Itosho in Azabu-Juban

My chat with Elizabeth Andoh about her latest book, Kansha, took place at Itosho, the peaceful little shojin ryori restaurant in Azabu-Juban. There was only enough space on the page for a brief review, and just the skimpiest of photos. So here is the visual rundown of our lunch there a couple of weeks ago...

The opening tray...

• winter persimmon and mitsuba herb in a goma-ae dressing

• black beans in a light syrup

 • daikon namasu: fine julienned daikon and carrot, salted and left overnight, served with aemono of tofu blended with ground walnut

 

"Ineffable suimono clear soup, containing a single chestnut dango dumpling and decorated with swirling fronds of hime-negi scallions as fine as baby chives, and gently perfumed with fragrant yuzu."

 

Chef Ito’s signature dish, his shojin-age. Morsels of vegetable — nasu eggplant, shiitake, shishito green pepper, carrot, yurine (lily bulb) — and tofu deep-fried with a frosting of of tiny “pebbles” made of rice flour.

"Eaten with just a little dab of salt, the flavors are simple but profound, just like the principles of shojin ryori itself."

 

We were the only customers that day, and owner-chef Hiroharu Ito had time to serve us himself.

  

 

• kuri no shibukawa — a whole chestnut, garnished with sazanka leaves

 • edible chrysanthemum petals and spinach leaf

• oniku-modoshi (a.k.a seitan) — wheat gluten prepared to gently mimic the look/taste of meat

 

"A hearty bowl of soba noodles topped with smooth, slithery grated tororo yam..."

 

"Nasu no mizore, deep-fried eggplants covered with a pure white layer of grated daikon, symbolizing the snows of winter, splashed with the colors of fine-chopped scallions and piquant orange-red togarashi peppers."

 

To close: the shokuji course comprised kuri-gohan (rice with chestnuts), pickles and an excellent, savory misoshiru — Chef Ito makes his dashi in the classic shojin way, using kombu with Rishiri kombu, dried shiitake mushrooms and kanpyo gourd.

And finally — not so much as an afterthought, more a parting gesture, a couple of fat winter strawberries.

[no photos of these last courses, as I was too deep in conversation with Elizabeth]

 

In the spirit of kansha cooking, you are invited to take your chopsticks home with you…

"In this peaceful traditional setting — tatami mats, wooden beams, pillars and shoji screens, a kakijutsu scroll in the tokonoma alcove — life slows down. You have time to contemplate your meal, the ingredients, the ceramics they are served on, the gracious hospitality. Time for appreciation. Time for kansha."

 

Here's a map link...

breakfast of champions

 

Okayu is a wonderful way to start the day. Think of it as Japan's own homegrown rice-based version of steaming hot porridge – except that it's always eaten — as otameal porridge would be by true traditional Scottish highlanders — as a savory dish: no effete sugar or milk sullies this rice.

Some mornings I eat it on its own — well, usually there's a bowl of miso-shiru lurking nearby — simply adorned with an umeboshi or perhaps some tsukudani. Other times I liven it up with a fried egg, soft-cooked so the molten golden yolk mixes into the creamy rice, often seasoned with a dash of nam plaa. Or there may be some greens to add from the previous night's dinner.

The best okayu is always what you prepare yourself, cooking the rice down until it reaches that magic stage where the starch suddenly transforms from firm individual grains to creamy-smooth porridge. We like to make ours from genmai — cooked left-over rice works well in a hurry — with the germ and some of the bran intact, giving an extra edge of texture and a warmer yellowy hue.

Today, although the umeboshi was home-grown/pickled, I saved time on the okayu by opening up a pre-cooked pack, something I'd picked up at a store a while back. It was only when i inspected the carton that I realised this came from (or at least was branded by) Eiheiji, the ancient Zen monastery in Fukui Pref. that is the spiritual home of shoji ryori, the elaborate Buddhist vegetarian cuisine – and thus one of the cornerstones of traditional Japanese cuisine. Better known to most Japanese, though, it Eiheiji's hardcore spartan approach to attaining spiritual enlightenment – including the meagre rations of thin okayu that are doled out for breakfast.

As I said, what better way to start the day than a breakfast of spiritual champions?