Trip to Australia (Gold Coast - January 2016)...Casual day

Surfers Paradise

Jason has been working so busy here in Australia. The next day of my arrival, I walked around Surfers Paradise during the day. This town is like Waikiki of Gold Coast...lots of shops and tourists.


I had lunch at Nando's which was recommended by Jason. It's a small chain in Australia and they are known for grilled chicken. I had grilled chicken breast pita sandwich with hummus and tabbouleh inside. Their hot sauce was quite addictive. Good lunch.


What?! Mos Burger in Surfers Paradise?! In fact, I learned that this popular burger chain from Japan has several outposts in Australia. I should check it out once during my stay.


I also enjoyed checking out local grocery stores such as Woolworths and Coles. Since Jason was not going to be home until very late, I did some grocery shopping and prepared simple dinner for myself in the evening. I brought Mori's Uruguay Koshihikari rice from home, so I could make rice, too. I wish I had my Kamado-san donabe rice cooker here...I had to make rice in a regular pot, but it was still good (while not as great as rice made in donabe). I could also find white miso, tofu, and shiitake mushrooms, so I made miso soup (I brought dashi tea bags from home to make dashi). I made simple pan-fried Tasmanian salmon, and it was really good.

And, of course, Aussie wine... Nice cozy evening.

Trip to Australia (Gold Coast - January 2016)...Arrival 150-day dry-aged Aussie steak!

150-day dry aged Aussie beef

My first travel of the year is Australia.

My husband, Jason, has been in Gold Coast, Australia on a project since early January and will be there until late February. So, I had a good excuse to come visit the beautiful region in down under.

After 15-hr flight from LAX to Sydney, then additional 1.5-hr flight from Sydney, I finally arrived in Brisbane. It's in the hight of summer in Australia right now, and it was very sunny and warm when I got there.

Jason sent a driver to pick me up at the airport. The driver, Eric, was waiting for me at the exit and we left the airport before noon.

Because I was so busy before I left LA and knew there was a driver coming to pick me up and take me to the hotel Jason is staying, I didn't do any research of the area at all. In fact, I thought Jason was staying in Brisbane. Then, after Eric picked me up, I found out he was taking me to Surfers Paradise in Gold Coast. It's about 1 hour drive from Brisbane. Until he told me, I didn't even know that Surfers Paradise was an actual name of the land!


In any case, I arrived in the hotel safely, and here's the view from the room!


I walked around the are a little bit. The beach is beautiful.


Organic Aussie eggs are smily.


I felt I was so welcomed here. I want to enjoy Aussie summer!


Jason texted me and said he won't be back to the hotel early enough for dinner, so I decided to check out the restaurant at the hotel. Started with beautiful Sydney oysters and Aussie sparkling wine.


Seared scallops, curried puy lentils, apple slaw.


Jacks Creed 150-day aged scotch fillet. I asked for rare and it came out perfectly. The flavor was quite extraordinary and packed with umami. Wow...I finished the whole 300 g (10 oz) piece in a short time.

Story about Nagatani-en's donabe and donabe cooking on Japan Times!

Nagatani-en, in Iga, Japan (photo by Japan Times)

Great story about donabe cooking and culture on Japan Times. This is from the trip I organized for the photoshoot for DONABE Cookbook, and the article shares the donabe dining experience with the family at Nagatani-en and also introduces my DONABE Cookbook!

Japan Times is the largest English-language newspaper in Japan and there are subscribers (including online) all over the world.

Chef's Table Dinner at Otium

Donabe feast! (Photo by Asami)

I've been so busy past weeks but I can finally post this report about the amazing dinner I had last last month.

My husband, Jason, was back home from Hawaii for 12 days during the holiday season. He was going to leave again for Australia for a couple of month in January. So, during his short stay back in LA, we just wanted to stay in the city and enjoy home cooking and local dining.

Our friends, Asami & Steve, were also back in LA for a short time (they live in Nagoya, Japan now), so we got together to have dinner at Otium, in Downtown LA. I was so excited to taste Chef Timothy Hollingsworth's special dishes again.


We were seated at the chef's table right by the open kitchen, and the special night began.


Butternut Squash/ Ricotta/ Coffee/ Pepitas
Little Gem Lettuce/ Bottarga Vinaigrette
Great beginnings.


Polenta/ Black Truffle/ Hen Egg
Rich, savory, and beautiful texture.


Prawn/ Eggplant/ Pineapple/ Green Curry
This was my first time to taste a dish made with donabe steamer, "Mushi Nabe", by the chef! On top of the grate was grilled and steamed prawns and pineapple, and once the grate was removed, in the bottom was muscles in green curry. How creative the dish was! And it was so spicy and delicious.


Hamachi/ Rice/ Bok Choy/ Caramelized Garlic
The rice was cooked in double-lid donabe rice cooker, "Kamado-san"over charcoal grill. Hamachi kama was nicely fatty and so flavorful.


Somoked Duck/ Turnip/ Pear/ Hazelnut
Yes, this dish was made in donabe smoker, Ibushi Gin! The aroma when the lid was removed was gorgeous. The meat was perfectly cooked and smoky.


Persimmon Pudding/ Ricotta/ Pistachio/ Truffle
Yes, with white truffles shaved over the persimmon. I thought I was already so full, but the dessert was too good to resist.

We had an incredible time together over amazing dishes and wine. I love Otium so much and it was an unforgettable dinner.

Happy donabe life.

DONABE - #1 Best Seller on Amazon Japan!

My sister sent me a text from Japan and said, "Your cookbook is #1 Best Seller in Japan right now!".
My DONABE Cookbook is ranked #1 in the Japanese cookbook category on Amazon Japan (as of January 3, 2016)!!

Wow, what a happy surprise in the new year! I'm so happy that my book is well-received in Japan, too. I hope there will be an opportunity for the Japanese language version of the book published in the near future.

My autographed copy of DONABE - Classic and Modern Japanese Clay Pot Cooking is available on toiro kitchen's website. So, hope you will check out if you haven't had a copy yet.

Happy donabe life.

DONABE Story on Bon Appétit Magazine Online

Our donabe and my comments are featured on Bon Appétit Magazine online!
It's a great story about donabe cooking, so please check it out.
Here's the link.

Happy donabe life.

Trip to New York (December 2016)...DONABE Special Dinner Events at Chef's Club New York

Me with Kyle before the dinner service (photo by Kyle)

On December 12 (Sat) and December 13 (Mon), Kyle and I did special dinner events at Chef's Club in New York. Chef's Club is operated by Food and Wine Magazine, and we were invited as visiting chefs to cook special dinner for two nights in their Studio.

So we created a special menu, including many of my recipes from DONABE Cookbook!


It was another gorgeous day in NYC.


During the day, we did final prepping for the dinner. The packages of hoshigaki needed for the first course were delivered just a couple of hours before the first service from California on Saturday. Hew.


The Studio is a private room connected to the main dining at Chef's Club. Everything was set up and we were ready.


Braised spicy kabocha from Hassun course was made in soup & stew donabe, "Miso-shiru Nabe".


Sizzling tofu dish, cooked in tagine-style donabe, "Fukkura-san".



Smoked Calamari dish was made in the donabe smoker, "Ibushi Gin".


Steamed black cod with fermented black bean sauce was made in the donabe steamer, "Mushi Nabe".


Niigata-style "sake nabe" was made in various sizes of classic-style donabe.


Salmon hijiki rice with uni was made in double-lid donabe rice cooker, "Kamado-san".



Chestnut & pear steam cake was made in donabe steamer, "Mushi Nabe".


So happy that my long time Japanese girlfriends (for over 20 years) who now live in Connecticut and New York came to see me and taste our dishes! Thank you so much, Emiko, Chigusa, and Yuki!!


Happy donabe holidays. And, here's the menu...

Plate 1: "Hassun"
Braised Spicy Kabocha
Roasted Ginkgo Nuts
Scallop, Quickly Cured in Tororo Kombu
Hoshigaki, with Creamy Sake-kasu Sandwich
Spinach "Shira-ae" with Tofu & Saikyo Miso Sauce
Steamed Yellowtail Shabu-shabu with Negi, Daikon & Ponzu
Wine paring: Vilmart & Cie, Champagne "Grand Reserve" Brut (Rilly-la-Montagne)

Plate 2: Sizzling Tofu & Mushrooms with Miso Sauce & Chunky La-yu
Wine paring: 2012 Schloss Vollards, Riesling (Rhingau)

Plate 3: Smoked Calamari Salad with Black Sesame Vinegar Sauce
Wine pairing: 2011 Moreau Naudet, Chablis Forets

Plate 4: Steamed Black Cod with Fermented Black Bean Sauce
Wine pairing: 2012 Red Car, "Hagan Vineyard" (Mt. Harlan)

Plate 5: Niigata-style Sake Rich Hot Pot
Wine pairing: Kirin-zan, Junmai Daiginjo (Niigata, Japan)

Plate 6: Salmon Hijiki Rice with Uni

Plate 7: Chestnut & Pear Steam Cake
Wine pairing: 2013 Carussin, Moscato "Filari Corti"

**Photo credit: Some of the photos are taken by Kyle Connaughton and Aaron Arizpe.