CHIBA☆

Hello♪

Summer vacation will come soon!!
It's too fast!!!

This week, I'll tell you about special products in Chiba.


Chiba is famous for peanuts, you know.
"miso-pi" is our soul food.


But, not only peanuts!!!


Loquat(biwa) is also famous product.
At souvenir shop, you can see biwa-chocolate, biwa-jerry, biwa-caramel, biwa-...many thing.
However, I think some of them are not nice...but this is my opinion, so you can try.


Also, marine products are famous because, Chiba prefecture is surrounded by the sea.
Please check map later if you didn't know.
I like bonito(katsuo) from Katsuura city.

If you have a chance, try to eat these foods!

Annual Event

Hello, how are you?

Did you eat rice cake at tanabata?
I did't eat it because I didn't know the custom:(

I'll introduce Japanese annual events;)

Spring

The day before the beginning of spring(setsubun)
We scatter beans to drive out bad luck, and eat the beans the same number as our age.
Until several years ago, eating ehoumaki was the custom only in Kansai area, but recently, this custom spread out all over Japan. Eat it with family quietly looking the certain direction at night.

The Doll's festival(hinamatsuri)
Eating clams(hamaguri) soup is the custom. It wishing to see good partner in her life.
I like eating hinaarare.

Spring equinox(syunbun)
Eat rice cake to wish rich harvest.

Summer

The Boy's Festival(tango no sekku)
Eat kasiwamochi(rice cake covered with an oak leave) and chimaki.

the Star Festival(tanabata)
Eat rice cake in many parts of Japan.

dog days(doyo)
We eat ells at doyo no ushino hi.
Also, eat clam(shijimi) soup.

Autumn

Full moon night(zyugoya)
It's the lunar 15th August night, eat rice cake looking at full moon.

the equinoctial week(ohigan)
Put rice cakes covered with bean jam(ohagi) in this week.

Winter

the winter solstice(toji)
Not to catch a cold, eat pumpkin(nankin) and put yuzu(a kind of mandarin) in a bath.
Also, eat kinkan, ginnan, renkon, ninjin, daikon, udon etc...to invite un(luck).

New Year's Eve(oomisoka)
Eat the buckwheat noodles eaten on New Year's Eve(toshikoshi-soba) is popular custom.
Also, eat salmon in the Eastern Japan, yellowtail(buri) in the Western Japan and sardine(iwashi) in the Southern Japan.

How many did you know?
I knew about half.
I learned Japanese people had eaten rice cake, rice cake, rice cake....in the old days!!!
Please try these customs this year!!

Food Poisoning

Hello;)

I can't attend class because of careing experience this week.

I wrote about heat injury last week, but I want to tell you one more disease.
It's food poisoning.

I think you know O157, it's one of the food poisoning.

In summer, bacteria increase because of the hot temperature and very high humidity.

So, many people are suffering from food poisoning:(

The peek season is summer, you know, in July, August and September.

Stomachache, vomit, diarrhea, fever,chills......but, in the worst case, you will die from food poisoning!!
Besides, some bacteria cause paralysis of nerve.

It's so dangerous, isn't it?

According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, to avoid being food poisoning,

1. check the shelf life(× best before ○ used by), and get fresh food
2. put into fridge as soon as possible
3. wash your hands and cookwares(kitchen knife, cutting board, etc...)
4. cook enough with your clean hands
5. eat them with your clean hands
6. keep the leftover with clean container, and reheat


To avoid norovirus, heat over 85℃ at least 1 minute.

Be careful!!
Let's enjoy summer:D

Heat Injury

Recently, I read a terrible news.
1718 people died from heat injury last year.

Can you believe this fact??

This is the worst record since 1964.


A lot of people are already transported to hospital this summer.
It's really terrible X(

I don't want to die from heat injury:(
And, please do not die from heat injury!!
Although we should save on electricity, please beat heat this summer!!

Japanese people often eat hiyashi cyuka, somen, hiyamugi and cold soba during summer time.
These are all cold noodles, so easy to eat in hot time.

Also, it is said that eating unagi (eel) is good in summer because it gives stamina to us in hot time.

Beside, eating summer vegetables is good for our body.
Summer vegetables like eggplant, balsam pear(goya), mini-tomato, cucumber have much potassium, and the potassium help us keep cool.
However, potassium is easy to break by heat, so eating raw summer vegetables is good way to take enough potassium.


To avoid heat injury, what's the most important is drinking water many times in a day.

Let's beat heat together!!!

Proverb

Hi, how are you?

Have you ever heard any English proverb?
There are many interesting proverbs connect to food.

I'll introduce some of them;-)


・apple polishing

In Japanese, we say 'grind sesame.'
It means flattering. To praise his boss to expect some return.


・His bread fell into the honey.

In Japanese, we say 'a rice cake dropped from the shelf.'　
It means he got a luck without any effort.


・Like teaching a fish to swim.　

In Japanese, we say 'teaching Buddhism to Buddha.
'It means to teach something to the professional is foolish.


・Bread is better than the songs of birds.
・pudding rather than praise.

In Japanese, we say 'to like dumpling than flower.'
It means, to see the beautiful flower is good, but to eat delicious foods is much more good.


・His little daughter is the apple of her father's eye.

In Japanese, we say 'it's so pretty that I can put into my eye.'


・The proof is in pudding.

In Japanese, 'mono ha tameshi' but this is difficult to translate...
It means, you never know what you can do till you try.


・ as different as chalk and cheese
・as different as night and day

In Japanese, we say 'moon and soft-shelled turtle.'
It means the things are similar but very different.


・It is no use crying over spilt milk.

In Japanese, we say 'spilled water don't return to the tray.'
It means, once we did something, it cannot get back.


Even the meaning is same as in Japanese proverb, the words are different.
However, I can guess the meaning of some of them.
It's very interesting, isn't it?

Rice Farming

Hello:D

I like rice as you know:-)
That's the reason why my title is 'rice field'!

I'll introduce the process to grow rice!!

Have you ever grown rice?

Recently, some schools adopted rice farming as study actual experience.
I think it's good for children.

Anyway, I'll introduce the process.


Winter

prepare good soil

Spring

sowing
grow the young plant
rice planting

Summer or Autumn

reap the rice



←I took this photo last weekend.
This is our rice field.








This process is one simple example.
Of course, it's different from the area and the house.

Also, there are a lot of other works!!

The weather is very important, because rice need plenty of water and sunlight!
Rice farming is not easy work...
So, please appreciate farmers when you eat rice:-)

New Zealand

Hello, how are you??

Last summer vacation, I visited NZ and ate many delicious food!!
So I'll introduce about it.


Do you know something about NZ?

NZ locate near the Australia, the capital is Wellington and the famous sport is rugby.
Also, there had a terrible earth quake around Christchurch as you know.


NZ is famous for sheep.
I don't like lamb in Japan, but it was so delicious in NZ, so I ate it many times!!
Lamb is used for humberger, kebab, and so on.


Have you ever heard hokey-pokey?
It's a very popular flavor of ice cream in NZ.
The taste is like caramel and it so delicious.


Also, kiwi fruit is very popular.
You can see CM on TV which Norika Huziwara is eating gold kiwi fruit.
It's from NZ!!


This is very popular cake "pavlova" !!
The inside is meringue, the outside is sugar.
At last, put kiwis on.

However, it was too sweet for me...

If you visit NZ, please try!!