Food
Why a few drops of water make whisky taste better
Ignore the snobs, because most experts agree: a few drops of water enhance the taste of whiskies, from well-rounded blends to peat bombs redolent of smoke, tobacco and leather. The only real question is, why is this true? The answer, a pair of biochemists in Sweden say, resides in the… Read
Street joints and empires in noodle-crazed Hong Kong
From decades-old holes in the wall to multi-million dollar businesses, Hong Kong's noodle scene is a moneyspinner in a city that runs on quick and affordable comfort food. Steaming bowls are served up 24 hours a day, often in clear richly flavoured broths and topped with fishballs, beef tendon or… Read
Simple summer dessert: Blueberry pie with a cinnamon French toast crust
Here's a ridiculously simple summer dessert — the happy marriage of blueberry pie and French toast with a little cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top. It's perfect not only for blueberry lovers, but also for those home cooks who consider themselves dessert-impaired. For all of their wonderfulness, blueberries can be unpredictable,… Read
Nagasaki Starbucks marks anniversary of World War II’s end with powerful message of peace
Starbucks locations in Japan may have their own special menu items, but in a lot of ways, visiting to the chain’s coffeehouses here is pretty much like visiting them overseas. You’ll find simple but tasteful woody interior design, jazzy tunes playing through the speakers, and chalkboards with a handwritten message of the day on… Read
Teetotal tipples: 7 no-alcohol drinks in Japan
0ne of the best — and sometimes worst — parts of my job here at GaijinPot involves reading and responding to messages from readers. Recently, someone sent a message looking for some information regarding no-alcohol beers in Tokyo. I previously wrote about this topic a couple of years ago, when I was… Read
MAX-sized bento in Beppu doesn’t even fit in the box
Beppu in southern Oita Prefecture is mainly known for its highly-regarded hot spring resorts and newly opened onsen theme park. But you might be surprised to learn that the region also makes a mean fried chicken in the Japanese style known as kara-age. As a result Beppu is a fierce battleground of fried-chicken stalls… Read
Can offshore fish farming feed a hungry world?
Harvesting fish and shellfish from offshore farms could help provide essential protein to a global population set to expand a third to 10 billion by mid-century, researchers said Monday. Suitable open-sea zones have the potential to yield 15 billion tonnes of fish every year, more than 100 times current worldwide… Read
10-yen sushi? Such wonders do exist at new Tokyo restaurant in Shinjuku
They say that every good thing comes to an end, but no matter how much we may try to accept that as an inevitability, it still hurts when it’s our good thing that’s coming to an end. So when we heard that a nameless sushi restaurant, which we’d visited before, in Tokyo’s Yoyogi neighborhood was shutting… Read
Apple upside-down cornbread can be side dish, dessert
Cornbread has always had a bit of an identity crisis in our house: Is it savory or is it sweet? Does it replace dinner rolls or dessert? This very dilemma may be what I love most about cornbread: It can go either way. Usually, we veer more sweet than savory,… Read
Matcha parfait looks like a Japanese zen garden
Matcha is enjoying a boom in popularity around the world at the moment, and when it comes to sweets containing the earthy green ingredient, Japan has been leading the way with all sorts of creative offerings, like Häagen-Dazs’ green tea fondue sandwich and even a matcha-flavoured potted bonsai dessert. Despite being home to… Read
