In our area there's a great market open every day. It has all sorts of local foods. All coming from the surrounding fields. This means that even the soya sauce and cooking oil is local.
The photos, names, addresses and phone numbers of each of he farmers is displayed above the produce so you can ring them up and find out how it was produced.
As with all markets it pays to get there early, a shufu senso (housewife war) breaks out at about 10.30 and serious injury can be sustained while trying to get the best tomatoes.
Spring is the time for bamboo shoots
Prices are very low. In fact compared to Australia, in Japan many of the basic foods are far cheaper.
You can get different sorts of rice grown litereally from the fields across the road. You can then get it polished to various degrees. Much like selecting your coffee in Australia. Tomono uses a blend of Mr Suzuki's rice and one called "Snow Queen". We then get it polished to 80%. The resultant grains are really like nothing I've seen in Australia. Little pearls would be the best way to describe them. With a translucent quite firm outer skin and sweet soft and fluffy inside.
Our area being quite a traditional place, all sorts of unusual produce pops up from time to time. An all time personal favourite of mine are deep fried locusts...no I haven't tried them
The market has a real community feel to it and at different festival times etc lots of traditional activities take place there.
Here, making "mochi", sticky rice cakes. They sing a song a they do it. As one hits the rice with a big hammer, the other in between times, quickly turns it. The song is to prevent bad timing and smashed heads and hands.
No comments:
Post a Comment