Japan Eats!

Our guest is Kazuko Nagao, the founder of Oconomi, the okonomiyaki shop based in Queens, New York. Okonomiyaki is a Japanese-style savory pancake, which is very popular in Japan. Despite its rich, delicious taste and approachable style, okonomiyaki is yet to be known to the world outside Japan. Kazuko has been making okonomiyaki for New Yorkers at street fairs and food events for a decade. But last month, in December 2021, she decided to turn her seasonal okonomiyaki business into regular operations throughout the year. In this episode, we will discuss what exactly okonomiyaki is, regional varieties of okonomiyaki (which represent the pride of each region!), how to make okonomiyaki at home, and much, much more!!!Photo Courtesy of Fuko Chubachi.Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Matthieu Guerpillon, the Marketing Manager & Brand Ambassador of NAMI, the first sake brewery in Mexico. Japanese sake has been produced outside of Japan in recent years, and it is very exciting to see that there is a sake brewery in Mexico, which is the home of excellent beer and spirits such as tequila and mezcal!NAMI is not just the first sake brewery in Mexico. Their products have proved to be outstanding. For example, The International Sake Challenge, which is an annual event held in Tokyo to recognize the best sakes in the world, has awarded the Gold, Silver, and Bronze prizes to NAMI’s sake. In this episode, we will discuss how NAMI was born, how the all-Mexican team found a Japanese mentor to make premium sake, the unique terroir of Mexico, how to pair sake with Mexican flavors, and much, much more!!!Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest today is Ryo Iwamoto, who is the founder and CEO of TeaRoom based in Tokyo. Ryo began studying tea 15 years ago at the age of 9 and now he is a certified instructor of the Japanese tea ceremony. He even has a special name that is only given to outstanding tea practitioners. Ryo founded TeaRoom in 2018 while he was still a student at the prestigious Waseda University to inspire the world with the power of Japanese tea culture. In this episode, we will discuss how Ryo got into the world of tea at such a young age, the essence of Japanese tea culture he has been passionate about, how tea can help us to make the world a more caring and peaceful place, his various projects to make his vision come true including his eye-opening products to attract new tea drinkers, and much, much more!!!Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guests today are John Daschbach, the director of the fantastic new documentary film Come Back Anytime, and Wataru Yamamoto, the producer of the film. Our mutual friend Yukari Sakamoto, who is an influential food specialist based in Tokyo, introduced me to the new film Come Back Anytime, or mata irasshai (またいらっしゃい) in Japanese. It premiered at DOC NYC, which is the largest documentary festival in America, and at the IFC Center in November 2021. This documentary is about a ramen chef in Tokyo and the close-knit community of his regulars. It sounds simple but there was a lot to digest in your heart and mind. I suggest everyone watch it, especially in the current isolating social situation due to the pandemic. In this episode, we will discuss why John and Wataru decided to make a documentary about a tiny ramen shop in Tokyo, the profound messages they hope to convey to the audience through the film, how ramen can be instrumental in community building, and much, much more!!!  Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest today is Kou Sundburg, who is the founder of Kiraku. Kiraku operates multiple projects that aim to preserve Japan’s rich cultural and natural heritage for future generations. Kou has a strong business background with a unique bi-cultural vantage point of the Japanese tradition. Kou’s diverse projects include transforming abandoned machiya, or a traditional Japanese townhouse, in Kyoto into a Michelin-awarded luxury ryokan and reviving a sake brewery that was founded in 1793 but unfortunately shut down in 2012. Now the brewery became a micro-sake brewery to express the rich local terroir. In this episode, we will discuss how Kou came up with the business to preserve Japanese culture and tradition, his intriguing projects of hotels and restaurants that you would want to experience on your next trip to Japan, how seriously Japan is losing cultural heritage, and much, much more!!!Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Takatsugu 'Taka' Amano who is the co-Founder and CEO of American Shochu Company based in Silver Spring, Maryland. Shochu is a traditional Japanese spirit and it is more popular than Japanese sake in Japan. If you compare sake and shochu, 4.2% of liquor tax comes from premium sake, whereas 14.8% comes from shochu, according to the Japanese government’s data in 2019. But the number flips when it comes to overseas. In 2020, Japan exported about $212 million worth of premium sake but only $10.6 million of shochu was brought outside the country, which was just 5% of sake’s export. It is a shame because shochu is as delicious and artisanal as premium sake. That is why Taka decided to introduce the charm of shochu to America by producing his own brand in 2015. He makes 100% barley shochu with his wife Lynn Amano in Maryland and they have already won the 2020 American Craft Spirits Awards. In this episode, we will discuss why the successful biotech industry executive decided to produce the traditional Japanese spirit in America, how he studied shochu production techniques, how he produces his award-winning shochu with American ingredients in the climate of Maryland, why we should drink more shochu and much, much more!!!  Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Nobu Yamanashi, the director of Yama Seafood. Founded in 1980 by his father Kengo Yamanashi, Yama Seafood has been one of the most reliable sources of high-quality seafood in the U.S. for over 40 years. Thanks to superior suppliers like Yama Seafood, our diet has shifted dramatically towards fresh seafood like sushi in the last decades. For example, people used to be frightened by the idea of eating raw fish in the 1950s, but now $300 per person omakase sushi dinner is not unusual these days. And it is hard to find a supermarket that does not carry sushi. Without a doubt, sushi has become part of New Yorkers’ diet because of the stable supply of premium fish. In this episode, we will discuss how Yama Seafood started when no one was buying specialty fish like tuna in the U.S., why Nobu decided to succeed in the highly demanding job in the seafood business, the changing needs for seafood in New York City dining scenes, why Yama Seafood has many employees who have worked for the company over 30 years, and much, much more!!! ***Here is a fascinating video about Nobu Yamanashi's job. Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guests are Mark Isbell and Chris Isbell of Isbell Farms in Arkansas. Isbell Farms has always been forward-minded and played an important role as a strong supporter of the American sake industry. It is a multi-generational family farm with a focus on the sustainable production of quality rice. And also, Isbell is the first American farm that produced Sakamai, which means Japanese rice varieties developed specifically for sake production. There are approximately 25 sake breweries in the U.S. and it is very exciting to see that the number has been increasing. These breweries often use Calrose rice, which is table rice, because sake rice is not readily available in this country. While Calrose has proven to be a right variety to produce high-quality sake, there is a solid demand for sake rice among American brewers. In this episode, we will discuss how a family farm in Arkansas started to grow Japanese rice, the types of sake rice they grow, a pioneering sake rice variety they have developed, and much, much more!!!  Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Christopher Horton who is the executive chef at Sanrokunana (367) in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. After graduating from the New England Culinary Institute, Chris worked at notable establishments, including Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington, D.C., Andaz Hotel Tokyo, and INUA in Tokyo, which was one of Asia’s 50 Best restaurants. Nagano is known for its beautiful mountains and hot springs, and very importantly, great local produce. Chris naturally combines his western culinary skills and experience with the celebrated local food culture at his unique restaurant. In this episode, we will discuss how he got an opportunity to cook in Japan, his idea of Japanese cuisine and how he expresses it, what he has discovered in Nagano’s unique food culture, his close relationship with local farmers, and much, much more!!! Here is the link to the fantastic video "Story of Terroir： Shinshu Gastronomy ＜Spring＞" where Chris introduces us to the essence of Nagano's culinary tradition. Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Cutting the Curd by becoming a member!Cutting the Curd is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest is Masamitsu Ishibashi who is the president and CEO of Misaki Megumi Suisan based in Japan. Founded in 1986, the company has been focused on processing and sales of fresh seafood, in particular tuna.Tuna, or Maguro in Japanese, is one of the most popular fish among sushi lovers. Not only does the fish have a very special place in Japanese food culture, but on the other hand, sustainability is a major issue nowadays and seafood including maguro is one of the frequently discussed areas. Masamitsu is devoted to educating people around the world about the precious taste and flavors of maguro and at the same time he aims to become the most sustainable maguro purveyor in the world. In this episode, we will discuss how important maguro is in Japanese food culture, the characteristics of different parts of maguro, how Masamitsu exercises sustainability, and much, much more!!! Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Japan Eats by becoming a member!Japan Eats is Powered by Simplecast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.