The memorials of my childhood in the Japanese curry

Browned the onion in a pot. The savory smell stir up my enthusiasm more than ever.’ Great! It will be delicious food’.    

This is a starting scene of cooking JAPANESE CURRY in the early morning, that is one of our popular menus.

It is curry sauce with several kind of topping that are PORK KATSU, FRIED SALMON, FRIED PROWN, VEGITABLE, BEEF and SEAFOOF.

JAPANESE CURRY is similar to Stew. The sauce and these toppings give customers a feeling of satisfaction…I think…. I hope so.

When the clock’s hands were straight up, the office and other workers flood into our restaurant to buy the curry.

Clean out of CURRY! But nearly 2:00pm.

Almost sold out everyday.

This Curry originates from English food, which was introduced to Japan in the MAIJI period (1868 ~ 1912).  

An English sailor wanted to cook Stew, but in those days couldn’t use milk due to easy to goes sour. At that they used the spices and stoke instead with the ingredients of Stew.    

And this Curry became one of to the point of the National food in Japan.

At the off-campus activities, school lunch…and Sunday dinner at home, we have ate curry in the many kind of occasions.

Of all others, my mother used to cook it as Sunday dinner for family.

Early in the evening, savory smell comes through the house from the kitchen. At the same time a children’s TV program called “SAZAE-SAN” (www.fujitv.co.jp/sazaesan). That was a happy family’s story. Three generations have lived in the same house. What are more unique is all family members name are relate to sea- foods.

I had been wrapped in both, that was usual Sunday evening in my childhood.

My mother had made curry Roux herself.

Add flour and curry powder in to the melted butter little by little, and had stirred it carefully.

On the other side, the vegetables were simmering in the Stew pot, potato, carrot, onion, and pork. She had skim off the fat from the broth carefully. I vaguely remember that was as if she treats the ingredients kindly.

When I cook it, a delightful Sunday dinner with my mother’s cooking scene came across my mind.

And now, I have cooked the curry for many customers. That is added expert’s techniques in it more. But thinking the eaters the basis of my cooking is the same her mind. As often as I saw clean theirs curry plate and a broad smile suffuse their face I can have happiness hearty.

I have done same things every day, but I think that the taste is subtly different between yesterday. Because my idea of cooking delicious food has been rising day by day.

I trust the idea on the plate.            

It all started with

An egg on piping-hot Japanese rice with a drop of soy sauce on it. Easy and really simple.

That was the first time I did any cooking, and if I remember correctly I must have been about 3 or 4 years old.

I spent a lot of time with my grandma who loved cooking and was perhaps the best cook in the family. She just knew so much about cooking. I would have learnt to cook by just following her example, but I learnt to cook with all my heart. I often think back at her techniques and am today still amazed by her age-old wisdom.

However, my first steps in cooking didn’t require any of those techniques. This wasn’t cooking as such; it was more of an exercise in simplicity. Just crack open an egg and put it on the rice.

The point was that it felt like cooking and made me feel like a grown-up girl. That made me happy.

This kind of food is called TAMOGO KAKE GOHAN and is a standard breakfast for Japanese kids at home then, and they love it.

This simple dish is just so iconic, rustic and real.

It gives me such great memories to be instantly transported back to my Grandma’s warmth and my first steps at becoming a cook!

Introduction

Our restaurant started at the Watford Old Market in 2012. 

We had a stall, which wasn’t ideal but at least it was our own bit of space. Not only would it be good for publicity purposes but I could also do some local market research whilst running the stall. It’s like having a pilot store. You could kill 2 birds with 1 stone. That idea really thrilled me.

And by 2014 we had the restaurant up and running.

So, I would like to extend a big THANK YOU to all our customers and to everybody who gave us their support.

Who would ever have thought that I would become a chef in the UK?

About 20 years ago, after only being in the country for a year and a half, my focus of attention was on the UK’s food culture. I had heard that the dishes were often bland and somewhat tasteless, but what I actually found out was that every kind of “family food” was actually quite delicious.

This meant that food culture would ultimately change for the better. And since then, I have seen a marked improvement, a real change for the better.

And at present I am involved in the food industry as a restaurant chef. Such happiness and joy made possible by food. What is more, is that I can interact with loads of customers, learn their feedback and see the result of good cooking: A broad smile on everybody’s face.

Food of every kind attracts my interest and triggers my hunger for knowledge. And the happiness I have received through food is happiness complete.

I will share these experiences with you and offer you some outstanding recipes through the course of this blog.

What really makes me happy is when people truly understand that　food doesn’t just satisfy your hunger but is, in fact, the most important thing in creating real happiness and joy in ordinary, every-day life.