My Accomplishments

Hi! It is very hot here in Tokyo!!! We are still in the rainy season and having a very humid weather every day :(

As usual, I will list my recent accomplishments!

On June 24th, following the first release, my recipe using Kagome's basic canned tomato sauce product become a recipe sticker again! It is now available on the can at the stores. (Sorry I just have an image of the sticker, but actually, it is on the tomato can!)
The recipe is Vietnamese Tsukemen. Tsukemen is cold noodles. You dip the noodles into the cold broth and eat. I made the broth using the tomato sauce product and nuoc mam (Vietnamese fish sauce)! It has nice ethnic taste :)


On June 26th, I won the grand prize at asahi beer's contest. They asked for appetizer recipes, using food ingredients of Kyushu, to go with their beer: Asahi Super Dry!
I cooked fritter with sea bream of Nagasaki prefecture. Which is Harrison Ford's favorite! Ha-ha :) The prize for the contest was a set of train ticket and restaurant coupon in Kyushu. Sounds like I have to go to the island someday!

Yesterday, on July 10th, my recipe (Chinese-style steamed beef and mushrooms) was broadcast on the radio: FM Yokohama!
They introduced the recipe that you can eat a lot of vegetables!
Unfortunately, I missed to hear it, but it was about 7 minutes broadcast.

Also, yesterday, my recipe (Pickled Plum, Japanese Basil and Seaweed Rolled Pork) was introduced as "today's choice" at recipe-blog (the recipe site I'm registered). I had a lot of visitors to my Japanese recipe blog on that day!





Changing my story, today is the release day of iPhone in Japan. The leading company called softbank has released it! Now, I am using softbank's 2G (digital) phone. However, this generation is going to be discontinued in early 2010, so I am thinking of getting the 3G (UMTS - Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) phone, which might be the iPhone. My boyfriend put our name on the waiting list! Hope I can get it... But one thing I concern is the "touchscreen"! I have no idea whether I could get used to it or not.

Yesterday, my boyfriend didn't come home. He is very busy since he took a long vacation with me. I hope he is doing fine. Me? Don't ask!

I'm going to see my friend tonight, maybe after 7 years or more :)
Have a great weekend!

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My Accomplishments

Hi! We have sun today! Yay!
The weather forecast was wrong.
It supposed to rain all week, but not...
I just hope it won't rain on Sunday, the day we leave for NY!

I won two prizes at Cookpad this week.

One is my "I Love Daddy Chocolate Cake"! I won the dad moving award! This contest was held by Meiji Seika Kaisha, Ltd., the Japanese confectionery and pharmaceutical company.
They asked for Father's Day recipes using their milk chocolate.
As I wrote before, I don't know about the taste, but it is sure that he liked it :)
He left for China on Sunday.

Another winning recipe is "Avocado Speed Rice Gratin".
The contest was held by Kewpie, well known for their mayonnaise! Also, they are well known for their three-minute cooking products. In February, they released "oil sauce for pasta" that can be cooked in 3 minutes. There are 5 different flavors: Soy Sauce and Pepper, Garlic and Red Pepper, Anchovy and Olive Oil, Dashi Scallion, and Italian Taste. You just cook your favorite ingredients with this sauce and dress pasta in it.
To open up the usage, they asked for the recipes using this products. I mixed "Soy Sauce and Pepper" sauce with avocado paste, pour it over the rice, sprinkled cheese on top, and baked. It is something like Japanese-style guacamole with rice! It was great :)

Okay again, I am very drowsy and tired.
See you tomorrow ;)

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My Accomplishments

It is cloudy today. The temperature is not that high but very humid! I hate taking a crowded train on a humid day like this!!! I always listen to my iPod to be in my own world.

My supervisor is quite an eccentric person. He was concentrating on his stuff, so he ignored about the planned meeting... I know he didn't forget about it. He just didn't mention. He is a person who cares less about the others :(

Anyway, the below are the results of my recent work.

On June 12th, my pink colored sushi won the jury's special award at a photo contest that asked for sakura (pink) colored photos that make people happy. I rolled anago (conger eel) and nanohana (field mustard) with sushi rice colored pink with sakura denbu (which is pink colored & seasoned shredded codfish). It is kind of complicated but it was organized by LENA JAPON at edita community's monitor plaza. Now the contests are everywhere in a wide variety of subjects on the web, used as a promotional tool!

Then on June 14th, my tortilla sushi recipe (sushi rice gives a rich taste!) won a prize at MUJI's contest using their food products. They have some flour products that can easily make pancakes, pizza dough, tortillas etc.. Also, they have many varieties of sauce products such as salsa, cheese, anchovy olive etc... They asked people to combine both and create new recipes.


Then on June 16th, my recipe and other user's recipe using heinz's demiglace sauce and white sauce products were published to the Cookpad's site! They have a project asking their users to try those selected recipes to win prizes. It is an interesting promotional strategy.
I made a gravy sauce using the demiglace sauce and put it in the heart shaped mashed potatoes.

I thought I won't be able to write my diary, but I could!
Gotta go now! Good night.


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My Accomplishments

It was sunny yesterday and cloudy today!
We have very hot (high 80's) and humid weather these few days.
Better than rain though.

Today, I will list my recent accomplishments!
Actually, I was writing these yesterday, but couldn't finish up because this humid weather made me extremely tired and drowsy! (Am I always drowsy?! Ha-ha!)

On 5/30, my recipe using kamaboko (steamed pureed fish loaves) won the bronze prize! I made chili-style stir-fried kamaboko, sausage, and vegetables. The contest was organized by a kamaboko shop in Fukuoka called Sekiya. They have been in business since 1882 of the Meiji Era. As a prize, I received assortment of their kamaboko products! The package arrived day before yesterday!
I am looking forward to trying them out :)

On 6/10, I won the crispy salad award at Kraft's Parmesan cheese contest organized by cookpad. I sprinkled the cheese on top of the aburaage (deep fried tofu) and toasted until golden and crisp! Also, I toasted bacon strips until crisp. Then crushed them and placed on top of a spinach salad. Kind of Italian, but tastes good with Japanese-style dressing :)

Then on the same day, 6/10, I won the idea recipe award at Asahi Kasei's Cookper contest by cookpad. Asahi Kasei Corporation provides innovative solutions based in chemistry and materials science to a diverse range of markets including fibers, chemicals, consumer products, housing, construction, electronics, and health care. They have a product called Cookper (cooking + paper = Cookper), which is kind of parchment paper but less glossy. You wrap seasoned ingredients of your choice in the Cookper and microwave until done, just like you use Ziploc's microwaveable containers! If you open from the center, you can use the Cookper as a dish to serve :) I think parchment paper can be a substitute!
I translated the procedures (image on the right). Anyway, Asahi Kasei asked for easy microwave recipes using Cookper and my Chinese-style steamed beef and mushrooms won the prize!

Conversely, I won't write them in detail but I lost a few other big contests...
I will do my best the next!

This is not about a contest, but on Monday, I saw Harrison Ford on a popular TV variety show called SMAPXSMAP! He was invited as a guest of Bistro SMAP! (SMAP is a very popular Japanese idol group and they cook dishes for the guest by request at Bistro SMAP.) Harrison Ford loved steamed sea-bream rice ;)
One of the members asked him the key to his success, and he said "to do things in your way". He is so cool!
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is coming out on June 21st in Japan!!!
I like Indiana Jones series, so I can't miss this!

This is totally different story but I just knew that Kousuke Kitajima (breaststroke swimmer) lives above our office!!!
We are in the same building! Wow!!!

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Survival Food Recipe Contest @ Tokyo International Fire and Safety Exhibition 2008

In April, Tokyo Fire Department has asked for the survival food recipes (using canned and bottled products, dried foodstuff, emergency food supplies, familiar vegetables, etc...) that makes disaster victims in difficult circumstances happy. Luckily, my recipe passed the initial screening! So on June 7th, I attended the finals which was held at Tokyo International Fire and Safety Exhibition 2008.

There were six finalists. We cooked our recipe on stage in front of the audience and the press. The time limit was 30 minutes.
The winner was a man who cooked paella using Japanese traditional dried foodstuff (such as sakuraebi (Sergia lucens)) and canned tomato. The biggest reason he won was the usage of dried foodstuff, which keeps well and rich in nutrients! Also, his recipe was home-style dish, so that was highly evaluated!

One of the judges was Hiroko Sakamoto (a cooking teacher), who has actually been in the disaster of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake.
She said, it took for about a week until food supplies arrived in general household. Until then, she needed to survive by eating foodstuff at home. Under such circumstances, most people didn't want to eat emergency food supplies but regular home-cooked meal. Therefore, she recommended people to stock up on their favorite canned food, retort series, or whatever that makes you happy. Also, she said it is important to stock up on water and drink to stay hydrated.
Her actual experiences were informative!

Anyway, rest of us all received outstanding performance awards!

Moreover, at this exhibition, there was a booth that lectures on CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and how to use AED (automated external defibrillator)! I remember that I read about these in a text book when I was a high school student, but it was something I've never done before.
I think we learned a lot on this day!

Last but not least, June 7th was the 5th anniversary since my boyfriend and I had met. After the contest, we went to a nice Vietnamese restaurant in Yebisu. We were pretty tired, but the jazz music they had playing was relaxing. We talked about the day we met and had a good time :)



Okay, this is all for today.
The rainy season came back!
We had a rain and thunder this evening :(

Somehow, I got very bad stiff shoulders today...
Good night!

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My Accomplishments

Hello! It is sunny today! Hope it lasts.

Today, I will list my recent accomplishments.

In March, I wrote that I passed to the finals and create drink recipes using camu camu juice concentrate for a Peruvian restaurant called "Miraflores".
I won the grand prize!!!
The prize winning recipe is CAMU CAMU BEER, which is very easy!
You put 1tbsp of camu camu juice concentrate in a glass, pour 175cc of beer, and garnish it with mint leaves.
The sour taste of camu camu matches the beer perfectly; very refreshing!
It is going to be served at the restaurant in the near future.

Then again, I won the special award at the Yodoran (iodine-enriched egg) recipe competition by Nosan Corporation.
This time they asked for the recipe using their brand-new mayonnaise and Yodoran.
I think this is my fourth time to win this contest. Once I won the top prize, but the rest were the specials though.
I made kabobs using boiled eggs and chicken fillet with 'cod ovum-mayonnaise mixture' and aonori on top.
It is rich in flavor but not greasy because I used the chicken fillet!

Then yesterday, I won a special prize at Suntory's contest using their tennensui (Southern Alps natural mineral water). The contest was held at Cookpad (recipe site).
They asked for rice bowl recipes that use their water to cook rice and toppings. The rice bowl I made is not that special. I just cooked what I had in my refrigerator: ground meat, enoki, and natto with miso and vinegar seasonings.

Last but not least, I advanced to the finals of the survival food contest which I mentioned before! The finals will be held at Tokyo Big Sight on June 7th! I hope I can enjoy.

You know what?! I am unlucky with money!
Very funny, but I am losing all the money related prizes.
Of course, money isn't everything though.

Speaking of money, yesterday morning, I calculated my expenses because the receipt papers bulged my wallet and wanted to throw them away.
It's been a month since I last calculated, so the figures didn't add up.
5,060yen was missing!!!
I couldn't remember what I bought in a snap, so it couldn't get out of my mind for a whole day...
Anyway, I finally remembered in the evening! I added 5,000yen that I borrowed from my boyfriend. When I returned, I just subtracted the same amount, which made my expenditure plus minus zero!
But not sure about 60yen, hmm...

Sorry for the details...
Better not borrow or lend money!

I'm drowsy now.
Good night.

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Yakitori Dishes

We finally got some sunshine :)
The sky is blue and I feel happy!
The weather is good for outing!!!

I went out to eat lunch with my co-worker.
I had a lunch menu: gohan (white rice), yakizakana (broiled fish), tsukemono (Japanese pickles), and misoshiru (miso soup).
It is a typical Japanese menu, but I enjoyed a lot!
It is sometimes good to eat out for a change.

Speaking of outing, last year, on April 26th, I went on TV and cooked dishes using yakitori (Japanese type of skewered grilled chicken).
I was on a variety show called "Hanamaru Market", which is a TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System, Inc.)-affiliated program. It starts from 8:30 in the morning till 9:54, Mon-Fri. Kumiko Okae and Hirohide Yakumaru host the show.
It is a popular morning talk show and they features many useful and entertaining information to make our life happy :)
Yakitori is usually sold at a special price during outing season, so I was asked to think attractive recipes using it.

The below are the dishes I made:
- Nagaimo Yam Cheese Steamed Yakitori
- Indian Style Piccata of Yakitori
- Yakitori and Crushed Cucumber Salad
They all are very easy!

I thank to Cookpad (recipe site) because they gave me this precious opportunity.

Okay, I gotta go.
I'm in good humor today.
I hope it lasts... but guess not! I know that well! Ha-ha!
See you again tomorrow.

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My Accomplishments

Today, I am very upset about my supervisor.
We three run websites.
My supervisor and my co-worker (both men) got promoted but I didn't.
It is not fair!!!
Is it just because I'm a woman?

Anyway! Just for a change, I will list my accomplishments.

On March 21st, I won an outstanding performance award at metabo-help.com.
They asked for recipes to fight metabolic syndrome. My award winning recipe is "Salty-Sweet Miso Fried Daikon Radish and Almonds". The miso I used is Tenmenjyan, which is sweet miso of China. Daikon Radish and Almonds are high in vitamines and mineral. There are abundance of oleic acid and magnesium in Almonds.
Hope this recipe is good for anti-obesity!

On April 26th, I won a special award at the egg recipe competition again.
This competition was organized by Nosan Corporation, the producer of "Yodoran" Hikari brand of iodine-enriched eggs.
This time, they put out a call for spring bento recipes that use "Yodoran".
I made "Easy Spring Soboro Mazezushi".
It is sushi rice mixed with soboro (Japanese dish, usually made with minced chicken) and vegetables.
I cut the usuyakitamago (crepe style fried egg) into flower shapes using a cookie
cutter and decorated on top.
My boyfriend loved it, because he likes soboro gohan ;)

On April 28th, I won Tomisen award.
Tomisen is a website that deliveres homemade soba (or udon).
Their soba and it's sobajiru (stock sauce for soba or udon) have an authentic flavor.
Therefore, they asked people to use their sobajiru for other recipes.
I created "Sobajiru Marinated Tomatoes".
The recipe is similar to my Dashi Marinated Tomatoes.
I soaked peeled cherry or grape tomatoes in sobajiru.
They were juicy and delicious!!!
The recipe was so easy that I didn't expect to receive an award though.

Then on April 28th, my "Ethnic Style Stir-Fried Beef and Vegetables" was introduced at Vegete's website.
I wrote about vegete before.
This time, Asahi put out a call for recipes to go with the beer, that could be made
within 30 minutes.
I used a lot of vegetables that enhance stamina to enjoy drinking :)

Okay, time to go.
Might see you next week... hopefully tomorrow!

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