Today, I'd like to introduce a local style of grilled eel dish in Nagoya area (Aichi prefecture) as a continuation of my previous post. Since almost any area in Japan has some local special products, dishes, or cooking styles, there are also different recipes or dishes for eels.
You might think it looks very similar to the previous eel dish I showed yesterday. However, this one is called "Hitsumabushi", and clearly distinguished from the previous one called "Unajuu/Unadon". The main difference is not the recipe, actually how you eat differentiates this dish from "Unajuu/Unadon".
Regarding "Unajuu/Unadon", people eat it as it is, because the grilled eel was already dipped in a sauce while it was grilling and has enough seasoning. The grilled eel of "Hitsumabushi" is also seasoned as well, but as a unique feature, the dish is recommended to eat in three steps.
As a first step, eat it as is and enjoy taste of grilled eel, then proceed to the second step. As you can see in the upper left hand side photo, there are three small dishes in front. They are all additional flavors, such as green onion, Wasabi, and Shiso (a Japanese herb). So people can change the taste of the dish with these additional flavors. Then at the end, a clear soup will be served for the third step. It is to pour onto the grilled eel and rice. After adding a topping of Nori (a seaweed), people can enjoy the grilled-eel rice soup.
With these three steps, one dish gets different tastes/flavors/textures, and people can finish "Hitsumabushi" even though it may look like too much food in the beginning. Even outside of Doyo-no-ushi Day in summer, I think it's worth trying out when you have a chance to visit Nagoya area!
July 30th (in 2016) was "Doyo-no-ushi Day(Ox-day of Doyo)" in Japan. “Ox-day” came from Japanese traditional calendar because in old times Japanese people counted date by 12 animals of the Chinese Zodiac, the same as Monday, Tuesday...and so on are used for the 'week'. Thus Ox-day comes around once a 12days, and “Doyo” is a name of a period came from ancient Chinese calendar. The Doyo period originally exists in each season so technically there are one or two Ox-days of Doyo in each season.
However only for summer Japanese people keep it in their calendars because there is a custom of eating eels on this "Doyo-no-ushi Day" in summer. It might sound funny but it has been believed among Japanese people that eating eels on the day would work well against fatigue caused by summer heat because eels are very nutritious and good for developing one's stamina.
So, during the Doyo period in summer, many of Japanese rush to eat eels. The typical way to eat eels on the day is grilled eels on the rice with sweet soy-sauce. Food shops sell lot's of grilled eels as you can see in the lower photo and all traditional eel restaurants as shown in the upper photos get busy, then on the "Ox-day of Doyo" it reaching its peak on the "Ox-da of Doyo".
The custom seems like a very old tradition based on some serious reason, but it is said that actually it was a made-up trend during the late Samurai-era in the 18th century. There was a famous historical herbalist named Gennai Hiraga(1728-1780), he was a talented person who wrote light novels and invented devices. Apparently one day a shop owner of grilled eels with declining his sales asked for help and Gennai advised to advertise “It’s Doyo-no-ushi Day. Eat eels!” and it became a big trend in summer. At that time people already knew eels were good nutritious food, and the advertisement probably caught the attention of those who felt exhausted under the summer heat.
Since then, it came to stay as a seasonal custom in Japan. Maybe eating eels really works well against fatigue. If you are wondering about the effect, please try it on the 30th!
In my previous post on July 17th I have introduced some photos of people wearing Samurai armors. Actually their armors are all handmade. Each person in the Samurai group made their own armor. Due to limitations on maerial availability and usability, various types of material were used to make armor such as plastic, aluminum and steel plates for the body of armor, and leather, cloth, strings and old kimono for the accessories.
For example, this person's armor is made of steel. He said that it took about a year to complete it and as you can see in the photos he used lots of small steel plates and small steel rings to assemble his armor. Since he wanted to have a very real one he tried to make it in the same way Samurai armors were made in old times. The chain mail for the arms are made of small steel rings and he connected them one by one. Apparently the total weight of this armor is 30 kg (about 66 lb).
Of course most people in the group chose lighter types of material to be able to walk and move easily. However it sounds interesting to be able to experience the real heaviness of a Samurai armor. He can feel how tough the real Samurai soldiers were in old times. That would be cool.
The people are members of a NPO group at Hachioji Castle Ruins, which is one of the major historical site of the Warring States period in Tokyo. They have Samurai performances at events and hold workshops for "how to make Samurai armors".
July and August are actually neighborhood festival months in Japan. In residential areas, traditionally people organize neighborhood communities in every several blocks called "Chonai-kai". These "Chonai-kai" communities usually manage local activities such as small festivals, and public space cleanup in the community, and share information.
Since July and August are the traditional seasonal period called "Obon", which has been the time to visit own home town for family gathering since old times. It is said that during "Obon" the souls of our dead family would come back to our house for a short visit, and we welcome them with offerings, memorial services and festivals. Therefore each "Chonai-kai" community holds small local festivalsincluding "Bon-dance" in this season. "Bon-dance" is a general name for dances with traditional music practiced in Obon season.
At these small local festivals other typical festival activities such as "Mikoshi (portable shrines)", "Dashi (traditional festival cart)", traditional instruments performances and parades are often seen as well shown in the photos above. These photos were taken at Mejirodai Festival in Hachioji city held on July 16th and 17th.
Perhaps you can come across these local festivals while walking in town!
Yesterday I introduced a traditional seasonal event on July 7th named "Tanabata", and I'd like to introduce more detailed story of the Tanabata Legend. As I wrote previously, the Tanabata legend was originally imported from China but it was combined with Japanese seasonal custom to form the current style of Tanabata event in Japan.
The legend is a romantic story about a couple representing two actual stars like stories of constellations in Greek myths. Well, the story is below.
...Long ago, there was a daughter of a god in the sky named Ori-hime (means Weaving-princess). She is representing a star which is known as "Vega" in constellation Lyra located in the west side of the Milky Way. Her job was weaving cloth and she was working diligently every day. Then her father god started to look for a good husband-to-be for her.
Soon the father god found a nice diligent young man in the east side of the Milky Way. His name was Hiko-boshi (means Male-star) and his job was taking care of cattle at the Milky Way. Thus the father god arranged marriage of his daughter and Hiko-boshi. They fell in love and were very happy with the marriage.
However, the young couple started to enjoy staying together too much and neglected their jobs. Ori-hime stopped weaving and Hiko-boshi stopped taking care of cattle. Even after the father god admonished them, they didn't change their attitude. Eventually the father god became really angry and he split the young couple and made them live separately on the opposite side of the Milky Way.
Ori-hime and Hiko-boshi regretted a lot for their laziness and apologized to the father god but father god was too angry to forgive them. Long after the father god confirmed they had been working diligently again as they did before the marriage, he said they were allowed to have a date once a year. Since then they started to have a date on July 7th, and that's the Tanabata Day.
It's a nice romantic legend that most Japanese know, but recently illumination at night has been too bright and people in cities can't see both of the stars and the Milky Way. Therefore, a new attempt started in some areas recently and people are trying to "Light-down" the areas to see the two Tanabata legendary stars and the Milky Way. It's a nice Eco-friendly idea. Probably the star couple would also feel happy to have their annual date quietly!
July 7th is "Tanabata Day (Star Festival)" in Japan. "Tanabata" is one of the major seasonal events in traditional Japanese custom although it is not a national holiday. For "Tanabata" event, people write their wishes on fancy paper strips and hang them on bamboo-trees (Sasa) with various paper decorations just like Christmas ornaments hanging on Christmas trees.
So these decorated bamboo trees are often seen at schools, shopping malls, and even outside on streets in the beginning of July. It is still a very common event where people enjoy participating. It is said that bamboo trees grow straight toward the sky, and with the rustling sound of the leaves it would deliver people's wishes to the stars of Tanabata legend.
Tanabata legend is a romantic story between two stars in the sky. It was originally imported from China and taken into Japanese custom. According to the legend July 7th is a special day for the star couple because they have a once-a-year date over the Milky Way. Japanese people started thinking the star couple would grant their wishes on this happy day, so people write their wishes on paper strips and hang them on bamboo trees.
This is a kind of "Jumping on the bandwagon" wish making, so people write any kinds of wishes casually, such as "Want to hit a lottery!", "Want to get a high scores at the next exam!", "Want to stay healthy!" and so on. If you find paper strips and pens beside Tanabata bamboo trees in a shopping mall, it's free to write any personal wishes and hang the paper.
Please try! Hope you have a nice Tanabata Day!
In connection to the June Bride on my previous post on June 29th, I'd like to introduce Japanese traditional bridal costume. Western style wedding dress is more popular than traditional wedding Kimono in Japanese wedding ceremonies.
However, still a certain number of brides choose traditional wedding Kimonos. There are two types of wedding Kimonos. One with the gorgeous design in black shown in the center photo is called "Iro-uchikake (Color Wedding Kimono), and the other, which is completely white kimono, in the right hand side photo is called "Shiromuku (Innocent White Kimono).
They look very different, but accessories are the same for both costumes, such as a fan, a cosmetic case, and a Samurai dagger. A dagger? Yes, a traditional wedding Kimono always includes a dagger as indicated by the yellow arrows on the photos. The reason for a dagger is because these wedding style was performed during Samurai era. Actually these wedding Kimonos are for Samurai class families. Since Samurai families were in the military caste, daughters of Samurai had to carry a weapon to protect themselves on their own and even at their weddings.
Of course nowadays it's just perfunctory, and the dagger may not be sharp. However, comparing bridegrooms wearing traditional wedding Kimono without any weapons it's funny to see only bridal costumes keep the Samurai tradition.
In addition, the special head cover for brides in Kimono, which is shown in the center photo, is called "Tsuno-kakushi (Hide-horn)" which apparently was used to hide brides' strong horns on their heads. So, be careful! Japanese brides may be very strong even if they look beautiful!
