This spring, vegetables are apparently expensive across the board. The city is overflowing with inbound tourists, and restaurants and hotels are raising their prices accordingly. The news is reporting that people are renting campervans to spend their long weekends because hotels are so expensive.
Increasing national income is important for keeping the economy going, so perhaps it is unavoidable.
But I want to believe that I'm not the only one who feels that the Japanese people have been left out of the loop. We probably aren't even visible in the frames of the Japanese leaders' square glasses. Maybe we've been sent to another dimension!?
By the way, it seems like there is a good harvest of bamboo shoots this year, so you can buy them at a cheaper price than usual.
It's the perfect ingredient to feel the spring. It will soon be gone from supermarkets, so you'll want to grab some while you can.
Bamboo shoots are delicious whether grilled, boiled, or broiled, so tonight I'm making grilled bamboo shoot rice in a clay pot.
First, brown it in a frying pan and season it with a little soy sauce. After that, just cook it in dashi stock like regular rice. After it's cooked, sprinkle some edamame on top for color.
For the side dish, we had tofu dengaku, which is also spring-like. Silken tofu is thinly coated with potato starch and fried in a frying pan. It is then smeared with miso and served.
The town is overflowing with inbound tourists and we are eating bamboo shoots. This is the full spring mood.
