Guys, I’m so behind on nomination posts, it’s not even funny. But I haven’t forgotten them. No siree!!! In fact here’s proof!!! I’m going to do one right now. Well sort of. This isn’t really a traditional tag, it’s more of an answer post.
A while ago Fuelled by Smiling spontaneously created this tag and I think today is the perfect day to answer it, in part because I haven’t seen it go around that much and in part because it’s lunch time and I’m really hungry.
I’ve mentioned a few times that this blog was initially supposed to be dedicated to anime food and recipes, but my deep inherent laziness told me it would be way too complicated and as such I stopped that before I ever started. Talk about efficient!!! This said, anime food still remains near and dear to me and I do try to figure out new recipes whenever I have the chance.
Oh wait – you may be wondering why I suddenly started on this subject. No I didn’t hit my head again. Smiling’s original post (read it, it’s super fun) was similarly hunger motivated and we were asked to share our favourite snack or anime food.
I have to admit, I’m not sure what my favourite snack is. It really changes all the time. Lately I’ve gone on this super odd trend of homemade vanilla and wasabi ice cream. I’m telling you, my brain is fine…well it’s as good as it has ever been at least…
Instead, let me tell you about my two favourite anime foods (of the moment). Ok that also changes a lot.
The spark that started this blog was the first season of Bungou Stray Dogs and the description of Ochazuke (or simple chazuke for those casual folks). I love rice and it has been a staple in my diet since I was a child, but I also have a very pronounced fondness for tea. All teas in fact. That’s a lie, I don’t really like herbal teas. Real teas of any roast (colour) are always a big win with me. I’m also Eastern European so bland cuisine is kinda my thing… Long story short (too late), the idea of white rice in a tea broth sounded like the best thing in the world (and a potentially very effective hangover cure).
I have tried quite a few variations. In fact, here are some recipes if you want to try it at home:
- https://www.justonecookbook.com/ochazuke/
- https://manga.tokyo/columns/anime-recipes/anime-recipes-vol-2/
- http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-feature/2016/07/13-1/feature-cooking-with-anime-ochazuke-from-bungou-stray-dogs
I won’t lie, this dish can turn out rather tasteless if you’re used to particularly savoury food. If you are used to BIG flavour you may be a bit let down (or you’ll need to adapt the recipes to your preferences) but it’s a comforting dish that easy on the stomach and very filling.
I’ve adapted this recipe to my personal tastes beyond recognition by using very black, very strong tasting imperial Russian tea (with a dash of sugar), and putting just about anything on top from simple sesame seeds, to roasted nuts and sautéed veggies, eggs or even tempura. It’s very tasty you guys. It may no longer qualify as Ochazuke… The more traditional green tea version is delicious too if you ask me. I what to make a sweet version with macha and fruits on top. I guess this would almost be like a rice pudding?
As scrumptious as Ochazuke is though, my go to anime comfort food is still the classic omurice. A true omurice is a truly impressive feat and one I have yet to master:
I just can’t get the omelet consistency right so that is overflows when cut into every time. Instead I generally just make a quick vegetable fried rice (extra sticky) and I wrap a thin traditional omelet around it. A bit like a burrito. I do make little ketchup drawing on top though. I mean, there’s no point without it…
I also have a weird, completely non-canon version of this. Remember when I mentioned I enjoyed bland foods (I also like very spicy foods so go figure). I managed to come up with a way to reduce the savouriness as much as possible for reasons. I doubt any of you would ever want to do this but if you were thinking to yourselves, omurice sounds good but there’s just too much flavour! I have the perfect solution for you.
First don’t stir fry the rice. Instead use sticky white rice (Calrose is easy to find in Canada) and mix in a few veggies. Like peas or onions. Basically, as you would for making onigiri (I forgot onigiri, I love those). Then make a thin egg white omelet and wrap that around your rice. Put a few seaweed cutouts on top – little hearts work well. Tada – all of the work at a fraction of the taste!
If I do another one of those I can detail my deep love of and numerous attempts at okonomiyaki.
Are you hungry now? If you are, you should share your favourite anime food with us. In fact, if it’s vegetarian I’ll try to make it! Serious question, if I attempted filming my super dubious cooking experiments, would you be interested?
