Autumn #16: Spaghetti Tacos?!?!? / 秋＃１６：アメリカ料理の波に乗る

Trendspotter The New York Times alerted the over-thirteen demographic to a new trend in October of this year: Spaghetti tacos. You may wonder about the wisdom of heeding both the Times and the whims of 'tweens. But it kind of sounds like fun. Right? Riiiight?
最近ニューヨークタイムズまで注目されたトレンドで、タコスにパスタ。子供のテレビ番組で冗談作られたス パゲッテイ入りタコスがアメリカの子たちに大人気！えええええっ？


The news reached me just as I was becoming fascinated with another child-geared food trend. After researching Kewpie mayonnaise for this experiment, I was haunted by Kewpie's advertisements for tarako pasta sauce. When it comes to advertising, I'm as impressionable as any child.
こ のニュースを読んだ時に、もう一つの子ども向き食トレンドに夢中だった。たらこパスタ！ 


It is probably a sign of my advancing age that I'm so fascinated by these childish whims. In any case, that is the outline of the backstory of what brought me to try my hand at tarako spaghetti tacos.
今晩のメニューの背景はこれで、チェル的なスパゲッテイ入りタコスを試してみよう！


Tarako is one of the many kinds of fish roe that greets the casual consumer at Japanese supermarkets. It is the roe of salted walleye pollack, to be specific (who named this fish?!?!??!). Once I was perusing my local market's roe selection, however, I was drawn instead to tobikko. Tobikko is the roe of flying fish, and it sure did look spry!
スーパーにいったら、たらこよりとびっこの方はおいしそうだった。それで、とびっこパスタタコス！

Lovely little bubbles of fishy saltiness.

おいしそうなとびっこ泡。

I set about making this cream sauce to pair with the tobikko, and drench my spaghetti in. I substituted hakusai for celery, sake for white wine, and shiso for dill, to make it a little more local.
とびっこに合わせるクリームソースを作り始まった。

A little less local is my undying devotion to avocados. I decided to crisp some up with batter usually used for making Japanese fried chicken. To the batter, I added some julienned shiso leaf.
アボカドから揚げも入れたらおいしーかなーと思って、しそと準備した。

These crisped up to look like this:

揚げたら：

The sauce started to simmer:

ソースは沸けば

And simmered:

沸くほど

And it was finally ready to be blended up and run through the sieve.

濃くておいしくなる！

In the meantime, pasta's boiling, and I'm rolling out fresh tortillas with a shochu bottle.

それで、タコスに使トルティーヤを作っている。

Rotating two pans and one pot of boiling water, watching that my toaster oven avocado don't burn... Childish as the inspiration may have been, this meal's preparation is certainly not for kids.
子ども向きの食べ物だが、パスタ、トルティーヤ、アボカド。。。今の台所に子どもは禁止！

Okay: Add tobikko to the cream. Sear some scallops, and get prepared to assemble the tacos.

クリームにといっこ。ホタテを焼いて、準備ができた。

 First: the tortilla.

まずはトルティーヤ。

Then, crispy avocado.

それで、アボカド唐揚げ。

Tobikko cream linguine.

With a garnish of sliced cucumber, topped with seared scallops...

キュウリ、ホタテ. . .

And, what the heck: more tobikko!

. . . ともっともっととびっこ！

And then, finally...

やっと、子どものように手でタコスをつかんで . . .

I let my inner child destroy the taco.

食う！

I read about it, but had to try it for myself. Happily, I report that my idiosyncratic and fishy version was a success.
成功！

Even without tortillas, the pasta with tobikko cream sauce stands up very well on its own.

トルティーヤがなっくても、とびっこクリームパスタでもおいしいね。

Ah, the joys of indulging in a little culinary innocence. The cream and carbs may shave years off of my life, but the taste sensations just added that much more wisdom to my tongue.

子どもに聞く必要あるね。ごちそうさま！

Autumn #8: Bibimbap of Love and Pain / 秋＃８：愛と苦痛のビビンバップ

This greeted me at the supermarket today:
今日スーパーに入ったら、この挨拶で迎えた：

A bouquet of chili peppers! It felt like I was being courted by Mother Nature herself. And how could I refuse the great lady?
唐辛子に作られた花束！これで自然の摂理になんぱされた。

Of course I had to make a chili sauce. I got a modest blender and set to work seeding and blending the peppers.
もちろんチリソースを計画した。ちっちゃいミキサーを買って、唐辛子を混ぜた。

Everything seemed to be going well: I caramelized some black sugar and thought of what sweet heat this little sauce was going to bring into my life. I added the pepper puree (to which I had already added ginger and garlic), and was simmering this brew with a touch of soy sauce, mirin, and rice vinegar when the trouble began.
最初はうまくいった：黒砂糖をカラメルにして、それに唐辛子、ショウガ、ニンニクのペーストと少々の醤油、みりん、酢。でも、その時：

My hands started to burn. I thought perhaps I'd gotten them too close to the flame, so I put ice on them. That alleviated the sensation a bit, but as soon as I removed the cold, the burning began again. There didn't seem to be any external signs of a burn - Ah, but how could I forget? Mother Nature was the same bitch who brought about earthquakes and hurricanes; her little romantic overture was not without its painful side effects. The pepper juice on my hands was crippling them with pain.
手に燃えたのような痛みが始まった。火に近すぎたかな？でも外面で火傷はどこでも見えなかった。そうだ。地震と台風も与える自然からの贈り物にも思わぬ結果があったね。唐辛子のジュースはこの苦痛の原因であった。

At least the chili sauce turned out well, although I find it appropriate that it resembles fresh blood:
せめてチリソースはうまくできた。流れ血と似てるところも適当かも：

 After a few sessions of soaking my hands in milk, the pain subsided. By that time I felt that I'd completed an entire love affair, from my usual naive enthusiasm through to the pain of reality crushing my illusions. At least the delicious sauce was no illusion. I was able to recognize in the end that Mother Nature, like any other woman, just demands a little respect. Next time, I will come prepared to the battlefield of love. In the meantime, this household will respect the Hague Conventions on Warfare and avoid pepper spray.
 何回も牛乳に手を入れたら痛みを和らげた。まあ、自然の力を尊敬しなければね。





Now, to make a meal to go with this sauce!
でわ、ソースに合わせて料理を作ろう！

I thought I'd like to do a "bibimbap" of sorts. Of course it would be a freestyle fusion cheruteki invention. I marinated eggplant in a soy sauce, sake, garlic, sugar, sesame marinade. Then, I grilled maitake mushrooms and kabocha squash, sauteed fresh garlic stalks, steamed some greens, and cut some cucumbers and avocado. I finally sauteed my eggplant. I assembled all the various ingredients about a serving of rice like so:
チェル的なビビンパップはいかがですか。いいでしょうね。それで、なすを醤油、お酒、さとう、ニンニク、ごまのマリネードに漬けて、焼いた。舞茸、カボチャも焼いた。茎ニンニクを炒めて、キュウリとアボカドを切った。結局この材料をご飯の上にこのように載せた：

 

 Hm...something's missing... なんか、足れないね。

There we go! これだ！

Full of respect for the powers Mother Nature wields, both for good and ill, I tucked into my bowl. 自然の力に対する深く尊敬を込めて、いただきまーす！

All's well that ends well...in my belly.

ごちそうさま！