Yamagata Dashi Somen & Other Obon Recipes
In Japan, mid-August is time to celebrate Obon, a multi-day Buddhist festival that honors the spirits of the ancestors, much like the Mexican Day of the Dead. Huge numbers of city people travel to their hometowns to visit their family graves and altars, where they update the departed on what’s happening in their lives and present offerings of food for their spirits. These might be a share of the family dinner, but there are also less-edible, symbolic offerings, like shoryo uma, which are eggplants and cucumbers with legs make out of toothpicks or bamboo skewers –these ‘spirit horses’ are meant to carry the ancestors’ spirits home for the celebration. Local communities, large and small, hold bon-odori dances, and light bonfires and lanterns. And where there are festivals, there is festival food.
As in all Buddhist rituals, the food offerings for the ancestors are always vegetarian. Along with the favorite dishes of the departed, popular choices include vegetable tempura and cold somen, which are very thin wheat noodles. Festival foods, on the other hand, are the standard summer foods sold by professional vendors who show up wherever people gather. This includes traditional foods, like rice dumplings, grilled chicken skewers, grilled whole squids, and sweet bean paste filled pastries, but also more modern offerings, like corn dogs, chocolate-covered bananas, French fries with seaweed flakes, cotton candy, and grilled corn on the cob.
Abby Schweber
Yamagata Dashi Somen Ingredients
In most of Japan, somen is served simply, topped with just finely sliced spring onions or toasted sesame seeds and served with a dipping sauce. In Yamagata Prefecture, they top it with a relish called Yamagata dashi that celebrates the produce of the season: eggplant, cucumber, and herbs. With the connection to the eggplant and cucumber of the ‘spirit horses,’ it’s become a standard Obon offering. In the traditional version, still popular in Yamagata, the eggplant is basically raw, but elsewhere cooks often add either rice vinegar or citrus juice to pickle it. Making it in America, I use a few substitutions: ginger instead of ginger-flower buds, angel hair pasta instead of somen noodles, and basil instead of shiso leaves. The flavors and textures are so close that I can hardly tell the difference. To refresh leftover noodles, immerse them in an ice-water bath.
½ lb. small or medium eggplants* (smaller eggplants are more tender and have a better texture when pickled)
½ lb. cucumber*
1 jalapeno or shishito pepper* (optional)
2 tsp. salt
10 basil leaves*
½ tsp. ginger
1 Tbs. soy sauce
2 Tbs. lime juice or rice vinegar
1 lb. angel hair pasta
*These ingredients can be found at the Harrisonburg Farmers Market
Method
Dissolve salt in 3 cups of water.
Cut the cucumber in half the long way and remove any large seeds. Cut cucumber and eggplant into ¼” dice. Add eggplant and cucumber to salted water, put a plate on top to keep the vegetables submerged, and set aside for at least half an hour (see photo below).
Mince or grate ginger. Finely chop basil. Remove seeds and finely chop pepper, if using.
Squeeze as much liquid as you can out of the eggplant and cucumber. Mix with ginger, basil, pepper (if using), vinegar or lime juice, and soy sauce.
Just before you are ready to eat, cook pasta according to package directions. Rinse in very cold water, then drain gently, keeping the noodles wet so they won’t stick. If your tap water isn’t cold enough to really chill the noodles, add a few ice cubes and swish them around. Serve topped with the relish.
Negima Yakitori (Japanese Chicken and Spring Onion Skewers) Ingredients
The technique of grilling meat on skewers originated in the Middle East and reached Japan during the time of the Mongol Empire, as the Mongols hired Arab administrators to organize their operations throughout the empire. While the Mongol invasion of Japan was not successful, they did bring some of their food culture.
1.5 lbs. boneless chicken thighs*
1 cup teriyaki sauce (see note below)
8 spring onions* with stems at least 1/3” thick
½ tsp. salt
Bamboo skewers
*These ingredients can be found at the Harrisonburg Farmers Market
Method
Soak skewers for at least 30 minutes. (Put something on them to keep them submerged.)
Start your charcoal, you want steady, low flames.
Cut chicken into 1” strips the short way. Cut white and light green parts of spring onion into 1” lengths. Thread skewers, folding chicken pieces in half so the skewer goes through them twice, and alternating chicken and spring onion so they line up at 1” thick. Lightly salt on both sides.
Pour half of the teriyaki sauce into a small bowl and set near your grill with a basting brush.
Grill skewers, turning once a minute, until browned on both sides, about 8-10 minutes.
Continue to grill, basting with the teriyaki sauce and turning frequently until it starts to caramelize on both sides, 2-3 more minutes.
Serve with the rest of the teriyaki sauce on the side.
You can buy a commercial teriyaki sauce or make your own:
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup mirin
¼ cup sake
2 Tbs. sugar
Stir together all ingredients in a small pot until the sugar dissolves.
Bring to a boil on medium heat, then reduce to medium low and simmer until it thickens slightly, about 10-12 minutes.
Yaki Tomorokoshi (Japanese Street Corn)
Corn was introduced to Japan by the US military during the post-WWII Occupation and is eaten many ways, including as a common pizza topping. Whole ears of corn are grilled on open flames and basted with a soy-based glaze at summer festivals.
2 ears of corn*
1 Tbs. mirin or dry sherry
2 tsp. sugar
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. butter (if cooking indoors)
*These ingredients can be found at the Harrisonburg Farmers Market
Method
Remove husk and silk from corn. Place in a microwave steamer and microwave for 3 minutes. If
you don’t have a steamer, wrap each ear in plastic wrap, place both wrapped ears on a plate,
and microwave for 3 minutes.
Combine mirin or sherry, sugar, and soy sauce in a small bowl, stirring until the sugar dissolves
completely.
For indoor cooking: Melt the butter in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Add the corn to the pan and leave in place until the kernels touching the pan are well browned and starting to blister, then turn and repeat until it is browned all over. Turn the heat down to medium, add the glaze to the pan, and continue cooking, turning the corn frequently, until most of the liquid is gone.
For outdoor cooking on charcoal: Place the corn over low flames. Turn every couple of minutes until there is browning all over, about 10 minutes, then alternate basting and turning the corn until it is well-glazed, 2-3 more minutes.
