Japanese Bread Sandwich

SIMON DALY wrote . . . . . . . . .

Japanese-style sando have rightly taken their place in the global pantheon of sandwiches. (The Japanese terminology is simply a shortening of the English.)
Thick, fluffy shokupan (milk bread) is perfect when paired with soft fillings, such as the famous fruit and cream sando, the late Anthony Bourdain’s favorite tamago (egg salad) sando and the equally popular crispy katsu (cutlet) sando.

Pardon a mad thought, but what if the next big trend in sando fillings was just crisped bread?

The definitive guide to 19th-century Victorian British domesticity was “Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management.” First published in 1861, it expanded its pages with subsequent republishings for nearly 50 years. An 1877 addition to the classic 2,000-page tome was a “Toast Sandwich” — dubiously described as being “very tempting to the appetite of an invalid.”

This is not a sandwich made between slices of toast, nor is it a toasted sandwich. What is being described is a toasted slice of bread, seasoned with salt and pepper, that is then sandwiched between two untoasted slices (the original recipe has the added option of cold cuts, though the dish has since been reimagined by the likes of three-Michelin-star chef Heston Blumenthal, who incorporates bone marrow and other lavish ingredients).

Today, we use Mrs. Beeton’s idea to add texture to the humble tamago sando. Though perfect as they are, by nature, they lack a distinguishing textural element: the satisfying crunch of a single slice of toast.

Though Japan’s egg salad sandwiches are as close to perfection as you can get, they lack a distinguishing textural element: the satisfying crunch of a single slice of toast.
Though Japan’s egg salad sandwiches are as close to perfection as you can get, they lack a distinguishing textural element: the satisfying crunch of a single slice of toast. |

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The Recipe

Serves 2

Cook time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

4 eggs
50 milliliters Kewpie mayonnaise
6 slices shokupan
50 grams butter (can be substituted with more mayonnaise)
Salt and pepper
Optional: parsley or celery leaves, chopped

Directions:

1. Fill a small pot with water, bring to boil, then add your eggs for nine minutes. Place them immediately into a bath of cold water, then peel while still warm. A tip: Slightly older eggs will peel easier than fresh ones.

2. Once peeled and cooled, cut them in half, scooping out the yolks to mix with your mayonnaise until thick and smooth. With a sharp knife, finely cube the egg whites, then mix with the yolk and mayonnaise blend. Season with salt and pepper, optionally splitting and mixing in chopped parsley or celery leaves into half.

3. If you prefer your sando without the crust, now is the time to cut them off. Otherwise, melt your butter in a frying pan, then add two slices of shokupan, pressing firmly with a spatula to squash to half the original thickness. Turn once the bread is golden and cooked on both sides. Alternatively, spread mayonnaise on the bread and fry, though keep at low heat so as not to burn. If you’re very pressed for time, just put these slices in a toaster.

4. Assemble the sandwich by spreading the egg mixture on two untoasted slices of shokupan and then sandwiching the fried or toasted bread between. Cut into triangles and serve with salad.

Source: The Japan Times

 

 

 

 

SUMIDA AQUARIUM Afternoon Tea

The Restaurant – NAMIKI667, Hyatt Centric Ginza Tokyo

 

 

 

 

Urban Gardening May Improve Human Health from Microbial Exposure That Boosts the Immune System

A collaborative study between the University of Helsinki, Natural Resources Institute Finland and Tampere University demonstrated that a one-month indoor gardening period increased the bacterial diversity of the skin and was associated with higher levels of anti-inflammatory molecules in the blood.

In his doctoral thesis, Mika Saarenpää investigated, among other things, how microbial exposure that promotes the health of urban residents, particularly enhancing their immune regulation, could be increased easily through meaningful activities integrated into everyday life.

Previously, it has been shown that contact with nature-derived, microbially rich materials alters the human microbiota. In Saarenpää’s study, research subjects committed to urban gardening, a natural activity for them, which may result in long-term changes in the functioning of the immune system.

“One month of urban indoor gardening boosted the diversity of bacteria on the skin of the subjects and was associated with higher levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines in the blood. The group studied used a growing medium with high microbial diversity emulating the forest soil,” says Doctoral Researcher Mika Saarenpää from the Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki.

In contrast, the control group used a microbially poor peat-based medium. According to Saarenpää, no changes in the blood or the skin microbiota were seen. Peat is the most widely used growing medium in the world, and the environmental impact of its production is strongly negative. Moreover, Saarenpää’s research indicates that it does not bring health benefits similar to a medium mimicking diverse forest soil.

“The findings are significant, as urbanisation has led to a considerable increase in immune-mediated diseases, such as allergies, asthma and autoimmune diseases, generating high healthcare costs. We live too ‘cleanly’ in cities,” Saarenpää says.

“We know that urbanisation leads to reduction of microbial exposure, changes in the human microbiota and an increase in the risk of immune-mediated diseases. This is the first time we can demonstrate that meaningful and natural human activity can increase the diversity of the microbiota of healthy adults and, at the same time, contribute to the regulation of the immune system.”

Urban gardening is an effortless way to improve health

Microbial exposure can be increased easily and safely at home throughout the year. The space and financial investment required is minor: in the study, the gardening took place in regular flower boxes, while the plants cultivated, such as peas, beans, mustards and salads, came from the shop shelf. Changes were observed already in a month, but as the research subjects enjoyed the gardening, many of them announced that they would continue the activity and switch to outdoor gardening in the summer.

According to Saarenpää, microbe-mediated immunoregulation can, at its best, reduce the risk of immune-mediated diseases or even their symptoms. If health-promoting microbial exposure could be increased at the population level, the healthcare costs associated with these diseases could be reduced and people’s quality of life improved.

“We don’t yet know how long the changes observed in the skin microbiota and anti-inflammatory cytokines persist, but if gardening turns into a hobby, it can be assumed that the regulation of the immune system becomes increasingly continuous,” Saarenpää notes.

Saarenpää considers it important to invest in children’s exposure to nature and microbes, as the development of the immune system is at its most active in childhood. Planter boxes filled with microbially rich soil could be introduced at kindergartens, schools and, for example, hospitals, especially in densely built urban areas. For urban gardening to bring health benefits instead of risks, the skin of the hands in particular must be unbroken, and the inhalation of dusty growing media avoided.

“My research emphasises the dependence of our health on the diversity of nature and that of soil in particular. We are one species among others, and our health depends on the range of other species. Ideally, urban areas would also have such a diverse natural environment that microbial exposure beneficial to health would not have to be sought from specifically designed products,” Saarenpää sums up.

Source: University of Helsinki

 

 

 

 

Brunch Eggs and Bacon Bake

Ingredients

8-oz pkg bacon, about 10 strips
3 plum tomatoes
1/2 small red onion
1-1/2 cups grated old cheddar or your favourite full-flavoured cheese, about 6 oz
1-1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (optional)
6 eggs

Method

1. Set a large, wide frying pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add bacon, then reduce heat to medium. It’s all right if some slices overlap as bacon shrinks as it cooks. Cook, turning often, just until bacon is lightly browned, from 6 to 8 minutes. Remove bacon as it is cooked to a cutting board. Pat with paper towels to remove excess fat. Coarsely chop.
2. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Lightly coat or spray with vegetable oil 6 ovenproof custard cups that each hold about 3/4 cup. Or coat a 9-inch pie plate. Slice tomatoes into quarters, then core and remove seeds. Finely chop onion.
3. Sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese over bottom of dishes, dividing evenly. Arrange tomatoes overtop. Drizzle Worcestershire, if using, over tomatoes. Break one egg into each dish or in a layer overtop cheese and bacon in pie plate. Pierce each yolk with a fork just to break, but do not stir. Sprinkle with onion, then bacon and remaining 1 cup grated cheese.
4. Bake, uncovered, in centre of 350°F (180°C) oven until eggs are set and cheese is melted, from 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven. Let stand 10 minutes. Turn out onto individual dinner plates or slice into thick wedges. Serve warm or at room temperature. Round out brunch with fruit salad and English muffins.

Makes 6 servings.

Source: Chatelaine magazine

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