Ramen Love

Ramen is one of Japan's staple food. Ranging from cheap to a little bit pricey, you can find a loooot of ramen shops everywhere. But I wouldn't dare eat it on a sweltering day, which makes ramen one of our winter faves. We love how ramen can warm us up on a cold winter's day. We like to go to this place called Kourakuen to have our fix. Winter's about to end and I thought I'd compile the ramen pictures we took (and ate) this winter season.

Tsukemen

Shio Ramen

Karashi Niku Miso Yasai Ramen

Goma Miso Char Siu Ramen

Ramen experience isn't complete without Gyoza.

Miso Ramen

Aside from Gyoza, Chahan is also one of our favourite "extras" when eating ramen.

Miso Negi Ramen

Tsukemen Seto(Set)

I love miso ramen, and the tsukemen, it's hubby's favorite.

See you next winter, Ramen!

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Cheap Eats We Love

Here are some of the cheap restaurants we patronize in Japan. These are not gourmet but definitely tasty, filling and most importantly, affordable. All items are below ¥650.

Obento

Hotto Motto is a famous takeaway bento chain. They offer a wide selection of affordable bento style-meals.

Sukiyaki Bento ¥500

Sukiyaki Bowl ¥590

Gyudon

Sukiya is one of the largest Gyudon chains in Japan. They also have curry and breakfast sets for as low as ¥300.

Chizu Gyudon (Three-Cheese (Red Cheddar, Egmont & Mozzarella) Beef Bowl) ¥340

Yakitoridon (Charcoal-grilled Chicken Bowl) ¥390

 Tonjiru (Pork Miso Soup) ¥150

Udon

Marugame Seimen is our favourite udon chain. You can choose whether you want your noodles cold or hot. Get a tempura or two, then pile your udon with tenkasu (tempura crumbs) and negi (Welsh onion)!

Mentai Ankake Udon (regular serving) ¥480

Toro Tama Udon (large serving) ¥480

Yasai Kakiage (Vegetable Tempura) ¥130

Kashiwaten (Chicken Tempura) ¥120

Gyudon & Udon

If you want both, you can go to Nakau. 

Gyudon & Udon Set ¥500
Karaage 3pcs (Japanese Fried Chicken) ¥100
Tonjiru ¥180
Tea is free

Ramen
If you want ramen, then go to Kourakuen.

Tonkotsu Kotteri Chashumen (pork bone soup/braised pork belly) ¥619
Ni Tamago (soft-boiled egg) ¥105
Gyoza (pot stickers) ¥210
Tsukemen (dipping ramen) ¥390
Chahan (friend rice) ¥294

Sushi
Who doesn't love 105円 sushi?! There are several hyaku en sushi bars in Japan but Sushiro is the best for us.

Broiled Salty Lemon Shrimp/ Red Shrimp/ Shrimp & Avocado/Grilled Salmon with radish
Salmon/Sea Urchin/Ebi Tempura Maki/Salmon
Maguro/Salmon Roe/Salmon and Basil & Cheese/Cuttlefish & Okra
¥105 each

Washoku

Shokudo is a cafeteria-style restaurant where you can eat homemade Japanese food.

Sukiyaki ¥230
Yasai Tame ¥168
Grilled Saba ¥250
Rice (M) ¥147
Tonjiru ¥180

Chukka

Gyoza no Osho is a Japanese restaurant that serves gyoza and affordable chinese-style food.

Pork Steamed Soup Buns ¥230
Pork Siumai ¥230
Nira Reba (Liver & Garlic Chives Stir-fry) ¥450
Crab Omelette on Rice ¥380

Italian

The cheapest Italian familia restaurant in Japan is Saizeriya. 

Shrimp Salad ¥459
Cream Corn Soup ¥149
Drink Bar (all-you-can-drink) ¥180
Grilled Escargot ¥399
Grilled Green Mussels with Vegetable Salsa ¥399
Grilled Spicy Chicken ¥299
Grilled Chicken with Vegetable Salsa ¥499
Spaghetti al Nero di Seppia ¥499

See? Who wouldn't love Japan's cheap eats?

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

i MOCHI much!

I'm a mochi girl

In the mochi world

Chewy and elastic

It's fantastic..

Did you just sing it? Haha! Lately, I've been obsessed with these fluffy Japanese confection called Mochi (Japanese rice cake). My husband now calls me mochi girl because I always find myself drawn to mochi stalls and mochi sections of the supermarket. Thanks to my Japanese friend, Yuki, who teaches me these things. I'm loving Japanese food more and more because of her. Here are some of the mochis I ate the last two weeks.

Sakura mochi (the one with the leaf and yes, you eat the leaf too) and Ichigo Milk Daifuku (instead of red bean filling, this one has strawberry cream inside) 

Dorayaki with Shiratama (pancake-like patty with red bean filling and white dumpling on top), Uguisu Mochi (the green one with green powder), Sanshoku Dango (three-coloured dumplings)

Kushi Dango(left, plain), Mitarashi Dango (right, with sweet & salty sauce)

Yomogi Yaki Mochi (green), Yaki Mochi

Ichigo Daifuku (mochi stuffed with sweet bean filling & strawberry)

Do you like mochi?

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Seria

Seria is also a 100 yen shop like Daiso, CanDo & Orange. I prefer Seria than any other 100 yen shops because IMHO I find the quality of items better than the others. Whenever I need to go to a 100 yen shop, I always tell myself to stick to my shopping list and just buy the things that I really need but I always fail to do so. I went to Seria to pick up a couple of things today but ended up buying more than expected AGAIN! Here are the items that I bought:

Look at how cute these cotton swabs are. One thing about 100 yen shops is that they never fail to offer cute and colorful stuff.

Husband bought this cord tube. If you have a lot of cords going on behind your tv or computer racks, this helps bind them altogether.

Bought these towels for the kitchen.

We ran out of chopsticks. This pack contains 40 chopsticks. Daiso has a better offer though (60 chopsticks/pack).

I'm not so picky when it comes to hair accessories. I don't care about the brand as long as it does the job. Got some ponytail holder, hair ties and a hair donut.

I love Etude House' Juicy Cocktail gradation nail. I have all the sets and they're the ones that I always use but I saw these nail polishes and decided to pick up a few to try. Green glitter nail polish in the middle and then I picked up 2 colors from the polishes that says it topped the 2012 Cosme rankings. I also bought some ribbon nail stickers.

And lastly, hubby bought this ipad stand.

How about you? Which 100 yen shop do you often go to? What do you love most about 100 yen shops?

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Almost spring..

You know it's almost springtime in Japan when sakura-flavored treats start popping up everywhere. Can't wait to try these goodies!

Haagen Dazs released 2 flavors, Sakura & Rose, for their 30th anniversary.

Starbucks' spring 2014 offering.

Do you like spring and sakura too?

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Patatim

It's been years since we've had pata. The husband doesn't like it but today when we were deciding on what to cook, I suggested pata and he agreed. The last time I cooked Patatim, I used banana blossoms which he didn't like (yes, he is quite the picky eater) so I used bok choy this time around. Here's my take on Patatim.

Ingredients:

1 kilo pata (pork leg)

1 small onion

2 cloves garlic

1 star anise

1 bay leaf

1/2 cup soy sauce

600 ml pineapple juice

1/4 cup brown sugar

peppercorns

1 tbsp cornstarch diluted in 1 tbsp water

1 bundle bok choy

water

Procedures:

1. Put-in the sliced pork leg in a pot. Pour enough water to cover the meat then let it boil for 15 mins. Discard the water.

2. Put-in the pineapple juice, soy sauce, garlic, onion, brown sugar, star anise, bay leaf, peppercorns and water just enough to cover the meat. 

3.  Simmer for 1 hour (or cook in pressure cooker for 30 minutes) or until the meat is tender and almost falling of the bone.

4. Add the diluted cornstarch. Let it boil until the sauce thickens

5. Place the bokchoy in and simmer for a couple of minutes.

6. Serve and enjoy!

He didn't like bok choy and told me he prefers banana blossoms. Whaaat?!

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Pancakes Galore

Do you love pancakes? These make-ahead pancakes are perfect. Just whip up, let cool then freeze. Breakfast in an instant for lazybones like me. Check these pancake recipes out.

Oreo Pancakes

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

Cookie Butter Pancakes

Peanut Butter Pancakes

Pancakes overload

What kind of pancakes do you love?

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Valentine's Day Frappuccino 2014

One of the things that I look forward to in Japan is the seasonal offerings of Starbucks. They have Chocolate Pretzel Mocha Frappuccino for this year's Valentine's Day. Out of all the seasonal offerings, this is by far my most favorite! I had it twice in a week which has never happened before!

I got a Venti to go for ¥570

This frappe is made out of mocha blended with ice then topped with chocolate whipped cream, crushed almonds, chocolate chips and pretzels (lots of them!), drizzle of chocolate syrup and a fancy pretzel to give it a love vibe.


xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Banana Babanana

I got overripe bananas that I don't want to go to waste. I usually make banana muffins out of it but I don't feel like doing it today so I thought this recipe would be easy and nice. This makes thin and chewy pancakes that me and my husband really love. Thick and fluffy pancakes are fun once in a while but we are not fans. Here's the recipe.

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon white sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup milk

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 ripe bananas, mashed

Procedures:

1. Combine flour, white sugar, baking powder and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, mix together egg, milk, vegetable oil and bananas.

3. Stir flour mixture into banana mixture; batter will be slightly lumpy.

4. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour the batter onto the griddle.

5. Cook until pancakes are golden brown on both sides.

6. Serve hot and enjoy.

Thin & Chewy Banana Pancakes

What do you do with your overripe bananas?

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Rise and shine!

It's breakfast time! It's been a while since I last whipped up something. I'm a novice when it comes to cooking/baking but it's something that I've always loved doing. I love to try new recipes & I sell cakes & pastries when I have the time. Since my pregnancy mishap, I haven't done anything productive. I was hiding and sulking all the time. I'm feeling much better now. Thanks to my husband & BFF who never failed to give me love, support & encouragement.

I wanted to do something out of my english muffins and since I've been craving for french toast, I thought why not combine the two. This favorite recipe is from Allrecipes.com.

FLUFFY FRENCH TOAST

Ingredients:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

1 pinch salt

3 eggs

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp white sugar

12 thick slices bread

Procedures:

1. Measure flour into a large mixing bowl. Slowly whisk in the milk.

2. Whisk in the salt, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla extract and sugar until smooth.

3. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium heat.

4. Soak bread slices in mixture until saturated.

5. Cook bread on each side until golden brown.

6. Serve hot and enjoy.

English Muffin French Toast

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Mommy to an angel

The start of my year is terrible. We've been wanting to have a baby for almost 7 years. We were so happy when we found out we have one on the way but after 4 weeks, I had a miscarriage. It was so painful that I didn't want to talk to anyone even my best friend. I hated seeing my friends' profiles; pregnant photos & photos of their kids. There was so much hate that I don't want to see people happy. I kept asking why. Why me when there are other women who just don't want to have a child. I thought no one understands me so I have to get away from everything and avoid everyone. Even my relationship with my husband is suffering. We had a fight and he told me that I have been dealing with things the wrong way. He told me that no problem, no matter how vast, should come between us and God and I should still be faithful no matter what. I am so lucky that I have a husband that is so strong. He's been so patient with me and kept reminding me that God has better plans for us that's why this one didn't work out. Without him I would have been so consumed with pain and hatred. I can say I am better now. I am trying my best to be happy despite pain.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (NLT)

17 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥

Konnichiwa!

Happy New Year! Welcome to my blog!

This blog is almost 2 years old and it contains nothing! Arrrgh! This is one of my frustrations. I've been meaning to update this for the longest time but I can't seem to find the urge to do it. Initially, the plan was to create a food blog but then I thought that an online journal is better. I'm gonna try again this year and see what I can do. 

Thanks for reading! Yoroshiku onegaishimasu! <3

photo from
shop.plaza.rakuten.co.jp

xoxo,
♥Bruhkz♥