Located in the Tohoku region of Japan
There is a small village called "Komori"
Komori
Komori Seikadomo
It's a place away from the hustle and bustle of the city
It is surrounded by a large expanse of forest
The villagers depend on farming and farming to survive
All that is eaten and used is the fruit of one's own labor
Occasionally share it with three or two friends
Not pretentiously extravagant, but never
Ichiko, a girl, cannot fit into the hustle and bustle of Tokyo
Decided to stay in his hometown of Komori
The days flow quietly in the spring, summer, autumn and winter
It's christmas every year
It is also the day when Ichiko's mother will send a letter back every year
But there isn't much greeting on concise stationery
Often this is also the disappointment of the city
She misses her mother who is gentle and elegant in her memory
Ichiko and mother
I still remember Christmas in previous years
There is always a busy figure of my mother in the kitchen
There will also be a different guest at home
It was a foreign man with big eyes and a high nose bridge
Now think about it, it should be Mom's lover
He would flatter Ichiko by performing magic tricks
It made Ichiko, who was still on guard, laugh
Make the cold room instantly warm
Mother's foreign lover
In the midst of cheerful laughter, Mom's Christmas cake was also on the table
A white box wrapped in thick cream on the outside
After cutting, the inside is bright red and green
That's the most typical Christmas color
Cake
The red part is sweet rice wine made with red rice
The green part is even simpler, made with spinach
Pour both sample dishes into the same abrasive and bake
A freshly baked Christmas cake is ready
After many years, the city grew up
It was rare to talk to his friend Atai about his past
She knew how to make that cake
However, because the family has not grown red rice since then
It can only be replaced by black rice
Black rice
Heimi family grows every year
Its taste is sweeter than red rice
Ichiko created her own sweet rice wine made from black rice
Although the brewed color is dark black
But after adding sugar oil to wheat flour these excipients
Its color will turn into a very beautiful purple color
It looks no less than red rice wine
Purple and yellow are the most compatible colors
So Ichiko added a yellow pumpkin paste
Pumpkin paste
After making two colors into a cake paste
Then pour into the abrasive in turn and bake
Immediately after baking, place the expanded surface facing down
Keep all sides smooth
Finish with a silky and seductive white cream
A nice but different one
The "Christmas cake" is ready
Christmas cake from the city
In such a festival with food and meaning
How can you not share it with three or two friends?
Ichiko called out to her good girlfriend Noriko
Enjoy it with your friend Athai
This idyllic and sweet "Christmas gift"
Inside the house is a paradise full of laughter and warmth
Outside the house is a crystal clear and spotless fairytale world
Willow-like snowflakes fluttered down without alarm
It's not so much a climatic masterpiece of nature
It is more convincing to say that the snow elves are casting magic
Wear a thick blue cotton jacket
Wear a warm, chunky knit scarf
Ichiko
The "heavily armed" city is stepping on footprints of varying shades
Alone at the neighbor's grandmother's house
The kind grandmother took out the homemade noodle steamed buns
Warm hospitality to the city while enjoying it
At this time, the little sister who was writing her homework next to her
Suddenly, he asked what was the best food Ichiko had ever eaten
Asked by her
Ichiko's first thought was the natto-flavored glutinous rice balls
Natto flavored glutinous rice balls
Add sugar and soy sauce to the natto
Then immediately add the steaming glutinous rice balls
As a child, she was in elementary school
Hammer glutinous rice events are often held
Parents are busy preparing for the event
The children went digging natto together
Delicious glutinous rice and natto when ready
The little gluttons would circle around the table
Can't wait to taste the fruits of your labor
Little gluttons
That steaming rice cake
Transformed by the magical hands of the adults
It became a cute little sticky rice ball
Throw it into natto and wrap it in fragrant soy sauce and beans
Then eat it in your mouth while it's hot
The soft, sticky texture cracks in the taste buds
A rich fragrance blooms in the mouth
One after the other, there was never a feeling of not being able to eat enough
Komori's winter is filled with snowflakes every day
Most villagers prefer to nest in warm little nests
Look at the snow outside the house and drink hot tea in your hand
But there is one more thing beyond that
It's something they won't forget
That's to make delicious "frozen radish"
Make frozen radish
Cut the large white radish into two pieces
Then use a planer to scrape off the old skin on the outside
Cut longitudinally into long chunks and poke a hole and wear it with a rope
Put the strips of turnips you wear like drying clothes
Hang on an outdoor pole and freeze it at low temperatures
Dried radish
The turnips that have been dried in this way can be stored for at least one year
On weekdays, every family's favorite stew is in the stew
The appearance of frozen radish is indispensable
Cut the frozen radish into slices and pickle the herring together
Put in a pot and simmer with water
Stew
Plus a little bit of seasonal vegetables in season
The broth cooked in this way is fragrant
The plump radish is soaked in a rich soup
One bite is full of the fresh aroma of wanton escape
But let's say that this is a dish that can be dried and tasted
There must be soft sticky sweet persimmons
Beat persimmons
In the autumn, Ichiko will take Noriko along
Pull out a long bamboo pole and hang it on the hook
Beat down the hard persimmons that have not yet grown on the tree
Leave the tip peeling off the bitter skin
Then tie it with a rope and hang it under the eaves to dry
Dry persimmons
When you can't wait, you can pinch it with your hand
When I feel it get soft and become deflated
It's time to air-dried persimmons when they're done
In your spare time
Dried persimmons are delicious little snacks for untazziness
Sweet and soft glutinous one bite at a time
taste
It's the feeling of never being able to eat enough
When the weather is wet
Everyone will raise the stove in unison
Throw two large, sweet baked sweet potatoes into the stove
Then you can sit next to it while grilling the fire
While chatting and relaxing, wait for the baked sweet potatoes to come out of the oven
It's a happy and long process
Baked sweet potatoes
Tear open the outer layer of tin foil steaming
You don't need to bite with much force
The sweet and hot flesh dissolves on the tip of the tongue
That dense taste is cold in winter
The most consoling "medicine" for the soul
Stress must be quenched with sweets
Therefore, in the cold winter, the appearance of red beans is indispensable
Whether it's stuffed into the dough or the glutinous rice dough
Both are a very good option
Combine wheat flour salt baking powder with water and knead together
Cover with a cloth and let it ferment for an hour
The final rod is wrapped in red bean paste
Fry in a saucepan until browned on both sides
The tender and sweet red bean cake on the outside is ready
Alternatively, it can be steamed directly in a steamer
In that case, it is a red bean bun
Eat red bean buns
Take a bite of a hot bun in winter
It was as if he had been satisfied
Whenever it snows
Ichiko will especially want to eat "noodles"
Rub with water and wheat flour until as hard as an earlobe
Allow the dough to ferment well before tearing into thin slices
Tear it up and throw it into the broth and cook it
The noodles of the tendon are fused with delicious broth
Take a sip as you finish shoveling the snow belly grunt
You'll feel like it's the best food in the world
In the quiet days of the countryside
Bored Ichigo loves innovative food the most
She tried adding wheat bran (fu) to her favorite flour.
The so-called wheat bran is actually the outer skin of the wheat
Wheat bran noodles
After waking up the noodles, the market is not in a hurry to make noodles
Instead, some small dried fish were prepared
Dried shiitake mushrooms Carrots White radish burdock (bang)
Dried shiitake mushrooms, carrots, white radish
Taro Fried tofu slices Japanese cooking wine
Put it in the same pot and pour a pot full of water
Place on top of a freshly brewed stove and boil
By the time all this was done, the snow outside had stopped
The clear sky illuminates the white earth brightly
Ichiko, who was in a good mood, decided to go out for a walk
Wait for a turn to come back to her soup
Walk in the vast snowy fields that are empty
Looking back
The white snow was nothing but the footprints of Ichiko
Only traces of a naughty rabbit remained
Rabbit footprints
Such a beautiful place made Ichiko suddenly forget
Why exactly did you come back here
She's not because of how nice it is here
It's because you can't face the past and can't survive elsewhere
So she retreated to komori
Such an idea
Is it also an injustice to Komori?
It should not be such a helpless choice
After going around the city, I went home again
Noriko waited for her with a pot of curry
Noriko
Yesterday there was something unpleasant going on between them
Who expected that today Noriko would take the initiative to come to the door to apologize
The hearts of the people in the small countryside are so pure and simple
Because they are friends, they will take the initiative to bow their heads
Because they're friends, they don't want to lose
Because they are friends, they will forgive
Ichiko generously accepted Noriko's curry
Instead, he began to roll out the wheat bran noodles that had been awakened
A thin sheet of dough is thrown into the fire
Instantly swelled into a large dough ball
When it leaves the stove it becomes a thin dough cake again
That's the magic of this pie
It is the same practice that comes from India like curry
Crispy crepes with rich Indian curries
Taking a bite is exotic
After eating, the two girls went skiing outdoors
This is the most natural and convenient entertainment
They fell recklessly in the snow that covered the earth
Laughing and screaming to release the unhappiness of yesterday
At night the city is from the pickle jar
Pulled out his favorite pickled bracken
bracken
This is one of the few stored seasonal vegetables today
It is also a must-have item for every household every spring
Such wild vegetables can be seen everywhere in the mountains
However, since it is to be used for pickling and eating
It is best to have fern (jue) vegetables that have not yet flowered
Dust a little ash on the dust and soak it in water for the night
It can remove the bitter taste
Then spread a full layer of table salt
Spread with salt
The bracken marinated in this way tastes refreshing and delicious
It can be used as a stew and can also be used to make soup
Komori's villagers are industrious and down-to-earth
They get together every year to discuss farming
Where mismanagement is rampant, where pests and diseases are rampant
These are major events of concern to them
Because once Komori was just a forest
It is the older generation that has reclaimed wealth for everyone with their hands
Therefore, they should cherish and love this land even more
What is to cherish life
How to live a simple and tasteful life in a porridge and a meal
And how to combine effort with calm
The enterprising posture can also be so quiet and calm
"A person should also love himself"
For everyone in a mediocre life
People who strive for not to be willing to be mediocre!