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The Onigiri Society is preparing to open their first onigiri shop on September 30th 2016. The shop specializing in onigiri, Japanese rice balls, is called Gyu!, and will be located on the 2nd floor of the well known Tokyo shopping destination, Laforet Department Store in the trending district of Harajuku, famous for fashion and pop culture.
There are two main heating methods for rice cookers, with two pricing tiers.
Electrothermal Heating (“Maicom”) Rice Cooker (economical option)
In Japan, it’s known as a maicom rice cooker, short for micro-computer. The maicom rice cooker has an electric heater in the bottom of the pot, and the heat isn’t distributed well. Compared to an IH rice cooker, the heat is weaker and it often used for small size rice cooker for singles. Larger machines, like 5.5 cups and up, are being produced less.
Determining what size of rice cooker you need is the first thing to consider when shopping for a machine. When measuring rice, Japanese people use a unit of measurement called gou (合), roughly 180ml. Gou is part of the shakkanhou (尺貫法) system of measurement, a traditional system that is no longer commonly used, but maintains its legacy as the standard for measuring both rice and sake. When you see the term “cup” in a rice cooker's description, it is likely 1 gou, not a metric cup (250ml) typically used in cooking and baking.
(Also, please note that 1 cup in modern Japan is equal to only 200ml, so please sure to adjust your recipes while cooking in Japan, and likewise if working off a Japanese recipe in the west.)
The shakkanhou system works like this:
One of the most frequently asked question we get during our onigiri-making workshops is "Which is the best rice cooker?". So, we will explain some points about rice cookers to help you make the best decision when shopping for yours.
As it is with many other products in this modern era, when it comes to rice cooker options, we have too many choices. If you visit Amazon.com, you will find 180 pages for this category. Each brand emphasizes the unique benefits of their products, and with prices ranging from around $20 to over $1,000 for one machine, it really becomes difficult to make an informed decision.
Onigiri Society in Tokyo debuts in Canada by launching original Canadian Onigiri at a sold-out foodie event as next global project following Expo Milano and Doha.
General Incorporated Association Onigiri Society (located in Tokyo, Japan; Yusuke Nakamura, Representative Director) known as the performer and exhibitor at Expo Milano 2015 is pleased to announce the launch of “Local Onigiri” for Canada as its 3rd global project after the success in Milan, Italy and Doha, Qatar. The association aims to globally spread information and an appreciation for Onigiri as a Japanese fast, slow, and soul food.
Although a Japanese winter has nothing on a Canadian winter in terms of actual below freezing temperatures, double pane windows and central heating are rare in the land of the rising sun, so it’s still pretty rough. Difficult winters aside, both countries enjoy four distinct seasons that should be celebrated. One spring tradition that the Japanese have really nailed is hanami, or cherry blossom viewing. Hanami can be done anywhere a sakura, cherry blossom tree, is in bloom, but people often gather in parks with many trees to sit under. Popular spots in Tokyo include Ueno Park, Yoyogi Park, Shinjuku Gyoen (Imperial Garden), and along the Meguro River. Hanami is a simple pleasure, but there are a few key things to bring along in order to make the most of your time with the blossoms.