Nagaokakyo

This is the draincover for the city of Nagaoka, the place that was briefly the capital of Japan before it moved to Kyoto. The design shows bamboo and bamboo shoots (takenoko) a major product of the area.

The hills behind the town are covered almost exclusively in bamboo and there are plenty of trails and small roads that let you walk through the area.

I have an earlier post on takenoko here

Whereas we don't maintain the bamboo in any way, other than harvesting the root and the poles, here the bamboo is cultivated.

One method seems to be layering rice straw with soft earth. In places this has built up to a depth of 2 meters with narrow paths between.

The bamboo sculptures at Komorikate Shrine were popular with you, so here is a close-up of the tiger, made completely out of bamboo save for the glass eyes....

April harvest. Takenoko, bamboo shoots

It's takenoko season!! The shoots of new Giant Bamboo are now poking up from the ground and free food is to be had for the taking.

The best time to harvest is early morning following a rain. Look for shoots no more than a few centimetres in height. Any bigger and they are too tough.

Dig out the soil around the shoots down about 10 cms and cut. Most Japanese use a Japanese pick which has a sharp blade on one side, but I used a small hatchet with no trouble. The above photo is about 20 minutes worth of work.

Strip away the outer layers and trim the base and tips.

Preparation should be done as soon after harvesting as possible as the shoots quickly become tough and bitter. Before cooking the shoots need some preparation. Most people boil the shoots in water with nuka (rice bran) and a few red peppers, though if you can't easily get rice bran then boiling the shoots and changing the water twice works as well to remove the acridity.

Once drained and washed the shoot can now be cooked. Takenoko can be made into pickles, takenoko gohan, rice cooked with bamboo shoots, is also popular, but a good way is to boil the shoots in a mixture of water, soy sauce, sake, and fish stock.

My favorite way to use them is in Thai curry,.... a little to spicy for most japanese. Tonights supper.... made with eggplants, tomatoes and peppers out of the freezer from last years garden. There is no doubt that the tastiest food is free food!!!