by Noriko Nakane  “In Praise of Vegetables” Yasairaisan Series Ａ. “Live the life you Love” B. “Fukiyose 2018″ C. “Zucchini Sticks” —————————————————————————— A. “Live the Life you Love” A. “Live the Life you Love:  Part 1” A. “Live the Life you Love:  Part 2” A. “Live the Life you Love:  Part 3” A. “Live the Life…

by Elizabeth Andoh ODEN おでん Japan’s iconic ODEN is a slow-simmered, hodgepodge: fish sausages, daikon radishes, octopus, potatoes, boiled eggs, konnyaku (a broth-absorbing, speckled aspic processed from a tuber vegetable), and all sorts of tōfu. On the first chilly nights of autumn, oden is welcomed back to the family dinner table, pub-like izakaya menus and…

There are a few places in the world that are truly enchanting. One such place is a town of just 500 people that has touched my life and the lives of many people I have taken there. It is a town near the Sea of Japan in Shimane Prefecture, in a long narrow valley, tucked…