Umami Mart

It’s been hot in Berkeley lately and crunchy cucumbers have been a go-to for cooling down and feeling refreshed in my kitchen. Luckily, Japanese cucumbers are easy enough to get your hands on in these parts, but if you can’t find them where you live, you can use Persian cucumbers as a substitute. Persian cucumbers […]

Warning: DO eat this at home before taking it out into the world! Weigh the social risks! You may momentarily lose some friends while eating this salad because the smell will clear the room. Trust me, I’ve tried it. Daikon is affordable and cooling when fresh and raw. The satisfying crunch coupled with the spicy […]

My first encounter with phyllo roll — Wow. Cinnamon-spiced chicken with raisins, chickpeas and almonds were listed to describe Chicken Cilicia, my favorite on La Méditeranée‘s four-roll platter. My taste buds wondered what I’d been doing all my life before I discovered that poultry, nuts and baking spices compose a stellar trio. It would take […]

As you may know, we recently bought a country house in the deep woods of Connecticut. We now own 9 acres of land, and my imagination goes wild with what to do — from building a chicken coop to a greenhouse, to planting yuzu and plum trees — an all Japanese vegetable garden. Unfortunately these […]

I’m sure Umami Mart readers know about mirin and have used it in cooking, but may not be sure about what it is exactly. Culinary experts in the U.S. believe that mirin is a mix of sake and lots of sugar. Sadly, this is incorrect. Yes, it’s sweet, but not just syrupy sweet — mirin […]

Shopping for the freshest seafood just got easier with another fish market that opened in the People’s Republic of Berkeley. Fish is still my favorite thing to eat for dinner because it’s easy and so, so delicious. Grilled, simmered or baked, fish will let you do anything to it and it’ll adapt. But, by far, […]

  Aisha Sharpe and Willy Shine, the founders of Contemporary Cocktails, created this refreshing springtime drink. The name is both a reference to the classic Manhattan area code as well as a clever play on proportions. 212 2 oz Partida Reposado Tequila 1 oz Aperol 2 oz Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice Tools: shaker, strainer Glassware: […]

The #2 drink in the PDT Cocktail Book is the #3 Cup. If you like the Pimm’s Cup, then you cannot pass up this one, which appeared on the PDT menu in the spring of 2009. Created by former PDT bartender Gerry Corcoran, the drink’s name is a reference to the now defunct Pimm’s No. […]

  “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao-tzu And thus begins the first step. The PDT Project officially kicks off with the #8 cocktail, a boozy tequila-based delight. Created in the fall of 2008 by former PDT bartender Daniel Eun (who’s now busy studying law in California), the #8 […]

Not that I’ve ever beaten anyone up, but I think macaron-making is somewhat similar to the mentality of a wifebeater’s wife. You get so fed up with the multiple failures, from all the physical and mental abuse, and you want to leave him, but when you are about to say goodbye for good, he becomes […]