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Explore all of the upcoming programs and events at the Center.
Spring 2021 Wagashi Sweets Virtual Cooking Workshop
Sunday, March 14, 2021
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Instructors: Larry Sokyo Tiscornia and Kimika Soko Takechi
$7 Center Members, $10 General Public
Connect via Zoom; Meeting ID and password to be issued upon registration
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Join us for a virtual Zoom Wagashi (traditional Japanese sweets) Workshop! The workshop theme will be mushimanju, a steamed wheat flour bun filled with sweet bean paste. Step by step visual instruction will be provided over Zoom. Easy to follow recipes will also be provided before the workshop. Participants will be able to follow along as the sweets are being made if they wish. Participants will be able to show their finished sweets at the end of the workshop. There will also be time for participant questions and answers.
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Sign up for our online cooking webinar with chef Kenji Yokoo and learn how to make temari sushi for the Japanese Girls’ Day holiday in March!
Sunday, March 21, 2021
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
$7 Center Members / $10 General Public
Connect via Zoom; Meeting ID and password to be issued upon registration
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Chef Kenji Yokoo loves making temari sushi (or temarizushi) because it is a very festive and creative way to serve sushi. Temari sushi is traditionally served at Hinamatsuri (Japanese Girl’s Day celebrated annually on March 3) but is perfect for any occasion. This type of sushi is named after “temari,” which literally means “hand ball,” and refers to the colorful thread balls that can be found decorating Japanese homes. As Kenji explains, “When I was growing up in rural Japan, my grandmother would make temari sushi on special occasions, which my sisters and I ate up with great joy. What is wonderful about temari sushi is that any home cook can make it, and you can choose any toping you’d like, so it is easy to make vegan options. It is also a great way to express your creative side!”
In our cooking class, you’ll be joining Kenji over Zoom, and you can either watch and enjoy, or follow along in your own kitchen with Kenji’s instructions and make your own temari sushi during the webinar!
For those of you who wish to cook along with Kenji, please gather or prepare the following ingredients and supplies in advance:
Ingredients:
You can really pick any ingredients to make temari sushi, so please pick what you enjoy from the list below. Please be sure to prepare sushi rice prior to the class. You can learn how to make sushi rice at Kenji’s YouTube video here: https://youtu.be/2vqPW6Ptqds
- Your favorite sashimi: tuna, salmon, tai snapper, ika, tako, scallop, anything is good. Kenji will pick something fresh that day to demo in class.
- Cooked fish: Boiled shrimp (Kenji will demo shrimp in class), cooked crab, smoked salmon Meat: prosciutto, roast beef, cream cheese (Kenji won’t demo but some people like to prepare meat/cheese for temari sushi)
- Kinshi Tamago/Egg crepes (egg crepes, will shred some and use others for designs, Kenji will demo in class):
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 tbsp sake
- 1/2 tbsp sugar
- pinch of salt
- oil to grease pan
Vegetables:
- Renkon Lotus Root (Kenji will demo in class)
- Carrot (Kenji will demo in class)
- To cook renkon and carrot, prepare the following ingredients:
- 1 tsp sake
- 1 tsp mirin
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp light soy sauce (learn all about soy sauce at Kenji’s YouTube video here: https://youtu.be/64XbrlHB76k)
- 1/2 cup dashi (learn to prepare dashi at Kenji’s YouTube video here: https://youtu.be/iL4CK2dCLI0)
- Japanese or Persian cucumber (Kenji will demo in class)
- Radishes (Kenji will demo in class)
- Avocado
- Rehydrated shiitake mushrooms
Toppings/Garnish (Kenji will demo all of the below):
- Kale
- Shiso leaves
- Umeboshi paste
- Black Sesame Seeds
- Salmon Roe (Ikura)
- Chives
- Nori
Equipment:
- plastic wrap
- tablespoon (to scoop rice)
- knife(s) (to cut fish, egg and vegetables)
- yasai nukigata (vegetable stencil, optional but good to have)
- Saucepan to cook renkon and carrots
- Frypan with cover to make kinshi tamago
- bowl for mixing eggs
- strainer for egg mixture
- wet kitchen towel (to cool kinshi tamago)
- saibashi (cooking chopsticks)
About Kenji Yokoo
Kenji Yokoo, founder of the Bay Area based “Kenji’s Kitchen,” was born and raised in southern rural Japan and has been passionate about cooking from a very young age. As is common in Japan, he grew up in a home with three generations and spent all his time with his grandmother in the kitchen. She taught him everything he knows about cooking. Kenji learned from his grandmother not just traditional Japanese cooking techniques, but that the purpose of cooking is to bring joy to the people that you are cooking for. Kenji was given the Bay Area “Quality Champion” award by Airbnb for receiving the highest quality scores on his cooking classes. Kenji has also taught team building events with Japanese cooking for many Bay Area companies including Google, Adobe, Airbnb and Facebook. Kenji is also a cooking instructor at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California where he runs online webinars on traditional Japanese dishes. Click here to view Kenji’s Kitchen YouTube Channel
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