Another Vegan Ramen option in Okinawa: Orange Shokudo

Update: Orange Shokudo has closed in Naha and moved to Kin. Just opened as of Feb 2020 there are two! vegan ramen places in the basement of the old mitsukoshi building on Kokasai in Okinawa’s own Ramen Street

Today started as any normal Sunday. It is the monthly Sunrise Market in Naha, and my husband wanted to go. So we set off and parked our car in the Noren Plaza のうれんプラザ as is our usual spot. The monthly market is quite nice and we always find some ono grinds here. Anyway, after we wandered (and ate) through the market, we walked around Naha for a bit before heading back to the car. When we returned to the Noren Plaza, a restaurant called オレンジ食堂 (Orange Shokudo) on the second floor had a sign with something strange that caught my eye.

“Vegan black sesame ramen”
ビーガンラーメン
辛い黒ゴマ濃厚担々麺

I was surprised, so I stopped and inspected further; while this place had meat options, it also had VEGAN options (black sesame, gold sesame, and a regular sesame broth, as well as spicy, little spicy, and no spice). When I first saw the sign I thought maybe it was a mistake, but for sure, I asked the owner and he seemed pleased to say that Yes, he has vegan options. This was crazy, and despite already eating lunch, well, I just had to try this! So I convinced my husband to split a bowl.

When it came out, he gave as an extra bowl, spoon, and chopsticks. He also brought out vinegar and extra spice, as well as an extra bowl of rich black sesame sauce so we could add more.

Delicious. I rarely get to eat ramen as there is pretty much never a vegetarian or vegan option. And while the Okinawa vegan scene is on the rise, the only places I knew of previously were Stripes (not very good) and Rakurobi Kitchen (doesn’t always have it available). So today I got delicious ramen and another place to bookmark for a visit when I feel like a bowl of ramen!

I had never heard anyone mention this place before, and even on GoogleMaps there was not mention of the vegan options. Perhaps it is a new menu he is trying out, and I hope it stays. I hope the vegans living in and visiting Okinawa can all give Orange Shokudo their business!

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address: https://goo.gl/maps/6SXLreaW2GE2
**Second floor of Noren Plaza Shopping Center

In Kin Town

https://goo.gl/maps/XEUZ3xp9WLndVE1N9

Cafe detox felicidad

This small yet popular cafe is located in Itoman, not too far from the Ashibinaa outlets area. They offer raw food, vegan and gluten-free menu choices. They also have a vegan/gluten-free sweets counter for takeout.

There is a parking lot next to the building, park in the spaces labelled for the cafe. The inside of the cafe is not very big, but there are a few tables. They have a variety of fresh lunch choices, as well as some smoothies and desserts. While the bill is not cheap, this detox cafe offers some delicious and unique choices here in Okinawa, so I still recommend it. Today we tried the raw food lunch set with the veggie norimaki rolls and the curry lunch plate. I also decided to add on a raw food “rainbow cake” for dessert.

Overall, everything was really good, so if you are looking for a healthy option in the southern part of the island, this place will not disappoint.

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address: https://goo.gl/maps/Q9SY6T58kYJ2

Citta: Vegan & Gluten-free snack

A new shop in Okinawa has opened up, conveniently right next to my university gate. It is called “Citta” and they specialize in vegan and gluten-free snacks, like crackers, cookies, and cakes.

I went to visit this clean, bright shop the other day. The price tag is not particularly cheap, but not unreasonable considered it is handmade specialty goods. While I was there I also ordered a soy latte, which was really tasty. I took home some shikwasa cookies, tomato and basil crackers, and asa (seaweed crackers). Everything was really good, and went well with tea that afternoon. Not all their products are gluten-free, but many area. Everything was made from all-natural ingredients and vegan. I definitely recommend checking it out if you have these type of special dietary needs, as it is uncommon to find this type of shop normally in Okinawa.


address: https://goo.gl/maps/Y5ANPC83EN72

Cokofu: Sweets shop in Okinawa

Cokofu is located in the eclectic Minatogawa Stateside Town in Urasoe. The name stands for: Coconut × Kokuto 黒糖 (brown sugar) × Fu 麩 (wheat gluten).

It is a mix of Okinawan style and some Kyoto style… it is interesting!

The best part? Vegan-friendly! I ate delicious soy milk and Okinawa brown sugar ice cream, drizzled with brown sugar syrup and sweet crispy fu on the side. I also had the fizzy kumquat juice drink (so really more like a soda than a juice). All the sweets and cafe drinks are made with soy milk, no regular milk is even available. There are several types of teas, coffee, and natural juice drinks to choose from. The menu is in Japanese and English, with pictures, so it should be easy to order.

Everything looked so good, and I actually wanted to try some of the Kyoto-style sweets, but it was warm out, I had already ate lunch (and was kinda full), so I opted with something a little smaller. Overall– AMAZING! I will definitely be back here to try everything else.

**There are some parking spots (maybe 2-3) for the store so you do not have to pay for parking!


address: https://goo.gl/maps/UMpyHoHjoNG2

Essence963 Hammock Cafe

Time to share a small gem located in Ginowan. It is on top of a hill up a narrow road off of Pipeline-dori, actually situated in a peaceful neighborhood near a lot of Americans… but somehow this place remains untouched.

There are other hammock cafes in Okinawa that you hear about all the time. But this one is really nice and quiet. It has a beautiful view overlooking Ginowan, plenty of parking, sweet and friendly owners, and the lunch plate is mostly (if not all) vegetarian and vegan. How has this place stayed so hidden?

For 1200yen you get a plate of the day, drink (hot/ice coffee or herbal tea), and dessert. It was all really good. Admittedly service was a bit slow/haphazard, but hey, we are on island time. This is a great place to relax with a slow, healthy, and delicious lunch! There were many colorful hammocks to relax in. It was perfect for a beautiful day. Keep in mind if you go, the menu listing was all Japanese and I had the impression only Japanese was spoken since no one attempted to speak English with me (all our conversation was in Japanese). That being said.. there is no menu to really choose from, just the plate of the day is offered, so why not go for it (oh and remember to remove your shoes at the door)!


address: https://goo.gl/maps/qPWQpJ12d8G2

LaLa Zorba ララゾルバ

LaLa Zorba is another vegan restaurant in Naha, not too far off from Kokusai-dori. It recently started opening for lunch! It is billed as “ethnic vegan” food.

Since it is in the downtown Naha area, parking is pay parking lots. The restaurant is located on the second floor of a small building.. look for the Tibetan prayer flags at the stairway. The restaurant decor is definitely hippie-ethnic style.

I entered about noon on a Sunday, and it was pretty quiet. I chose the “plate of the day” with Indo-style curry. I also could not help but add on a side order of momo (dumplings). The service was actually pretty quick and it didn’t take too long until my food arrived. The plate was beautiful, and tempted you to eat it; very tasty. But the momo dumplings… SO delicious. If you come here, the dumplings are a must. They also had gyoza but I did not try these (yet… I will definitely be returning to try more food from this place). Overall, it was a bit spendy (plate was 1300yen, dumplings 300yen) but I think it was worth the cost, especially those dumplings.

Again, another vegan place in Okinawa that proves you don’t need to be vegan to appreciate vegan food!


address: https://goo.gl/maps/6DqkDwoBvam

Book cafe&hall ゆかるひ: Making “oyaki”

oyaki おやき: a style of dumplings from Nagano prefecture


I went to a workshop organized by a company called “Table Watch”— to learn how to make dumplings from an Okinawan obaachan, Yaka-san. Oyaki is a traditional Nagano food.

The Book cafe&hall Yukaruhi is located on the 3rd floor of the Yaka Building in Naha (Yaka-san’s family owns the building, hence the name Yaka Building). There is a big sign in front that says “Vegan OK!” Nice. Inside, it is part crafts workshop, part cafe, part music hall… there are many aspects to this place.

Anyway, I registered with Ayako-san the workshop coordinator for Table Watch, received my name tag and hair net, along with the other attendees (both Japanese and American).

Yaka-san started us off with explaining about oyaki and showing us pictures of different fillings, as well as the more traditional cooking methods in ashes. Then she sang us a special song she wrote about oyaki for the class. It was awesome, and explained the oyaki-making process. She was born and raised in Okinawa, but when she got married moved with her husband to Nagano. She recently returned to open the cafe here in Okinawa.

Then we got to start making our own dough. Just flour, lukewarm water, baking powder, and sugar, mixed and kneaded until the texture was “like a baby’s cheek” (赤ちゃんのほっぺ!). Next the dough has to rest.

For the fillings, we used 3 different types: nozawana (pickled greens) with spicy red pepper added, shiri-shiri kabocha (grated pumpkin sautéed with red miso), and zucchini slices sandwiched with sweet light miso. All 3 were delicious. She taught us the basic techniques for the fillings and let us sample.

Next we divided out the dough, and learned how to make the shape… it is kinda like when you stretch out a pizza dough except you want to keep the center part fat and make it thin around the edges. Add the filling and then wrap the edges up (similar technique to making nikuman or other Chinese dumplings). From here they were flipped over (so pinched side on the bottom), put onto a small square of parchment paper, and steamed for about 10-15 minutes. You can also fry and then steam or just bake if you so desire.

Once we were finished, we got to relax and eat our oyaki with some black bean tea and sobagaki. Sobagaki is another regional dish made form soba flour mixed with hot water and stirred in a bowl, until it becomes a mashed-potato-like dough ball. The dough is then torn into bite-sized pieces and dipped in a sauce, like shoyu or spicy pepper dressing. It kinda reminded me a little of poi, a little sticky and chewy. Everything was delicious and I really enjoyed myself. Yaka-san was so cute and friendly.

Anyway, the cafe is open during the day Thursday through Monday, so be sure to stop in for a delicious oyaki snack sometime! She also serves some meat things and cafe drinks as well as the vegan oyaki. I also recommend trying a workshop organized by the Table Watch company!


pictures on imgur: https://imgur.com/a/KKzT6


address for cafe, open Thurs-Mon 11am-7pm: https://goo.gl/maps/Rgx4vu8bpL72


Oyaki recipe: this is mostly just for the skin, the filling is sort of up to you but I include some ideas!

Makes 10 oyaki skins:

-300 g of Chuurikiko 中力粉: medium strength flour used for udon making (about 9% protein strength)

-1 teaspoon baking powder

-2.5 teaspoon granulated sugar

-180 cc warm water

Mix together the ingredients with chopsticks until it becomes more dough-like then knead like bread, with a little extra flour to keep from sticking, until springy (Japanese like to say “until it is the texture of a baby cheek”). Let it rest for awhile, at least 30 minutes so it gets elasticity.

Prepare your filling, whatever you want (seriously anything), just can’t be too wet as excess water causes the oyaki skin to crack as it cooks!

In our workshop we had 3 different fillings: 1) nozawana 野沢菜, a type of pickled greens from Nagano which is easy to find in Japan grocery stores… spinach or something could also be good, just be sure to squeeze the water before filling the dumpling skin with the cooked spinach. 2) We also used shredded kabocha sautéed with red miso. 3) zucchini cut in 2cm round, then sliced not quite in a half, stuffed with sweet light miso like a sandwich. **Basically, anything goes, just nothing with too much water.

Divide the dough into pieces, then shape into a ball shape. Stretch it out slowly from the sides kinda like when making a pizza dough, keeping the middle a little fat (keeps the skin from breaking while steaming), and thinner on the sides. In the middle add your filling and then wrap the sides up like a little package, pinching in the middle to close it. Yaka-san said don’t worry too much about the shape of the oyaki, if it is rounder or flatter– it shows your personality, apparently. Put them onto a small piece of parchment paper in a steamer basket (if you are steaming them).

Steam 10-15 minutes. OR pan-fry for 3 minutes each side and then steam OR just bake them. In the workshop we steamed them, and this would be the healthiest option.

Bali Noon Bali Moon

I finally went to Bali Noon Bali Moon in the Plaza House shopping center near Aeon Rycom Mall; they were on my list of places to try for awhile. The biggest reason I wanted to go: tempeh (テンペ ten-peh in Japanese).

This place makes their own tempeh… and it is sooooo much tastier AND cheaper than the packaged stuff you can only find at some of the hippie organic stores here in Okinawa! The tempeh taste was really amazing; they sell a 500g block for 500yen. Compare this with the 100g packaged stuff sold elsewhere for ~350yen, this is a steal. So for anyone looking for tasty and reasonably priced tempeh, Bali Noon Bali Moon is absolutely the place to go.

As for the restaurant itself, it was decent. I ordered the tempeh curry and my husband got the mixed lunch set. Both tasted pretty good, but it was a bit expensive for lunch overall in our opinion. That being said, Indonesian food is pretty exotic for Okinawa, so I can understand the price being a little higher than some other more typical restaurants. It is worth a go, overall, plus there are vegan and vegetarian options.


address: https://goo.gl/maps/7fBKCQMpSjA2

Vegan Ramen in Okinawa

UPDATE March 2020: Only a few short years ago Vegan ramen was rare, now there are several! : Sora No Ira & A Hokkaido ramen, both in the Noren Plaza Ramen street! Also Orange Shokodu in Kin town.

There is a place called Stripe Noodles in Chatan, Okinawa (outside of the American Village area) that serves a type of vegan ramen (in addition to several meaty ramen types, predominantly know for their “steak ramen”).

This place is very Americanized and a significant majority of the customers are foreigners, especially American. It becomes obvious when you are eating your noodles and NO ONE is slurping, not even a tiny bit! I found it eerie to be honest, and made me wonder if I was even in a ramen shop… Later it occurred to me that the other Americans may have been horrified at my slurping manners, just the same as I was horrified at their complete lack of slurping manners.

Anyway, during the month of October, they serve pumpkin (kabocha かぼちゃ) “ramen” and year-round they serve a tomato-based ramen (also vegan). Since vegan/vegetarian ramen is extremely rare in Okinawa and Japan, it is good for people with dietary restrictions.

I have only tried the pumpkin “ramen.” I put it in quotes because… well, it wasn’t really like ramen. It tastes pretty decent, but I feel it is a stretch to really consider it ramen. The “broth” was really thick and sweet like a typical kabocha soup; I thought maybe it would be better if it was a little thinner it would feel more like a ramen. It was also lacking something to sort of balance out the sweetness. Though the noodles were surprisingly fairly good– chewy consistence and not overcooked or bloated like I feared they might be going into an Americanized place.

Overall, it was okay. Not amazing, but the taste was okay, and the price not unreasonable (though perhaps a bit high for typical ramen). Mostly, I would say it was the atmosphere that was lacking. But maybe that makes me like a crotchety old man, who just prefers the darker interior noodle shops with din of clanking and slurping and ramen chefs continuously calling out.

I haven’t tried the tomato version yet… maybe I will try to go back sometime and try. But first I will need to muster up the courage to return to a noodle shop where there is no slurping.

The ticket machine menu is extremely English-friendly and there is parking in front of the store.

If you are still looking for another vegan ramen, then check out Rakurobi kitchen, macrobiotic cafe:楽ロビkitchen; they have a version of vegan ramen on their menu. They are not ramen specialists, but rather a macrobiotic and healthy food cafe. **New: Check out Orange Shokudo for vegan ramen: Another Vegan Ramen option in Okinawa: Orange Shokudo


address: https://goo.gl/maps/Quj4SzMsRc12


**BONUS: While out shopping I found vegan ramen to make at home at my local SanA grocery store. I was surprised, as occasionally I see instant vegan ramen at HappyMore or Pals farmer market stores, but it is not commonly seen here in Okinawa.

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大豆のお肉: Daizu no Oniku, Soy Meat

In Okinawa, we are fortunate to find lots of great soy meat products. And they aren’t all full of additives or weird stuff like most of the American ones.

On the label, one brand shows 大豆のお肉 daizu-no-oniku (大豆 soybean, お肉 meat). You can find them in filet or minced form, unseasoned or seasoned. Even better for the lazy me, they also can come as easy to put together meal kits! Gapao rice, Taco rice, Sweet and sour stirfy, and more from Marukome are shown below (word of warning: if you are a strict vegetarian, the pre-made packages still often contain fish sauce/dashi of some sort so the pre-made stuff is not 100% vegetarian, however the UNSEASONED mince and filets are 100% vegetarian).


Another brand of the soy meat products you can find is called: まるっきりお肉 marukkiri oniku: “just like meat.”

But it is not! This product from Maisen has just 2 ingredients– soy beans and brown rice. Organic at that (if you care about those things, and obviously gluten-free as well). Nothing else, no weird additives, no fake flavors, etc.

It is not “fake meat” but actually better than meat. It has much less calories and fat compared to meat, but it is actually higher in protein (well, according to the product site).

The texture is great, and it absorbs whatever flavors you add. You can buy it as crumbles or filets. As for what to cook with it, the possibilities are endless. We use it quite a bit, and the price is pretty good too. It is easy to find at local SanA grocery stores here in Okinawa; usually I find it near the dried beans.

I would definitely recommend trying it out; I think it tastes way better than the fake stuff in the U.S. with all the weird added ingredients. Plus my husband will actually eat it and like it, unlike most of the American faux meat products.

Here are 2 of the brands:

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Rakurobi kitchen, macrobiotic cafe:楽ロビkitchen

I have an affinity for wholesome, veggie cafes. I decided to give the macrobiotic food at Rakurobi kitchen (楽ロビkitchen) a try.

First of all, they have a nice large free parking lot (hooray!), which is not always the case in Naha. The next thing is it is located on the second floor of the building. When you enter, there is an area to remove your shoes. The inside has a very clean and cute decor, fairly typical of most of these types of cafes.

For the most part, the menu is very limited, so the best option is the mangetsu 満月 (full moon) plate. I believe the plates are mostly vegan, excepting for maybe the use of dashi or fish sauce (at least that is what their menu board said when I went awhile back). Serious vegetarian/vegans might be critical of this, but for me, it honestly does not matter much. The food was amazingly delicious and healthful, though the price was not too cheap (~1300 yen per person). I love getting all the small dishes that make up a wholesome lunch, although usually I am not too into soup (strange I know), so I ended up letting my husband have most of my soup since he loves it.

I had learned about this nice cafe restaurant awhile back, and then was reminded of it when I was reading the Uchina magazine (which during that month’s issue was focusing on vegetables and healthy living). Luckily my husband is patient with me when I suggest these places to go to, and ends up enjoying them as much as I do.

address: 沖縄県那覇市真嘉比1-29-16 ブランシュール真嘉比 2F

https://goo.gl/maps/oVBFwZhkKhH2

facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rakurobikitchen

Vegan & Vegetarian Restaurants in Okinawa: ヴィーガン

So, I am not a vegan (mostly I eat a primarily vegetarian/pescatarian diet), but I really enjoy many of the local vegan (some are only vegan-friendly but not exclusively vegan) spots here in Okinawa. Many other places will serve items on the menu without the meat (fish, eggs, dairy, etc) if you ask, but if you are not very good at Japanese, that may not really be an option. The places listed here are primarily vegetarian/vegan focused, and highlight the vegetarian/vegan options on their menus.

Here is a current list of places where you can find vegan (and vegetarian) friendly food while in Okinawa: *please note some places may be ONLY vegetarian-friendly, not vegan-friendly due to my ignorance, so always check ahead of time.

SOUTH

Ukishima Garden: Pretty good place located in Naha. 2-12-3 Matsuo, Naha

Mana: Nice cozy place where you can get a plate lunch in Naha; they can get busy for dinner so get a reservation in advance. 1-6-9 Tsuboya, Naha

Kintsubo: Taiwanese. So good and cheap, it is vegetarian Chinese food. But not like American Chinese, like real Chinese.. yum! It felt very homey and comforting for me. 1-7-9 Tsuboya, Naha

Rakurobi Kitchen: Macrobiotic (mostly) vegan. Follow the link to the blog post I wrote.

Cafe Grandma: Yonabaru. 1423-1 Itarashiki, Yonabaru

Yama-No-Chaya Rakusui: Definitely vegetarian friendly, but not sure about vegan. Love this location and food. I wrote a previous blog post on this place.

Ie-jima Shimabukuro 伊江島 食の家 しまぶくろ: Located in Naha, this place serves Okinawan soul food with vegan and vegetarian options. The chef has challenged himself to make hometown food for everyone to enjoy. 3-10 Makishi, Naha 900-0013

LaLa Zorba: Located in Naha, I went for lunch and it was fabulous. It bills itself as “vegan ethnic” food, read more in the linked post. https://goo.gl/maps/tSiwY8DMaV22

Niffera にふぇ~ら: https://goo.gl/maps/5XkRhAeHX8s

Vegetarian Cafe Brown Sugar ベジランチ カフェ ブラウンシュガー: Located in Itoman area.  https://goo.gl/maps/wK858hkpJHP2

Parlor de Jujumo: tiny place down south near the Ashinbinaa outlets. Read the linked post.

Book cafe&hall ゆかるひ: Stop be here for some vegan oyaki (Nagano-style dumplings). Info in linked post.

Rakurobi kitchen, macrobiotic cafe:楽ロビkitchen: they use fish sauce/dashi, but if you ask they will make it vegan!

Cafe detox felicidad: vegan, raw food, and even gluten-free choices here.


CENTRAL

Tami’s: located in American Village and recently re-opened. It is also vegan and super delicious. I will have to make a new post for this one. https://goo.gl/maps/TFNjrWyqjZ72

Sprout: 28 Samashita, Ginowan

plant-HOLIC: https://goo.gl/maps/1ZNTFXt54ru

L’Orange: Has some vegan muffins, and they are pretty darn good. 1-21-5 Kiyuna, Ginowan

Ploughman’s: Unfortunately, this place has caught on with a lot of people, and reservations are recommended even for lunch. But it is delicious. 927-2 Adaniya, Kitanakagusuku

Parlor Poka Poka パーラー ポカポカ: https://goo.gl/maps/JsiK7dwjLVU2

Rockers: Okay food, unfortunately in American Village, so not an area I go to a lot. I got the vegan burger and my husband the curry set, both were okay but not spectacular. 9-39 Mihama, Chatan 2F

Bollywood Dreams: I don’t especially recommend this place; it is a bit overpriced, slooooow service, and the food is not that great. But they do have vegetarian and vegan curries on the menu. Located in American Village: *update: they now have 2 locations in American village.

Bali Noon Bali Moon: Not exclusively vegan, but has vegan options. They also sell their tempeh which is a bargain at 500grams for 500yen!

Esparza’s Tacos & Coffee: According to husband, pretty good. They also sell vegan their cheese.  https://goo.gl/maps/epFFj49nwDF2

Guacamole Burrito Truck: Not so much a restaurant, but a cool little trailer that will make a vegetarian/vegan burrito. Get this and take it to the nearby beach to eat. https://goo.gl/maps/LrtWvo4Bxfz

Citta Bakeshop (NEW!): located just outside of the Ryukyu University East Gate. Google Map link, pictures, and review coming soon!

Essence963 Hammock Cafe: vegetarian-friendly, and possibly vegan-friendly.

Kokopelli Pizza: info coming soon.


NORTH

Dechibika: This place is in Yomitan, an area I rarely visit due to the high traffic of Americans. I have not been here, but people rave about their curry, so I will have to bite the bullet sometime soon. 648-1 Furugen, Yomitan

Gubgub’s:  Closed as of Feb 2020 🙁 They still sometimes show up at Vegan Foodfairs! Vegan “junk food,” also in Yomitan; it is as awesome as you hear from others and I highly recommend it. 410 Toya, Yomitan

Suien bakery: LOVE. Delicious sandwiches and located in Yomitan. Go early as it gets busy. 367 Zakimi, Yomitan

Shizen Inu: Another vegan restaurant located in Yomitan. 183 Furugen, Yomitan

Bakery and Cafe Coo: LOVE. Delicious sandwiches in Motobu peninsula by Nakijin-jo. 3313 Imadomari, Nakijin


There are a few others that I know of, but have not had a chance to visit yet. And maybe 1 or 2 that were not good and they simply do not go on the list (Example: Jai Thai in American Village… I simply cannot understand why anyone would go there, it is highly NOT recommended unless you like to spend a lot of money on terrible food. Also avoid Pizza Sun (previously known as Pizzakaya), for various reasons I will not get into. These restaurant are a majority veg-friendly; there are even more restaurants with a few veg options, but I cannot possibly list them all…

Several of the Indian restaurants have veg options, as well as a place called Istanbul Kebab House in Sunabe; all of these are also pretty good options for vegetarians and vegans as well. There are obviously many other places that can accommodate vegetarians and even vegans, but these are some of the better known places that understand what vegan/vegetarian diet is.

Riceballs: おにぎり/おむすび

おにぎり onigiri, also called おむすび omusubi, are rice balls. Onigiri are a common item for Japanese lunch boxes, called bento 弁当. You can find onigiri at every bento stand and conbini; Lawsons and FamilyMart usually have 20 different types lined up in the refrigerated section, with a variety of fillings from plain salt to tuna to spam with egg.

For my lunch, I went to a vegetarian-friendly market and picked up an onigiri-bento. It came with 2 onigiri: one wrapped in shiso leaf with nori (seaweed) sprinkles (also known as furikake ふりかけ), and one with shoyu and ginger (and probably some other things); it also came with something shaped like onigiri but with pickled plum/shiso and purple sweet potato (and maybe okara, aka soy leavings, but I am not a hundred percent sure). There was a delicious side of pickled carrot and daikon, mini tomatoes, and potato salad. I also bought a delicious vegan strawberry and poppyseed muffin for dessert. Everything was really tasty, so if you are in Okinawa, be sure to stop by HappyMore Farmers Market in Nakagusuku.

Bamboo Shoots: 竹の子

Takenoko, 竹の子 or たけのこ, are bamboo shoots in Japanese. Recently, whenever I look at takenoko, I think about the Ghibli film about Kaguya-hime かぐや姫の物語.

Today, there was fresh takenoko at the farmers market (and it was fairly cheap), so impulsively bought some…! This is a new experience for me, as I have only ever bought them packaged.

I boiled and prepared it, according to some directions online. I think it worked, although I think more experimenting is needed to actually understand the process.

I made takenoko and shiso gyoza with tofu instead of pork. I added in Okinawa garlic, green onions, cabbage, and seasoned. Maybe I will even include a recipe later. Homemade gyoza (mandu, potstickers, dumplings) are the best and so easy to freeze the extra for quick meals or snacks later!

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