Of Rice and Soba: "Common Grains", An Upcoming Delicious Education Program

Know what makes good food even better? Insight into the culture and what goes into its making. The upcoming Common Grains events will provide just that for Japanese grains, including Japanese rice and soba.

The Common Grains program will kick off with an onigiri making contest at the Japanese American National Museum’s annual Oshogatsu festival. The contest is part of the museum’s New Year celebration of the Year of the Dragon.
Japanese American National Museum, 369 E. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012
Sunday, Jan 8, 2012. 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Then, you can try delicious artisanal soba at the Common Grains Soba Pop-Up Restaurant and Sake Bar at BREADBAR Century City.
These aren't your run of the mill soba, but one made by artisan soba makers Sonoko Sakai and Mutsuko Soma. The soba is hand made using freshly stoned and milled buckwheat. I've participated in Sonoko's soba making class before, and trust me, her soba is nothing like you've ever had before (unless you've had them in Japan).
BREADBAR Century City, 10520 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90067. 
310.277.7770
Tuesday, Jan 10 – Thursday, Jan 19, 2012. 5-10 p.m.

After having her soba, you're going to want to make them yourselves. Well, you can attend the Common Grains Artisan Soba Demonstration and Tasting at Mitsuwa Marketplace, where guests will also have the opportunity to purchase fresh soba and homemade dipping sauces that can be prepared at home.
Mitsuwa Marketplace, 21515 S. Western Ave., Torrance, CA 90501
Thursday, January 26, 2012 – Sunday, January 29, 2012, demonstrations at 12 p.m. and 1 p.m.
No cost to attend the soba demonstration, $18 for fresh soba for two with homemade dipping sauces

There's also the Soba and Rice Workshops at Tortoise General Store
The workshops will showcase different preparations of rice and soba for guests to learn how to cook healthy, simple Japanese meals at home.
Tortoise General Store, 1208 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
The workshops will take place on multiple dates:
Saturday, Jan 21, 2012 / Sunday, Jan 22, 2012 / Saturday, Feb 18, 2012 / Sunday, Feb 19, 2012. 
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
COST: $65 pp for the two-hour workshops
RSVP to Tortoise General Store at 310.314.8448

2011's Most Memorable Meals, Dishes, and Desserts

Happy New Year!
This may be the 100th "best of 2011" lists you've seen by now. Well, here's my list of the most memorable experiences and tastes I had this past year! What's on your list? What do I need to try this year?

Most Memorable Meals:
1. FIG's Table-to-Farm dinner at McGrath Farms

2. The Aviary's Kitchen Table experience in Chicago

Most Memorable Dishes
1. Quesa Taco at Tacos Los Salceados (Tijuana, Mexico)

2. Bihun Bebek (Duck Noodle Soup) at Bihun Bebek Asie (Medan, Indonesia)

3. Peking Duck from WP24

4. Blue Corn Muffins from Playa - or are these considered desserts?

5. Squid ink pasta with uni and caviar from Petrossian (Beverly Hills)

Most Memorable Desserts
1. Buckwheat waffle at King's Row Gastropub (Pasadena)

2. Chocolate gelato at Grom (Malibu)

3. Banana cream pie at Random Order Coffeehouse (Portland, OR)

4. Coconut panna cotta with guava soup, caramelized pineapples at Scarpetta

5. Eating durian on the roadside with my family in Medan, Indonesia.

Smoked Crab at Rasane (Surabaya, Indonesia)

If there is one thing I have to eat when I come back to Indonesia, it'll be CRAB. Crab in spicy sauce, crab with salted eggs, or smoked crab. Whichever it is, I want it.
This time around, I went to try a new(ish) seafood place called Rasane, which is famous for their smoked crab (kepiting asap). Rasane in Indonesian means "the flavor" or "the taste".

As with most seafood places in Indonesia, they serve live seafood kept in tanks. Customers would go up to the tanks and pick out which crab, fish, lobster, etc they want to eat that night. Or you can just tell them how much you want and have them pick it out for you.

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