Season 7-17 Shimane Special: California Roll Bento & Crab Rice Bento

Today, we travel to Shimane,

a prefecture famous for its shrines and rich natural environment.

Shimane is home to about 9,000 foreign residents,

some of whom are avid bento makers.

Filipino-style spring rolls,

and spicy chicken wrapped in Indian roti.

These are just some of the many bentos packed with dishes

from all over the world.

Marc and Maki prepare bentos featuring a Shimane specialty, snow crab.

We love bento!

(The Global Lunchbox 7-17 Shimane Special)

On the outskirts of Shimane's largest city, Matsue,

lies this forest park.

It's home to a restaurant that promotes vegan cuisine locally.

(Vegan food is made without any animal-derived products)

Today's special is coconut curry.

Fried tofu is used instead of meat.

The restaurant has a roster of regular customers.

It's very delicious.

It was surprising for us because we felt like it was meat.

Chef Anja Auer is German.

She and her family moved to Matsue seven years ago

because of her husband's work.

This is the soy meat.

Anja is hoping to promote vegan cuisine in Matsue.

Yup, I like it.

For me, it's a wonderful opportunity

to show people how wonderful vegan food can be.

She's started to offer made-to-order bentos.

They're popular with people who come to hike in the forest.

Today, she's received orders from her regulars.

These cutlets may look like meat,

but they're made from freeze-dried tofu,

a popular ingredient in Japanese vegetarian cuisine.

Because I'm from Germany, I would call it schnitzel.

It's crispy, satisfying... I would like to have such bento.

Here come her regular customers.

Guten tag! (Hi!)

How are you?

Good!

These kindergarteners will enjoy Anja's bentos in the forest.

Danke schon! (Thank you!)

Cheers!

We like Matsue very much

because the people here are very very friendly,

and it's a very nice place to live.

Anja lives with her husband and two children.

She's always looking for ways to adapt Japanese cuisine for vegans.

Today, she's making a picnic bento for her family.

Her husband helps make rice rolls with "aburaage."

Tadah!

This black rice has a rich umami flavor.

Grilled bell pepper marinated in kombu kelp tastes like meat

and looks just like tuna sushi.

An essential vegan substitute for eggs

is a blend of chickpea flour and tofu.

It has lots and lots of protein.

When fried, it looks just like an egg omelet.

I love making bento, especially the Japanese style ones.

If you learn something new, it gets more exciting.

Anja and her family love spending time outdoors.

On weekends, they often go on picnics.

Delicious.

Although, it's a vegan bento,

there are a lot of different tastes and I love it a lot.

It's very nice.

The moment you open the bento box

and everybody says "Oh, it looks so colorful and delicious,"

it makes me very happy.

We love bento!

Next, we visit Shimane University in central Matsue.

Dr. Riaz is from Bangladesh.

I teach computer architecture.

He came to Japan six years ago

and lives in Matsue with his wife and two children.

Hello.

Today, he's hosting a meal for colleagues and international students.

Thank you for coming.

Everyone will also get to take home bentos to enjoy later.

His wife, Nazma, handles the cooking.

The couple have been making bentos with halal ingredients

for Muslim students for some time now.

(Halal food adheres to Islamic law)

They are facing trouble eating from the cafeteria.

They are studying alone, they have no family,

so I worry about how they'll cook and manage their food.

Today's main dish is chicken biryani,

a dish of spicy chicken and rice popular in Bangladesh.

Chicken marinated in yogurt is simmered in a paste

made with garlic, ginger, chili, and other spices.

Rayeed is in charge of grinding the spices.

This is cardamon.

It will give a nice smell.

The chicken is cooked until there's no more liquid.

Tender and fragrant, it's mixed with cooked rice.

High protein.

I think it's looking so good.

The chicken and rice look delicious.

And for the side, eggs simmered in curry and milk.

The dessert is sweet rice pudding.

They've prepared many bento items for their guests to choose from.

Everyone gets to pack their own bentos to take home.

Split it into two...

Can I take a whole piece of chicken?

Yes, yes!

You can take the whole plate.

Biryani is popular all over South and Southeast Asia.

It's been a long time since I last tasted this.

It reminds me of home.

Good!

Different countries, different students...

Bento brings them all together.

So, I love bento.

We love bento!

I love how people expressed their culinary identity through their bento.

Yes!

Shimane Prefecture lies on the coast of the Sea of Japan

in the San'in region,

and they are especially well known for their snow crabs.

And today, both Maki and I are going to be using snow crab

to make our bentos.

I'm going to make crab rice packed with wonderful flavors,

which is super easy to make.

That sounds great.

Today both Maki and I are using shelled snow crab meat

to make our bentos.

When cooked with rice, the savory flavor of the crab seasons the rice,

and Maki has a few tips to take this classic to the next level.

The first is to use mushrooms.

She slices shiitake and cremini mushrooms the night before

and freezes them on a tray.

When frozen, they look like this.

They are frozen solid.

Freezing releases umami.

They produce a great dashi.

The next day, she's ready to make the rice.

Add rice, sake, soy sauce,

sugar, salt, frozen mushrooms,

about half of the crab meat.

Add water... and let the rice cooker do the work for us.

About one hour later...

That smells so good, Maki.

Her next trick is, add the remaining crab after the rice is done

and then let them steam together for a few minutes.

Ok, let's open it again.

Wow, look at all the crab in there.

To finish it off, Maki fluffs the rice and mixes the crab in.

OK, my crab rice is done!

I bet this is going to be delicious.

OK, try my crab rice.

Itadakimasu.

Wow... You've got the flavor of the mushrooms

and the umami from the crab soaked into the rice,

and because you added that crab afterwards,

you've got some fresh crab on top, which is a great addition.

To decorate her bento, Maki divides a sausage into four segments.

Then, she cuts a slit into the end pieces

and makes four slits in the middle segments.

Drop them in boiling water and they spread out to make some fun shapes.

And Maki uses these along with a slice of "tamagoyaki"

to build a cute crab to go with her rice.

It's a fun and delicious bento that's packed with crab flavor!

So Marc, what are you going to make for your bento today?

Well, I'm also going to be using rice and crab,

but I'm combining it with avocado and cucumber to make California rolls.

I love California rolls.

The California roll is a popular type of rolled sushi.

It's said to have been created in the 1960s

by a sushi chef in Los Angeles using local ingredients.

Let's start by preparing the fillings.

This is an essential ingredient for California rolls

because it's going to add that creaminess.

I admire the one who first used avocado for sushi rolls.

Yeah, it's said that the chef who invented the California roll

thought the avocado had the richness and texture similar to the tuna belly.

Great inspiration.

Yeah!

Cut the cucumber into thin strips and remove the seeds.

And prepare a batch of seasoned sushi rice.

To assemble the roll,

spread a thin layer of sushi rice over a half sheet of nori

and then sprinkle on some black sesame seeds.

And now, watch closely.

I'm going to go ahead and flip this over.

You want to place it close to the bottom edge of the mat

with the nori side up.

This is why this style of sushi is called "ura-maki,"

or "inside out roll."

Add the crab, cucumber, and avocado...

All right, and now it's time to...

"maki-maki."

All right, I'm going to grab the sushi mat here at the bottom edge,

and we're going to go ahead and hold the fillings,

and flip this roll right over until the rice reaches the other edge.

And give it a little squeeze, and our California roll is done.

So, Maki, try my California roll.

Yes!

(This food was prepared in a separate, hygienically controlled environment.)

A medley of textures and flavors!

The crab and creamy avocado go so well together.

I'm glad you enjoyed it.

California rolls may not be traditional sushi,

but the contrast of tastes and textures make them delicious.

And they're perfect for packing into a bento-box lunch.

Today both Maki and I used snow crab

from Shimane Prefecture to make simple and delicious bentos,

so we hope you'll...

give them a try!

Izumo is the second largest city in Shimane after Matsue.

A beloved Brazilian restaurant named Paizão is located here.

"Paizão" means "Big Daddy."

Its specialty is churrasco, traditional Brazilian barbecue.

It looks delicious.

Shimane has about 4,000 residents from Brazil.

Many are of Japanese descent.

So good!

The restaurant's owner, Sergio,

is a second-generation Japanese-Brazilian.

He moved to Japan with his family nearly 30 years ago

and opened his restaurant seven years ago.

He advises his customers on work and life in Japan.

Paizão is his nickname.

Paizão is like a pillar that supports a family.

They call me Paizão because we're all close.

8 AM.

The aroma of meat fills the air.

The restaurant is filling orders for bentos from Japanese-Brazilians.

Fried beefsteak and onions are a mainstay bento item.

They're paired with a side dish of salt-and-garlic-flavored bean stew.

This is a Brazilian comfort food.

It looks tasty.

Customers come to pick up their orders.

Good morning!

These two work in construction.

This will keep me going.

I love Paizão. He's so sweet.

Sergio is creating new jobs

to provide local Brazilians with a steady income.

Four years ago, he started a farm.

That's huge!

Cassava is a popular vegetable in Brazil.

We want to popularize cassava in Izumo, too.

Sergio is working to promote cassava locally.

And his efforts have paid off.

Cassava is now used in school lunches.

Fried cassava chips are standard fare in Brazil.

Sergio's food supports and brings people together.

We love bento!

We hope you enjoyed today's Shimane Prefecture special.

Well, that's all the time we have for today,

but we hope you'll join us again here soon on BENTO EXPO.

See you soon.

Bye!