Thanksgiving in Japan

Our lack of oven kind of tied our hands when it came to Thanksgiving this year. That and our general indifference to American feast cuisine. The friends and feasting part of Thanksgiving was not to be missed, however. With that in mind, this is what we came up with:

Friends: Russell, Jaci, Carolyn (Russell's sister) and Kenji (Russell's conversation partner). Sorry for the small numbers keep in mind we only have four plates and one chair.

Feast: Homemade okonomiyaki and eggnog!

We actually jumped the gun a bit and had our impromptu Thanksgiving on Wednesday, not Thursday. Russell, Carolyn and Kenji were on their way back from visiting Himeji castle and had the idea for our feast. Kenji offered to show us how to make okonomiyaki and while explaining eggnog, Russell got the bright idea to just go ahead and make some (no matter how much we wish for it, it isn't going to appear in Japanese grocers any time soon).

When I came home from work the trio had already purchased everything they needed and were ready to set to work.

First, the okonomiyaki.

I am fairly certain I have described this particular cuisine before. It is kind of like a vegetable pancake, You take a healthy dose of sliced cabbage mixed with egg and batter and various other vegetables to taste and then grill it. Kenji made pork okonomiyaki by placing strips of pork (not cured like bacon) across one side of the pancake. Once both sides are fully grilled the pancake is taken off the griddle and smothered in a special brown sauce that is extremely popular around these parts. Other toppings can include mayonnaise and bonito flakes among other things. Check out chef Kenji.

At the same time, Russell and I set to work on the eggnog. Russell separated the eggs and we started taking turns beating the egg whites. We were suppose to beat the eggwhites until they held stiff peaks. Ha! We only had a fork and our enthusiasm, so we only got the egg whites to the thoroughly fluffy stage - no peaks. The cream, luckily, whipped up easily. In fact, it was almost butter by the time Russell was ready to use it. We mixed a good cup and a half of vodka and cup of a half of whisky into the eggwhites along with the egg yolk and sugar and then tried to fold the cream into the mixture. The problem was that we were suppose to fold the mixture into the cream. The result was a bit lumpy (check the picture) but oh so tasty and worth a repeat effort. I mean, what's the point of knowing how to make homemade eggnog if you can't perfect your technique?

As experienced eggnog drinkers, Russell and I thoroughly enjoyed our new version of the classic holiday nog. It was, well, not what you get at the grocery store - and yet somehow better. Carolyn felt it was perhaps a bit strong.

But what did Kenji, our new eggnog drinker, think?

In the first picture, Carolyn directed Kenji to pose with a thumbs up.

In the next picture, she directed him to pose with his real reaction. This was paired with the vocal reaction, "Eggnog is a mysterious drink."

And there you have it. Mysterious eggnog in Japan for Thanksgiving.