Upgrading the Cooking Skill Tree

A bite of sushi that fits so perfectly in my mouth. 

A bowl of Udon that are worthy of a good slurp. 

The jiggly dessert pudding that hypnotizes everyone with its sweetness. 

Every dish and dessert I have had the pleasure of trying in Japan have met my expectations and satiated my stomach. I cannot emphasize enough just how mouthwatering and soul melting bite of almost every bite of food I've had felt. As basic as it must sound my go to choices always end up being omurice, custard pudding, and a hearty milk tea. For me they are a great start to the day and are lovely to eat at a park whilst reading a book.  All the food is made to look appetizing before it even reaches your mouth, making it all the more appetizing to consume when it finally gets to you. For the most part I spent the better half of the month finding relatively cheap places to eat out and explore. For my program there was a meal plan offered but I didn't take it, as I felt I would be less inclined to go out and explore if all my meals were offered in one place. At least for me I don't regret that choice as I have been out to various food places I don't think I would have gone to if I had the meal plan, but it all comes down to personal preference and opinion.

 Though I won't lie the latter half of choosing to live the meal plan free life also meant that if I was too lazy or tired to travel, I would just end up popping over to the nearest Lawsons or 7-Eleven to get my dinner for the night. Which to be honest was still a pretty good eat since a lot of the convince stores in Japan have some nice food options. Some of my late night Lawsons/7-Eleven run has supplied me with a full rice bowl or soba set. So, by no means are the convenience stores in Japan lacking in a good nighttime meal when you're feeling lazy.  

Alas, all good things must come to an end. Soon enough the food had started to fall into a routine and started to lose some of its whimsy. Don't get me wrong I still love to eat and try all the food here. In fact, I have become such a foodie because of how delicious everything looks and tastes. Still, the fact of the matter doesn't change, and the fact was that I was seriously missing my homemade Filipino food. Which brings me to the main point of this post, make sure you know how to cook at least the bare minimum before you go abroad. As I'm sure many people preach, cooking is an essential life skill that people should know to survive.  That is very true, but to make it even more convincing and appealing I'd have to say people need to learn to cook the dishes that are close to their heart.  From any cultural dishes you are used to eating or maybe even a simple homemade mac & cheese made on rainy days to warm you up. Let me be the first to say, if I did not know how to make my ma's homemade lumpias or understand how to make chicken adobo I would seriously be feeling homesick for the foods not available in a country far away from home.  Being able to reach in and unbury the knowledge of how to make lumpias may have been the saving grace of my sanity, so to say in the most dramatic matter. 

I had found myself craving any semblance of Filipino food since it was something I could always find, either back home or around San Francisco. So, believe me when I say I was about to go mad when I found the nearest Filipino restaurant was about 2 hours away by train from where we were staying in Japan.  There I sit in my room wondering how I might just satiate my craving, my NEED for Filipino food.  It was then I remembered that I did in fact have the skills to cook and make that food on my own...except finding the ingredients was its own separate fiasco. One must be mentally prepared to go grocery shopping with a language barrier; I found myself running up and down isles that did not make sense to me. From the stores I went to I came to the realization that they were just slightly differently structured than those in the states. Due to the minute changes things I thought would be in a certain place were actually in a different section all together. In the end I was able to find everything I needed and was able to make the golden lumpia. The first bite crunched like heaven and the taste covered my mouth taking me back to nostalgia as I chowed down. This joy had also been spread to some of my friends who were also craving my ma's lumpias. 

Missing your home and cultural food is something that happens to everyone. I had been talking to a few other people, and they expressed the same feeling of missing a certain food that either wasn't the same here or not anywhere to be found. Not being able to taste the food of what you are familiar with for a long time can also contribute to feeling lonely or isolated. So, I must implore you to learn a family recipe or two if you think you'll be missing the taste of home food, heck even if you don't think you will, you should still learn anyways. As I mentioned earlier, I wasn't that much of a foodie until I came to Japan and didn't really realize just how much I craved the specific tastes of certain dishes that I just couldn't get in Japan. Just like familial relations and friendship building food is a very integral part to ones soul and being even if they themselves don't realize it. 

Moral of this realization: learn to cook your favorite dishes.