Elizabeth's Japanese Autumn #4/4 (Part 1) - Fuji Five Lakes

Elizabeth Rose at our room in Bessho Sasa

In the midst of the Tokyo leg of our trip, we took a side trip to the Fuji Five Lakes region. So after our afternoon at Shinkuju Gyoen, we hopped into the car and made our way to Fuji Five Lakes in double-quick time.

Driving to Fuji Five Lakes

It was getting late, the sunlight was fading, and we had spent a little too much time at Shinjuku Gyoen. So it was a relief when we arrived in time to make it for dinner. This trip, we decided to remain at Bessho Sasa both nights. Previous trip up, we stayed at here for one night and Yumedono the next, but felt that was a little too rushed.

Lounge / sitting room

Elizabeth Rose at our room in Bessho Sasa

Elizabeth Rose at our room in Bessho Sasa

Dining room

Snacks, sencha and houjicha

Bedroom

Double vanity changing room!

Our outdoor onsen bath

Had just about enough time to unpack a little and unwind. It was almost time for dinner, so we put off the onsen soak until later. That and I did spend a bit of time taking pictures of Elizabeth in the lounge. Was a little difficult to prop her up using chopsticks.

So anyway, before we both knew it, the attendant arrived to set up the dining table for dinner. Dinner is one of the things Hubby and I look forward to during all our ryokan stays. (Of course, the onsen is the other.)

The kaiseki dinner menu, Bessho Sasa

The highlight of staying in a ryokan is the kaiseki dinner. Kaiseki (懐石) or Kaiseki ryori (懐石料理) is a traditional multi-course dinner. If there is any Western parallel, I suppose it would be degustation, but a kaiseki meal always incorporates seasonal ingredients in all its courses.

Sakizuke, Hassun

It's been a while since, so I can't remember all the details. I remember I enjoyed the sakizuke (先付), but I can't remember what it was, a creamy little appetiser in the pretty yellow bowl.

For the hassun (八寸), the standout for me had been the leaf-wrapped chestnut and sekihan dumpling, and the iburigakko (いぶりがっこ). Iburigakko are smoked pickles - a method whereby the vegetables are first smoked before they are pickled, and is apparently unique to Akita. We had 2 types, both served with different kinds of cheeses (one as a firm accompaniment, and the other as a sauce).

Wanmono

Sunomono

Next was the wanmono (椀物; also "o-wan" 御椀) - a soup made using locally sourced shirako (cod milt), served in a simple but shapely black lacquered bowl. As mentioned in the Sushi Masuda post, shirako is a autumn/winter ingredient in Japan, one that I so far have had some difficulty appreciating. But this time, I easily downed the soup - the soft mildly sweet milkiness mixed with a lightly savoury broth was a delicious combination. (This seems to suggest it's the texture I have an issue with.)

Mukozuke

Then the mukozuke (向付), which was sashimi of lobster (Japanese spiny lobster), chutoro, and hirame. The hirame tasted great with a squeeze of the sudachi. So, sudachi is a citrus fruit that has been cultivated in Japan since ancient times, and a majority of it is grown in the Tokushima prefecture.

Yakimono

Then the yakimono (焼物) course was beef steak. The beef was domestically sourced, bred and fed in the Yamanashi prefecture. We were served the skirt cut, grilled to medium, with a walnut sauce, tomato and maitake. It was delicious, but also very rich and heavy on the fat.

The sunomono (酢の物), the palate cleanser, was a perfect dish to follow - a refreshing, chilled dish of cucumber, daikon radish, tomato, scallops and shrimp (all cubed) in a vinegary stock. (Better picture of it next to the wanmono, above.)

Gohan, mushimono, tomewan

Then the gohan (御飯), mushimono (蒸物), tomewan (止椀), and kōnomono (香の物) were served altogether.

Mushimono

The mushimono course consisted of a white-fleshed fish (locally sourced), nicely simmered, in a clear and light broth, and with vegetable rolls, leek and silken tofu. The flavours of the dish were very soft and mild, quite a contrast to the tomewan, which comprised of a Japanese spiny lobster soup that packed a punch. I wonder how long they simmered the lobster shell and head...

Konomono - Japanese pickles

Gohan - rice and salmon furikake

We were served locally produced rice, and also a delicious salmon furikake to sprinkle on top. The bowl of rice was warm, steamy and fluffy. I know the rice came from Mukawa village in the Yamanashi prefecture, because it was stated on the menu. But at the time, I couldn't identify the rice cultivar.

So, the menu stated 「山梨県武川村 幻の米」. That only made partial sense to me... 「山梨県武川村」means "Yamanashi prefecture Mukawa village", but what the heck does「幻の米」mean? It reads as "maboroshi no kome", which literally means "phantom rice" or "illusion rice". So...we were eating PHANTOM RICE?! (◎_△◎?)

幻の米とは何ですか??????? (;°ヘ°;)ゝ

So, later, I did some research and found a website that said rice from Mukawa is regarded with great respect because it had been offered to the shogun since the Edo period; today, the rice is called "phantom rice" (「幻の米」) because its cultivation area is limited, and it is not often available on the market. Okay, so a mystery partially solved then - it's a local rice that is grown in Mukawa village. As for what cultivar it is, I can only guess. Perhaps it is the Mukawa-mai (武川米), which is a locally cultivated rice in Mukawa village. I can only guess...

Mizumono - dessert

Mizumono - dessert

Mizumono - dessert

For the dessert course, or the mizumono (水物), the menu was quite mysterious about it. All the menu said was 「鐘山苑パティシエによる特製デザート」(Kaneyamaen Patishieniyoru tokusei dezāto), which translates as "Special Dessert by Kaneyama-en Patisserie".

So, dessert consisted of a few small items - a bite-sized choux cream-filled crepe, a strawberry ice cream, a matcha and chocolate layered cake with fresh berries and cream, and fresh fruits (melon, and grapes).

I admit we were pretty full by then and could hardly eat a bite. (Amazing how small portions creep up on you that way...like dimsum.) Still, we didn't want to disappoint the kitchen and the chef's efforts, so we rallied ourselves.

Overall, for the dessert, my favourite items would have to be the matcha layered cake and the choux cream-filled crepe. The crepe just burst open with a bite, and the choux cream was perfect and fluffy. Not so enthused about the fruit, which, though refreshingly light and chilled, were not sweet and did not feel fully ripe. But it was still quite nice to nibble on a juicy piece of fruit after the dense and crumbly match layered cake.

******* 

More on Elizabeth's Japanese Autumn 2016

- I. Yokohama & the Miho Museum - 

Chinatown (Heichinrou, Yokohama Mazu Temple) ● Yamashita Park ● Zou-no-Hana ● Osanbashi Pier ● Yokohama Red Brick Warehouses ● Miho Museum

- II. Kyoto -

Tofukuji ● Kiyomizudera ● Sohonzan Komyoji ● Eikando Zenrinji ● Manshuin Monzeki ● Iwakura Jissoin Monzeki ● Nanzenji, Nanzenin & Tenjuan ● Kitano Tenmangu ● Shugakuin Imperial Villa ● Sento Imperial Palace ● Kyoto Imperial Palace

- III. Tokyo -

Tokyo University ● Rikugien ● Tokyo Imperial Palace & the East Gardens ● Kotonoha no Niwa trip to at Shinjuku Gyoen ● Italian at Salvatore Cuomo Bros., XEX Tokyo ● Sushi Masuda ● Nishiazabu Taku (aka Sushi Taku) ● Sushi Nakamura (1st taste of Juyondai) ● Sushi Tokami (1st taste of tossaki) ● molecular gastronomy at Tapas Molecular Bar ● French-Japanese at La Paix, Nihonbashi

- IV: Fuji Five Lakes -

Part 1 (Bessho Sasa, revisited) ● Part 2 (Fuji Subaru 5th Station, Motosuko & Koyodai) ● Part 3 (Fujisansaku Park, Motosuko, Shojiko, Saiko, Kawaguchiko)

*******