Of monks, wheat meat and tofu cheesecake

27 September 2009

There are 2 precious (metal) weeks in the Japanese working calendar, when businesses close and the trains get busier than usual, as people take holidays around the country. The first is Golden Week, a week of public holidays in July; the second is Silver Week, a week in September, where 3 of the days are public holidays, and the remaining 2 might as well be.

I just missed Golden Week; being, at that point, in South Africa, and running around like mad to get ready for my move East. Silver Week, however, I was lucky enough to be here for. I marked it in my diary as soon as I touched down in Tokyo. Partner and 2 friends in tow, I headed to the north of the neighbouring prefecture of Wakayama (the south part of which is where the annual dolphin slaughter happens, fyi), to a mountainous village known as Koya-San.

This is seen as the spiritual headquarters of Esoteric, or Shingon Buddhism, in Japan, and the village is full of temples. We were lucky enough to stay at one, where we enjoyed delicious vegan tofu dishes, including a sesame dofu dish, called goma dofu – which is the specialty of the area. You can eat it with wasabi and soya sauce, or as a dessert with maple syrup and cinnamon. I am not ashamed to admit that I have become addicted to the latter.

Shojin ryouri, being the traditional Buddhist food of Japan, is generally vegan, and always delicious. It was one of the best parts of our stay at Koya-San; along with the storytelling of the 89-year-old mother of the head priest at the temple … she started studying English 70 years ago!

In the village, there’s a great little veggie restaurant called Bon on Sha, which is run by a French lady and her Japanese husband. They speak like four languages … The food was great (they had tofu cheesecake!) and the place so vibey (all wood and clean decor) that we went back 3 times in the space of 24 hours. They sell handmade pottery and carvings, and I managed to find 2 great cups for my tea collection.

Back in Osaka, we experimented with, firstly, tea (in my nice new cups!) and secondly, gluten meat over the course of the week. When you hear gluten meat, those Yuh-Der soya fish, prawn and steak products come to mind, right? Or maybe you think of something like Fry’s? Think again.

In Japan, gluten meat contains no soya … it’s all wheat. Which is a big problem if you’re wheat intolerant! Anyway, that’s the prime meat replacement here – they serve it at lots of the veggie restaurants, and you can buy it tinned online, or at health stores. On its own, it tastes bland … maybe a bit wheaty. But if it’s cooked right, it’s delicious. I’ve had it battered and fried, and also barbeque-sauced and shoved in a tortilla. Now I’m addicted to this too. In fact, I’m signing off right here, to go munch some sweet goma dofu and wheat meat … in that order.

Next episode: Kobe, organic fruit, and veggie festivals in Kyoto.