Sake & Marmite
It might sound strange to you, but it works.
Both of these are fermented products and packed with Umami.
The synergy effect obtained by combining the two different types of Umami
increases the deliciousness of the product on both ends.

Hardly anyone in Japan knows what Marmite is,
let alone how miraculously this international marriage
originating from different corners of the world work well with each other.

Marmite is a yeast extract and a by-product of beer brewing.
It is commonly believed that you either love it or hate it,
because of its strong yeasty flavour.

In the UK and the Commonwealth countries,
the most popular way to enjoy Marmite is to spread it thinly over toast together with butter.
I would say its role is similar to the Japanese Natto,
which is a rather sticky and strong-smelling fermented soya beans
that the Japanese consume along with the staple diet of rice.
Once you develop a taste for the potent flavour of Natto,
it can become quite addictive.

Marmite is best paired with equally strong type of Sakes.
Today I chose
Sanzen Tokubetsu Junmai Omachi (Kikuchi Brewery)
which is made with Omachi rice from Okayama prefecture,
the origin of this ever so popular Omachi Rice, makes full bodied, rich and Umami-laden type of Sake.

This sake has been matured listening to Mozarts.
​It has a settled aroma of cereals and a brown rice syrup like sweet scent.

​The natural sweetness of rice accentuates and makes a great contrast with the saltiness of Marmite.
Additionally, Marmite also enhances the flavour of Sake
and you just can't stop sipping it.

I recommend warming up the Sake to body temperature.
This will help you enjoy every sip of the drink at a different temperature
until the Sake reaches the room temperature which is called 'Kanzamashi' with a slightly more concentrated flavour.
As the flavours of the Sake open up,
it becomes somewhat more potent when warmed up
and instead of getting overpowered by the Marmite, this Sake shines.

一見意外なように思われますが、マーマイトと日本酒の相性は大変よく、
それはあたかも生まれも育ちも違う男女の幸せな国際結婚のようであります。
両者供に、発酵食品であり、旨み成分が沢山含まれており、
違った旨みを併せると旨みが増す旨味の相乗効果をもってして
実は、抜群の相性であると言えます。

マーマイトはビールを作る過程で生まれる副産物で、ビールの搾りかす、言ってみれば、ビールの酒粕です。
塩気が強く、粘り気があり、またその独特な酵母の味わいと香りから、
’Love it or hate it’ （"大好きか大嫌いか"）
というのがマーケティングのキャッチフレーズで、敬遠する人もいますが、
好きになると病み付きになる味と言われています。

英国やそののかつての植民地であったコモンウェルスの国々では
トーストやビスケットに薄くバターと塗って食すのが、一般的な食べ方だそうですので、
日本の納豆と同じような立ち居地かもしれません。

お酒も同様に味わいの強い物を選びます。
本日はご縁のあった、岡山県倉敷市の菊池酒造さんの
燦然　特別純米　雄町米　をぬる燗で。

雄町米は岡山県が原産で、お米の旨味がしっかりした味わいの酒になると言われています。
シリアルのような落ち着いた穀物と、黒蜜のような甘い香りがあり、米の旨みがあるのにキレがいい、純米酒の優等生のような上品なお酒です。
​​蔵人がお酒においしくなって欲しいという願いをこめて、モーツアルトをかけて醸したと聞きます。

自然な米の甘みが、マーマイトの塩気を和らげてくれると同時に、
マーマイトの旨味がお酒の味を持ち上げますので、抜群の相性です。

また、お酒は温める事で味わいが強くなるので、
人肌に一度温めてから、常温までの燗冷ましをそれぞれの温度で楽しむのがお勧めです。
しっかりとしたコシの強い作りが、温めてもバランスがくずれず、
マーマイトの濃厚な味にも負けず劣らずで、お酒がどんどん進みます。

At first glance, this may seem surprising, but Marmite and sake go together very well.
It is like a happy international marriage between a man and a woman born and raised in different countries.
Both are fermented foods and contain many umami ingredients.
The combination of different umami ingredients has a synergistic effect of increasing umami flavor.
In fact, it can be said that they are an excellent match.

Marmite is a by-product of the beer making process and is the lees of beer, or sake lees.
It is salty and sticky, and its unique yeasty taste and aroma have earned it the name
'Love it or hate it" is the marketing tagline for the product.
 and some people shy away from it, but once you love it, it becomes addictive.

In the United Kingdom and its former colonies in the Commonwealth,
it is said that the common way to eat natto is to spread it on toast or cookies with a thin layer of butter.
It may be regarded as same as the natto in Japan.

Sake is also a strong flavorful drink.
Today, we had a chance to taste a sake from the Kikuchi Shuzo brewery in Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture.
We had a chance to try Sanzen Special Junmai Omachi Rice from Kikuchi Shuzo in Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture, and warmed it up.

Omachi rice is originally from Okayama Prefecture and is said to produce a sake with a strong rice flavor.
It has a cereal-like calm grain and a sweet aroma like molasses. It is an elegant sake with the flavor of rice but with a nice sharpness, an excellent example of Junmai sake.
We are told that the brewer brewed this sake with a Mozart over it in the hope that the sake would taste good.

The natural sweetness of the rice softens the salty aspect of the marmite, while at the same time
and at the same time, the flavor of the marmite lifts the taste of the sake, making it an excellent match.

In addition, the flavor of sake becomes stronger when it is warmed.
It is recommended to warm sake to human skin once and then enjoy it heated to room temperature at different temperatures.
The strong and firm structure of the sake does not lose its balance even when warmed, and the rich flavor of marmite is a perfect match for the sake.
                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

It's time to ditch the diet and pamper your stomach with Sake Kasu Pancake !
Traditionally, pancakes were eaten on this ShroveTuesday to use up rich, indulgent foods like butter, eggs and milk before the 46 days prior to the  fasting season of Lent began. In Christian belief, warm, round pancakes is symbolising the sun, hence to eat pancake was a way of celebrating the arrival of spring. This year, Pancake Day is taking place on Tuesday 28th February as this moveable feast is determined by Easter. I would like to introduce very tasteful and nutritious Japanese pancake made with Sake Kasu. I recommend to enjoy this Sake Kasu pancake with butter and honey as the combination of Sake Kasu and butter is so good.

キリストの復活を祝うイースター前には断食の季節とされるレントがあります。レントから数えて４6日前には、冷蔵庫の中のバターや卵、牛乳等のリッチな食材を使いきってしまう為に、パンケーキを食べる習慣があり’Shrove Tuesday' またの名を’Pancake Tuesday ’と呼ばれています。温かくて丸い形のパンケーキを太陽にみたて、それを食べることは春の訪れを祝う事でもあるそうですが、2017年のパンケーキデーは2月28日。それに因んで、本日は#酒粕入りのパンケーキをご紹介します。イギリスのパンケーキは、伝統的には薄いクレープ生地のようなものですが、酒粕を入れる事で、ふっくらともちもちとした触感になります。酒粕はバターとの相性がよいので温かいうちに、バター(有塩) と蜂蜜をかけて食べるのがオススメです。

 Ingridient
Serves: 2　（6 pancakes /パンケーキ6枚分）

• 50ml Sake Kasu paste (酒粕ペースト)
• 130ml Yoghurt  (ヨーグルト)​
• 2 -3 tsp Honey (蜂蜜)
• A pinch of  Salt (塩)
• 1 Egg （卵）
• 150g Pancake Mix (パンケーキミックス)
• 1 knob of   Butter (バター)
• 1tsp Lemmon (レモンジュース)

Method (English)
Prep: 10min › Cook: 10 min › Ready in: 20
min​

1. Crack an egg into a bowl, then add all the other ingredients except Pancake mix into a bowl. (3tsp of honey if you like sweeter taste)
2. Add the pancake mix into 1 and whisk it gently until you have a lovely smooth batter.
3. Heat a frying pan on a medium heat and melt the butter.
4. Pour 60ml of batter mix making a circle.
5. Cook it for 3 minutes until little bubbles come out and and flip it over carefully, and then fry it for another 3 minutes until the both sides become golden.
6. Serve the pancakes in layers  topped with a knob of butter and drizzle of honey if you like.

作り方 (日本語)
準備:10分 › 　調理:10分 ›　出来上がり:20分 ​　

1. パンケーキミックス以外の全ての材料をボールに入れてよく混ぜる​.（甘めが好みの場合、蜂蜜はティースプーン3杯が目安）
2. パンケーキミックスを1に入れて粉っぽさががなくなるまで粘りが出ないように混ぜる
3. フライパンを弱火にかけ、バターを溶かす。
4. 2を円を描くようにフライパンに流し込み、蓋をしてごく弱火で3分ほど焼く。焦がさないように気を付ける。
5. 裏返してもう3分ほど蓋をして焼く
6. お皿に盛り、お好みで蜂蜜とバターをかける

Amazake- a Japanese traditional sweet drink made with fermented rice.
Its origin dates back to Kofun Period (around 250 to 538 AD).
It is also mentioned in the Chronicle of Japan, ​the second oldest book in Japan as 'Ama no tamu zake'
which was chewed by a young virgin of the village, fermented with wild yeast and dedicated to the god.

The one made with Kome ko-ji (Fermented rice with Koji mold) turn out to be non-alcohol,
and the one made with Sake Kasu- the lee left over from sake production contain very low alcohol.
​
As the Sake kasu is packed with lot of nutritious goodies, such as amino acid, protein, and various vitamins,
Amazake is nicknamed as ' Orally taken drip'
which in fact has very similar portion of nutrition to the actual medical drip.

In summer, it prevents summer lethargy, and in winter it warms you up instantly and longer time.

I would like to introduce this very simple Amazake recipe, integrating Sake Kasu into your modern daily life.

Ingridient
Serves: 1

• 50ml Sake Kasu (酒粕)
• 100ml Milk or Soya Milk (牛乳もしくは豆乳)​
• 2 -3 tsp Honey (蜂蜜)
• Nutmeg (ナツメグ)

Method (English)
Prep: 0min › Cook: 5 min › Ready in: 5min​

1. Pour all the ingredients except nutmeg into a pan. (3tsp of honey if you like sweeter taste)
2. Heat the pan at low temperature stirring them constantly.
3. Pour it into a cup, and grate a nutmeg on top.

作り方 (日本語)
準備:0分 › 　調理:5分 ›　出来上がり:5分 ​　

1. ナツメグ以外全ての材料を小鍋に入れる​.（甘めが好みの場合、蜂蜜はティースプーン3杯が目安）
2. 小鍋を弱火にかけ、全体を混ぜながら5分ほど火にかける。沸騰させないように気を付ける。白い湯気が出てきたら、火を止める
3. カップに注ぎ、ナツメグを少々振りかける