May 1, 2014

My Nukadoko Makes a Comeback/私の糠床が復活

This afternoon, I took my nukadoko (rice bran pickling bed) out of the freezer to thaw on the kitchen counter. At around 9 o'clock in the evening, it was completely thawed.
今日の午後、糠床をフリーザーから出して、台所で解凍しました。夜9時ごろ、完全に解凍しました。
I added some nuka (rice bran) to my nukadoko.
糠床に糠を少し足しました。
This is the rice bran I used. It contains kombu, red peppers, mustard, and salt.
使った糠はこれです。昆布、唐辛子、からし、食塩が入っています。

Then, I mixed my nukadoko thoroughly, using a small spoon with a long handle.
次に、柄の長い小さなスプーンでよく混ぜました。
Then, I used my hand to make it flat.
次に、手を使って、平らにしました。
I decided to pickle three cucumbers.
きゅうりを3本漬けることにしました。
I cut the top one in half because it was too long to fit in the container.
一番上のは長過ぎて、容器に入らないので、半分に切りました。
I buried them completely.
完全に埋めました。
I set aside the container on the kitchen counter, with the lid on it.
容器に蓋をして、台所に置きました。
The temperature is just right for nukadoko.
気温は糠床には最適です。
I hope I can mix the pickled cucumbers with shin shoga (young ginger) tomorrow.
明日、きゅうりの糠漬けを新生姜と合わせたいです。
Both cucumber and shin shoga have been reduced in price these days.
きゅうりも新生姜も最近安くなってきました。

10 comments:

  1. Wow the young ginger is really cheap. I always have to pay a small fortune for that kind of ginger.

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  2. Kiki: Oh, is it? The cucumbers cost about 30 yen each. (In the summer, I get lots of cucumbers from relatives for free.)

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  3. I never can find young ginger here.

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  4. Don't tempt me with nukadoko! I don't have space in my fridge... (it's too hot to keep it outside of the fridge). I did it only once but the pickled cucumber was fabulous.
    I do find young ginger here (I love it!), but only in Thai grocery shop. Swiss authorities have recently reported that many vegetables and fruits imported from Thailand contained excessive doses of chemicals and some chemicals they found are even forbidden here. Since then I try to limit my Thai produce buys to the minimum. (And I love green papaya so much...).

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  5. muskratbyte: I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you can find it somewhere... Shin shoga is in season until August or so, and I'm going to pickle lots of cucumbers and mix them with shin shoga!

    Sissi: Why don't you just start with a Ziploc bag or something? It won't take much space in your fridge, right?

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  6. Oh, you are right! Zip lock bag sounds like an excellent idea!

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  7. Sissi: I planted some ginger in a bigger container. Just a piece of ginger rhizome showing 1 sprout bud. 2 parts container garden soil, 1 part sandy garden soil and 1 part composte. Hopefully I may have some harvest.

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  8. Hi Hiro! It's unbelievable that your nukadoko survived dormant for pretty much half a year! Thanks for risking your nukadoko's life. Now I am considering putting mine into suspended animation as well. What is an I-bag? I can't remember if you mentioned it in this thread or another one, but you said you stored your nukadoko in an I-bag in the freezer. Is it some kind of ziploc bag? Or is it a bag that lets air out? I found it on Amazon but I can't make out what it is exactly. Thanks!

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  9. Judy Naito:

    I suppose you are the same Judy Nato as the one who made a comment here:
    http://hiro-shio.blogspot.jp/2011/12/my-nukadoko-on-december-291229.html?showComment=1405915784333#c2389279649837081754
    I think I have already answered your question.

    I-Wrap bags are just plastic bags, and are much more flimsy than ziploc bags. I think ziploc bags are better substitutes.

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  10. Thanks Hiroyuki! I didn't get the notification of your reply on my Google+. Sorry you had to answer my question twice!

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