The other day, I bought a pack of four "La France" for 298 yen, and today, I bought a box of "Le Lectier" for 950 yen. I like both pears, but I prefer Le Lectier partly it's rarer than La France, the former being produced almost entirely in Niigata prefecture while the latter is produced in other prefectures like Yamagata and mainly because the former is more fragrant and flavorful and has creamy flesh.
先日、ラフランス４個パックを買い（298円）、今日は、箱入りのルレクチエを買いました（950円）。どちらも好きですが、どちらかと言うと、ルレクチエのほうが好きです。ラフランスより珍しい（前者はほぼ新潟県だけで生産されており、後者は山形県など他の県でも生産されている）こともありますが、主な理由は、ルレクチエのほうが香りもよく美味しく、また果肉がクリーミーだからです。
ラフランスの断面の写真を撮るのを忘れました。
Cross section of the Le Lectier:
ルレクチエの断面：
さっきの言葉を取り消さないと。ラフランスも香りが良く美味しかったです。要するに、どちらの品種とも独特の味でとても美味しいです。
Previous post on Le Lectier/ルレクチエに関する過去の記事
Previous post where I compared the two varieties/この二種を比較した過去の記事
Hiroyuki-san, I just discovered your blog, although I read your posts on egullet in the past. Thanks to you, I discovered the idea of ratios and it helped me understand some basics of Japanese cuisine. I still use various cookbooks to learn traditional dishes, but with ratios I can experiment with the ingredients I have locally in Brussels. So, I look forward to reading your blog.
ReplyDeleteThis year Belgium had a bumper crop of pears. They are now sold very inexpensively, so I have also been doing various pear tastings, since there are so many varieties. One of my favorites turned out to be Doyenne du Comice, which has really creamy flesh. The skin is tough and grainy, but there is also lots of floral aroma. Based on the photos, it looks a bit like Le Lectier.
Victoria: Wow, thank you for your comment! You've known me since my eGullet years?!
ReplyDeleteCooking with ratios will take you to a different height, making you a professional Japanese chef literally overnight. With ratios, you will know exactly what the standard flavors are for individual dishes, and you can make adjustments quite easily to suit your preferences.
I envy you for being able to get various pears cheap!
It does seem like it was a while ago, although by the time I found a blog on egullet you kept, in which you listed daily meals (for a week, I think), it was in the archives. I just really liked your explanations, and I read some of your posts on their Japanese cuisine subforum to help me with my cooking. Not many cookbooks published in English explain the ratios, so that was a revelation. And yes, it really gave me a sense of comfort with Japanese cooking and freedom to improvise.
ReplyDeleteBut actually, I found this blog, because I was searching for warabimochiko, and your recipe for warabi mochi came up. Two weeks ago I was in Kyoto and tried warabi mochi there, and just loved it. So, now, I'm trying to see if I can replicate at least the mock version.
As for pears, this is an abnormal year. With the climate in Belgium we aren't too spoiled with good fruit, so most of ours is imported (and so, more expensive). There is a local variety here, which is small, hard, but when you cook it, it becomes super fragrant and turns a little red. I work in the fragrance industry, so I study aromas, and every time I cook with this pear, I want to take it to the lab and figure out which component makes it so perfumed.
Victoria: I hope you like my warabi mochi recipe, as well as my milk mochi recipe!
ReplyDeleteI visited your site, which I found quite interesting. You are in the fragrance industry!
I hope you incorporate the aromas of matsutake (pine mushroom) and and other mushrooms into your purfume products some day. They will sell very well in Japan (laugh).
Mmmmm... Matsutake! I would want that perfume. :) Maybe, if not to wear on skin, just to smell, because I love that aroma.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for visiting! I ended up in that field by accident, one could say, but it's so fascinating, a blend of science and art. And of course, scents and flavors are tied closely. When one starts paying attention to scents and tastes, it's one interesting discovery after another. Like the violet like aroma of pears or the peach skin like notes in some varieties of sake.