山=mountain and 菜= vegetable together you have "mountain vegetables" or "sansai" in Japanese. Spring in Nagano means there are mountain vegetables everywhere and wild vegies are not only fun to pick but these forest treats are also very healthy. I picked "chanmerro" from the tabi-tabi grounds then washed these flower-like delicacies, covered them in flour and batter, and deep-fried them into "sansai tempura".

What you need:

canola oil for frying

sansai like fiddleheads and chanmerro

1 cup of flour

1/3 cup of water

1/4 tsp of salt

1 egg

Prepare the tempura batter by mixing the water, flour, and egg. All the ingredients should be chilled, and keep some ice-cubes in the batter when you are cooking to keep the batter cold.

Heat oil in a deep pot. You can test the oil by dropping in a bit of the batter. The batter should bubble and stay on top.

Cover the sansai in flour before dipping them in the tempura batter (water, flour, and egg). Gently drop the sansai in the oil and cook until it starts to brown (2-3 minutes). Take the sansai out and let drain on a paper towel. Salt generously and serve. 

Lodge tabi-tabi staff, Yosuke from Tokyo, has been eager to teach some Japanese cooking to our international guests. Tony (a returning guest from Australia) is a big fan of okonomiyaki and had fun learning how to make this simple Japanese dish at home.

What you need:

• 4 to 5 tablespoons of stock (fish stock or veggie stock)
• 60g / 2 oz all purpose flour, sifted
• 3 ‘large’ (60g each) eggs
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of Japanese (pink) ginger
• About 300g / 10 1/2 oz. (about 2 packed cups) shredded cabbage
• 3 tablespoons of chopped green onion
• 1 tablespoon of dried shrimp (optional)
• Oil for cooking

The topping:

       bonito flakes, okonomiyaki sauce, and mayonnaise

Making okonomiyaki is easy! Just put all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Next, pour the batter into a heated and oiled frypan. Cook for 3 minutes than flip. Cook for another 3 minutes and flip again and cook for  a final 3 minutes. Toss the Okonomiyaki onto a plate and top with okonomiyaki sauce, bonito flakes (katsuoboshi), and mayonnaise (preferable the Japanese kind).  Cut into bite sized pieces and enjoy!

Before eating, Japanese people say, "itadakimasu!".