Click on the picture above to see it with notes, which will identify everything.
Far beyond the carryout sushi and the unbelievably fresh fish, there are tons of other things I love about Tensuke. I try to get there once a week, and I'm always trying to find something I've never had before.
This giveaway is a big one - I kept finding things I wanted to share - and is not for the picky eater, although I tried to find things which would appeal to a wide audience.
Two of my favorite knives - first of all, my absolutely favorite (cheap) pairing knife. It's a small, sharp sharp pairing knife with a nice little cover, making it perfect for traveling to cooking gigs. The second knife is a longer, maybe 8" chef's knife. It is also an inexpensive knife which is very sharp (sorry, guys, but I can't give you a Kyocera 9" hollow-ground santoku until I have one).
Furikake - rice seasoning. You sprinkle it on hot rice. This flavor is egg yolk & seaweed flavor. It comes in a little glass jar, and when it's out, you can cut the metal top off and have a nice little juice glass.
Ponzu - a citrus & soy marinade which is delicious on meat and fish. I like to put mine in a little squeeze bottle, then I can squeeze it over while I'm broiling fish.
Yuzu powder & freeze-dried yuzu - Yuzu is a small Japanese citrus fruit. It isn't really eaten very much as a fruit like an orange, but it's widely used as a flavoring agent and has a lovely tart flavor. It is almost impossible to find yuzu juice, which is probably why its popularity peaked in 2005. I have only found it once at Tensuke, and I paid about $10 for a 250ml bottle. Fortunately, a little goes a long way. At any rate, I didn't find any juice, but I did find both freeze-dried yuzu peel, nice for flavoring or blending with salt. I also found yuzu powder, which is delightfully tart and makes a good rim on lemon drop martinis.
A small microwave plastic steamer - you can make rice or veggies in this thing. Nice for watching your waistline at work. Just fill it with veggies in the morning and steam it at lunch time. I imagine if I had a microwave, I'd probably use this a little thing.
Little plastic containers - I like these for my spices and such
Panko Bread Crumbs! - they make everything better. Especially if it's being fried, but even baked is nice. YUM. You'll never think about using cracker meal again.
Sodium-packed Noodles - I have long talked about my love for Asian instant noodles - any variety, I love them all. I used to love love love these Japanese noodles until one day I ate some after work, and in the morning I woke up feeling like the stay-puff marshmallow man. I looked at the package of deliciousness and lo and behold, one serving had 130% of one's daily sodium intake. So if you choose to eat them, you might want to eat them with a good bit of water.
T Top Peeler. Ask any line cook and they'll agree. You can do anything to a peeler, but the best one is the one which costs 99 cents. First of all, it is always being stolen, and secondly, no matter what OXO tells you, the T Top is the most ergonomically sound. Believe me, I used to make 48 individual apple crisps twice a week. I've peeled my fair share of apples.
Little soaker/strainer - I have one of these and I love it for rinsing small amounts of fruit or rise. You can soak and wash, and then lift the strainer out.
Here's how it goes: please pick a number between 1-100. this contest will open until Tuesday night at mindnight. Good luck!!
For anyone who hasn't been to Tensuke, they are located at 1167 Old Henderson Road, corner of Old Henderson & Kenny Road, behind the Staples and close to Akai Hana.
