Food From Netflix's The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House (Episode 3)
Episode 3 of Makanai titled "Taboo" immerses viewers in a culinary journey filled with tantalizing dishes prepared by Kiyo across all times of the day.
The episode opens with Kiyo preparing breakfast step-by-step. As with many Japanese dishes, the key is layering flavors and adding depth and balance. Kiyo starts by simmering kombu and niboshi (煮干 dried sardines) to make dashi for the miso soup. She later adds tomatoes and tofu and use uses a "spider" (coarse strainer) to break apart and add the miso to the soup.
Kiyo also crafts a delightful okra goma-ae (オクラ胡麻和え) dish, delicately cutting okra on the bias and coating it with a sauce made from crushed sesame seeds, sugar, and soy sauce.
The breakfast spread is further adorned with tamagoyaki (卵焼き rolled egg omelet), hijiki salad (ひじき a kind of seaweed salad), pickles, rice balls, and a grilled salted salmon (塩鮭 shiozake)—a quintessential component of a traditional Japanese morning meal. Truly, Kiyo goes all out on her first full day as a Makanai!
Next, we are shown a special scene showing Kiyo out on the balcony, where she is laying plums out on a bamboo basket called a bonzaru (盆ざる) to ferment. This is actually one of the final steps to making umeboshi! Umeboshi, or dried pickled plums, are prominently featured in Japanese cooking. While their intense sourness is certainly an acquired taste, they are well worth trying! You can make umeboshi at home like Kiyo or just as easily find them at a Japanese grocery store in person or online. However, umeboshi aren’t the only pickles Kiyo makes in the episode. If you blink, you might miss when Yoshino asks for more nukazuke in the scene moments before the maiko are reprimanded for being seen with cell phones in public. Nukazuke (糠漬け rice bran pickles) are a popular style of pickles found in Japan, and can be made with almost any hearty root vegetable such as daikon, carrots, and even cucumber.
The highlight of this episode comes at the very end. If you are a keen-eyed viewer who doesn’t use Netflix’s ‘skip intro’ function, the most important recipe of the episode is usually featured in the intro! In episode three, we are treated to caramel bread pudding! Tsurukoma comes down the stairs in the early morning, asking Kiyu to make her something to eat. Because Tsurukoma didn’t get to eat her pudding earlier in the episode, Kiyu decides to make a version of pan pudding (パンプリン bread pudding). Though the show doesn't delve into the details, we catch glimpses of Kiyo mixing a combination of eggs, sugar, and milk in a bowl. She then slices the remaining slice of bread into small pieces and combines them with the mixture before baking it in the oven. Just before it finishes baking, she makes a simple caramel sauce using sugar and water. Tsurukoma remarks that it is just like the purin (プリン Japanese flan pudding) that had gone missing from the fridge. Kiyo's adaptation of the recipe showcases not only her culinary prowess but also her commitment to providing a homemade treat for Tsurukoma when it wasn't possible to visit the convenience store. Kiyo demonstrates that the role of the Makanai isn’t just to cook, but to make the maiko feel at home.
About the author:
Michael Bugajski
Michael is originally from Chicago, IL in the United States, but has lived in Japan for seven years in Niigata and Hokkaido. He is an avid home chef, baker, and coffee enthusiast, but his one true love is ramen. Ever in pursuit of the perfect bowl of noodles, you can always find him by listening for the tell-tale slurp of ramen being enjoyed!
