++Greetings from Kaori++

Hello, my name is Kaori Yamaguchi (Ishida) and I offer private cooking workshop at home using Japanese food ingredients and vegetables.

Before I go on any further, please allow me talk a little about my aspiration and how this all came to be, so that you can have a better idea of what my workshop is all about.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have always had interest and respect for our culture and tradition. This can be said to have come from very strong influences from the environment that I grew up in; my father, an artist who’s artistic theme is old Japanese scenery, my mother who used to own a Japanese folk craft shop in Hiroo and Takanawa (they have moved out of Tokyo to live in a 100 year old Japanese house, which they moved from Tohoku), and my classmates’ mothers and fathers from all over the world, who had great love for Japanese culture and tradition.

All these years, I had never come to realize how much I loved our tradition and culture, until I left my work and had all the time to myself. That was when I started picking up a lot of things I had always wanted to do; ie cooking, pottery-making, bonsai-making etc etc. At the same time, my interest in learning and understanding more about my country grew stronger, and that was when I learned about the correspondence study courses offered at Kyoto University of Art and Design. This Kyoto-based art university had a Japanese Historical Heritage Department, where we study about the history, tradition and culture of Japan through aspects such as art, religion, performing arts (ie kabuki, bunraku), the way of tea, Japanese garden and architecture, while we also study about preservation and restoration of ancient artifacts, as well as reading old manuscripts from Heian to Edo period, and much more. Not only the fact that the university is located in Kyoto, where so much history still remains, a lot of the professors are true masters of Japanese tradition in each of their fields, which ensured me that this was the place for studying “the real Japan”. After enrolling and the more I studied, my wish to get myself involved with something I can share and introduce our culture and tradition to foreign people grew even stronger.

In the meantime, I got acquainted with Jen, who was very much interested in cooking with Japanese food ingredients. While we shared many recipes together, she had shown interest in making her own Umeboshi (pickled Japanese plums). And so one year, we pickled some umeboshi together. This had made me realize there is still so much in our food culture that is yet not widely known or understood, and that there were so many expats who went back to their countries not knowing a lot of what sits in our supermarket shelves. This had then inspired me to start a cooking workshop where I can share and introduce our tradition and culture through our food and cooking. (there is just sooo much history and tradition in our food culture!)

Of what I believe = the beauty and significance in our tradition and culture,
Of what I love = healthy and natural cooking; mainly with Japanese food ingredients,
Of what I can do = speak English and off course, cooking!
Of what I am currently studying = Japanese culture and tradition;
all that put together turned out as my “WaBi SaBi KITCHEN – A JAPANESE COOKING WORKSHOP”

Lastly, the reason why I wanted to call this a “workshop” rather than a cooking “class” or “lesson”, is because the sessions are not like regular cooking classes where cooking basics are taught. But rather, I see this as a place and opportunity for all of us to share and realize the beauty and significance of the country we come from. For that reason, I want to make myself always open to new ideas and suggestions, especially on how to cook with our food ingredients. If someone comes up with an Indian recipe using tofu, or even “natto” (fermented soy beans), we can arrange for one workshop day to share the new recipe idea. That is why I see myself more of a “moderator” rather than an instructor or a teacher.

I’m so very excited this has finally all come together as a wonderful opportunity, and am looking forward to sharing some fun, treasurable moments with you. Let's make your stay in Japan an even more memorable experience for you!!