June 28, 2016
Pickled "ume" apricot plums delight Japanese in tsuyu rainy season
The month of June brings gloomier days to Japanese as it falls on the "tsuyu" rainy season, but pickled "ume" plum lovers are excited about the arrival of the season. Pickled ume plums, called "umeboshi" in the Japanese language, can be made by soaking ume Japanese apricots in red perilla leaf juice for a few weeks.
Perilla leaves have sterilizing power and are rich in minerals.
Shoppers can easily find a corner with fresh ume plums displayed together with red perilla leaves and bottles for pickling around this time of the year.
The year of 2016 is the year of the monkey as one of the 12 zodiac signs. People familiar with the zodiac sign culture say umeboshi plums made in the monkey's year are a luck bringer.
Ume plums can also be jammed by boiling and sweetening. Ume brandies can be made with white liquor and crystal sugar.
Japanese also enjoy various other pickled vegetables, which help maintain their appetite toward the hot, steamy summer days.
Japanese cucumbers, gourds and scallions are among them. They can be pickled by lightly preserving in salt or rice bran.
Sometimes, sake wine lees in a cask are used for pickling or fermenting vegetables.
Pickled and fermented vegetables are traditional foods loved by Japanese over centuries.
Because Japanese are becoming even more health-conscious and the "vegetable-first" meal life is recommended, the traditional foods should attract their attention more.
The month of June brings gloomier days to Japanese as it falls on the "tsuyu" rainy season, but pickled "ume" plum lovers are excited about the arrival of the season. Pickled ume plums, called "umeboshi" in the Japanese language, can be made by soaking ume Japanese apricots in red perilla leaf juice for a few weeks.
Perilla leaves have sterilizing power and are rich in minerals.Shoppers can easily find a corner with fresh ume plums displayed together with red perilla leaves and bottles for pickling around this time of the year.
The year of 2016 is the year of the monkey as one of the 12 zodiac signs. People familiar with the zodiac sign culture say umeboshi plums made in the monkey's year are a luck bringer. 
Ume plums can also be jammed by boiling and sweetening. Ume brandies can be made with white liquor and crystal sugar.Japanese also enjoy various other pickled vegetables, which help maintain their appetite toward the hot, steamy summer days.
Sometimes, sake wine lees in a cask are used for pickling or fermenting vegetables.Pickled and fermented vegetables are traditional foods loved by Japanese over centuries.
Because Japanese are becoming even more health-conscious and the "vegetable-first" meal life is recommended, the traditional foods should attract their attention more.
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