Insight Editions - Studio Ghibli Cookbook: Unofficial Recipes Inspired by Spirited Away, Ponyo, and More! : Unofficial Recipes Inspired by Spirited Away, Ponyo, and More!

Studio Ghibli Cookbook

Unofficial Recipes Inspired by Spirited Away, Ponyo, and More!

1986 Studio Ghibli

2012 Chizuru Takahashi Tetsuro Sayama GNDHDDT

1988 Akiyuki Nosoka/Shinchosha Company

2004 Studio Ghibli NDDMT

1989 Eiko Kadono Studio Ghibli N

1988 Studio Ghibli

1999 Hisaichi Ishii Hatake Jimusho GNHB

1984 Studio Ghibli H

1991 Hotaru Okamoto Yuko Tone GNH

2008 Studio Ghibli NDHDMT

1994 Hatake Jimusho Studio Ghibli NH

1992 Nibariki GNN

1997 Studio Ghibli ND

2001 Studio Ghibli NDDTM

2006 Studio Ghibli NDHDMT

2002 Nekonote-Do Studio Ghibli NDHMT

2010 Studio Ghibli NDHDMTW

2013 Hatake Jimusho Studio Ghibli NDHDMTK

2013 Nibariki GNDHDDTK

2014 Studio Ghibli NDHDMTK

1995 Aoi Hiiragi / Shueisha Studio Ghibli NH

The images that appear on these pages are intended only to illustrate the words of the authors.

MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO

Hayao Miyazaki, 1988

A popular and easy-to-make lunch in Japan, a bento is a packed meal served in a box. Bentos can be bought prepackaged from a konbini (twenty-four-hour convenience store) or, more traditionally, made from scratch. These packaged meals reflect the balance we expect from Japanese food, consisting mainly of rice, a serving of protein, and some accompanying fruits or vegetables. Although the basic concept is similar to any packed lunch, calling a bento a lunch box overlooks one of its most distinctive features: aesthetics. A bento should look as good as it tastes. Beautiful bento boxes are a source of pride for many Japanese families.

In My Neighbor Totoro, ten-year-old Satsuki and her four-year-old sister, Mei, live alone with their father because their mother is ill in the hospital. Just before they meet the forest spirit that whisks them away from their dreary everyday lives, Satsuki prepares a bento for a picnic. The task of preparing this simple, appealing lunch is more meaningful than it appears: The bento represents the heavy burden the girl carries while she serves as the familys housewife.

DIFFICULTY :

YIELD : 2 servings

TIME : 40 minutes

• cup uncooked rice
• 2 frozen shishamo smelt
• Olive oil for frying
• 3 ounces snapper (or other white fish, such as tilapia)
• 1 teaspoon sake
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 drops red food coloring
• 2 dried jujube fruits
• 30 edamame beans

Cook the rice in a pot of water. While the rice is cooking, thaw the shishamo; then slide the fish into a frying pan over medium heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil and cook for 5 minutes; then flip the shishamo and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove the fish from the pan and place it on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil.

In a separate saucepan, boil some water and drop in the snapper. When the fish is slightly flaky, drain it and set it aside on a plate. (If youre using frozen snapper fillets, simply thaw them.)

Place the snapper fillets in a frying pan over medium heat; add the sake, sugar, and salt. Break up the fillets into small pieces and stir until all the liquid has evaporated.

Add the red food coloring and a little water to achieve the desired color; then lower the heat. Stir well.

Take out two bento boxes. Divide the rice in half and spoon one half into the large compartment of each bento box; also add one fried shishamo and one dried jujube to each box. Fill one small compartment with the snapper pieces and the other small compartment with the edamame.

ITADAKIMASU!

NOTE

Try your local Asian market for some of the harder-to-find ingredients used in this book, such as shishamo and nori.

PRINCESSE MONONOKE

Hayao Miyazaki, 1997

OKAYU

BACKGROUND

I n the film Princess Mononoke, Ashitaka has been cursed by a demon. On his quest to lift the curse, he encounters forest spirits and the main character San, also known as Princess Mononoke. This medieval film by Hayao Miyazaki, set in medieval times, reflects the animist themes the director often returns to, including the importance of humans living in harmony with nature.

During his adventures, the young hero meets Jigo, a wandering monk. As the two eat together in the woods, the old man explains that they are actually sitting in the ruins of a village that the spirits destroyed.

The monk serves Ashitaka a sort of rice soup that he seasons with what could be miso paste. The porridge, called okayu, is usually given to children or people who are sick. Okayu is believed to have healing properties, particularly for stomachaches. It can be thickened with eggs and served with salmon,