Used Japanese cars, used Japanese engines, used Japanese auto parts exporter direct from Japan, recycler (dismantler) of used vehicles

June 22, 2010 [ From Staff]

Hi everyone. Sorry for not upgrading my blog , it is just that I have have been so busy lately plus its been getting hotter in Japan. How is the summer out there.. Well I don't know where you are but as long as you are not where I am right now, I really envy you. Japanese summer is known for being humid and sticky and that is something I am not very fond of. On the other hand, I am just crazy about the Japanese culture but also Japanese rice.

Japanese rice, also called Japonica is characterized by its unique stickiness and texture. It is cultivated throughout Japan but people say that the best rice comes from Niigata, which I still have to discover. Usually, I buy my rice at the nearest supermarket but just by looking at their colors I can easily see that there are various types of Japanese rice. Once I bought a rice that was so transparent white and shiny that I had no doubt that it will taste great. However I also bought a type of rice that was very cheap and its grains weren't uniformed and as I expected it wasn't as tasty as the other rice I was used to eating. Lately there is a new brand called "Musen-mai," a kind of rice that is advertised as "no wash necessary" which has become very popular in Japan.

One can't talk about Japanese rice without mentioning Japan's famous rice cookers. These convenient rice machines that give you the option to cook your rice faster or make yourself a tasty "Okayu" a type of rice porridge eaten in Japan, always remind me of the advanced technology that made Japan what it is today. The latest rice cookers advertised on TV have an extra option for the famous "Musen-mai," and I am pretty sure it makes the rice taste even better. Once, one of my Japanese friends taught me the important steps to make the best white rice. I was surprised by that because until then I thought that making white rice had only 3 steps: washing the rice, adding some water and pushing the start button. Now that I follow my friend's advice I feel that my meals with rice taste much better

Coming from Senegal, West Africa, I am used to eating rice everyday for lunch. However the rice (from Africa, China, or Thai) I was used to before coming to Japan is very different from the rice I came to love. The African species of rice cultivated long before Europeans arrived in the continent has been gradually replaced by the introduced Asian species of rice. The two species of rice have recently been crossed, producing a promising hybrid. This rice is usually non-sticky and long-grained and is sold broken sometimes. That explains the reason why most people I know complain about the sticky rice in Japan at first. However, like a miracle, they all fall in love with Japan's sticky rice in a matter of weeks. Although I wasn't found of it at first, now I find myself taking some with me when I travel to America just because I have difficulty eating the "dry rice" my family is used to.

Being a rice lover, I was more than happy participate in the Kaiho Sangyo's project revolving around Japanese Rice. The project which is called the "Genki Rice Project" aims to get people's involvement and support for developing countries. Instead of asking for petition on the road as many volunteers do, Kaiho has decided to collect smiling pictures in exchange to rice donated to poor countries. For every smiling picture received, Kaiho donates 1000 grains of rice until it reaches 10,000 smiles which accounts to approximately 3300 cups of rice and this will be shipped to a developing country in Africa. Kaiho Sangyo's primary goal is to help establish a sustainable and independent agricultural model in these countries.

For more information about this project please check our H.P. The English version of the project will be uploaded very soon. Until then, if you are living in Japan, I wish you luck with its sticky summer and I hope you enjoy Japan sticky rice.

Rice Rice :)