BLACK beans...argh, stupid food perfectionism

This morning I've got a pot of black beans simmering on my stove, praying that I don't forget the little buggers on the burner. I have a tendency to cook and forget things - apparently this thing runs in my family!

This past November when on a visit to my aunt Cathy and Uncle George's, the fire department decided to visit their house. My uncle had left some meat simmering in a pot - some neighbors spotted heaps of smoke coming out of the house and contacted the police. Geez - an extra hour or so and the place would have been toast. Phew, needless to say, they went out shopping for some auto-off range. I think I need that too.

Oh, back to the black beans...KUROMAME are a staple in Japanese osechi ryori, which means traditional New Year's cuisine. Osechi ryori includes various incredibly difficult foods to make and takes more than a day or two to prepare. Two years ago I prepared it twice and promised myself I wouldn't make it (I mean the whole 9-yards) again. Being faithful to promises made to others and not to myself, I'm likely to make the whole thing again some year...just wait and see. These beans have to look like shiny lustrous black pearls - achieving that is not as easy as it looks! Two years ago mine came out beautifully shiny but awfully wrinkly. Each food has some kind of significance...the teriyaki dried fish are supposed to represent a bumper crop; chestnuts in the KURI KINTON are for prosperity; dai dai kumquats represent generation after generation; lotus root gives one a clear view of the future; black beans signify perfection and hard work...hmm, I cannot remember anything else. (picture is OSECHI I painstakingly made two years ago!)

Oh, and on New Year's day lots of people have OZOUNI soup which is a soup with various veggies and a block of roasted sticky rice cake. It is to be eaten for a long life...but for some, instead of longevity it brings um, sudden death? No joke. Some elderly folks choke on the rice cake and pass out! If their family is around them, they can be rescued by ...get this, a vacuum cleaner! It was one of the most hilarious moments in my career - a student telling me they had OZOUNI soup with a vacuum cleaner nearby. They told me it was in the event of choking - I couldn't believe it! Hmm, guess they haven't heard of the Heimlich maneuver - I'll just call it modern Japan. Leave everything to the electronic gadgets. (picture to the L is mochi on the grill)