These are the Japanese food that my chef friend wants to share with you guys.  Japanese foods are not only pleasing to the eyes but also to your taste buds.  My chef friend who is a bodybuilder too is not only dependent to whey protein but also to these famous Japanese masterpieces.  Japanese cuisine according to Wikipedia is based on combining staple foods, typically rice or noodles, with a soup and okazu dishes made from fish, meat, vegetable, tofu and the like to add flavor to the staple food. These are typically flavored with dashi, miso, and soy sauce and are usually low in fat and high in salt. Popular items are sushi, sashimi and teriyaki. Sushi, long regarded as quite exotic in the west until the 1970s, has become a popular health food in parts of North America, Western Europe and Asia.

Ikura Sushi- is made of Little Pearl Salmon Caviar, Japanese Rice, rice wine vinegar, sugar, salt, and Nori

Ebi Sushi - Ebi means shrimp. The way to enjoy shrimp is via ama-ebi, raw shrimp, and sashimi-style.

Maguro Sashimi - fresh sashimi grade yellow fin tuna. It has a tender and mild flavor which is great for searing or eating raw.

Salmon Sashimi - one of the most colorful pieces on the sushi or sashimi plate. It has a wonderful, unctuous texture like toro and yellowtail, but (along with mackerel) much higher levels of Omega 3 essential fatty acids.

Sashimi Hamachi - made of young yellowtail (Seriola lalandi), is a gleaming, unctuous, firm, pink-hued fish, one of the most flavorful. Often served chopped in a roll with with scallions (negi-hamachi).

Ten temaki - A temaki is a cone-shaped hand roll. Add the name of any fish or vegetable the word before temaki, and you will get that item wrapped with rice in a sheet of toasted seaweed.

Unagi Sushi is Freshwater eel, which is richer than salt water or conger eel (anago). Eel is not served raw, but is pre-boiled, freshly grilled prior to serving and brushed with a rich sauce called kabayaki tare.

An American invention, the original California Roll was made by Ichiro Manashita, a sushi chef at Tokyo Kaikan restaurant in Los Angeles, around 1973. He incorporated avocado, cucumber and fish cake into a roll,  he hid the seaweed, which many Americans did not like, inside a layer of rice.

My friend in college bought a brand new Fiesta Sedan from Ford. I thought of owning a car too but with the income I'm earning right now it seems impossible. With the income I’m earning right now, I used a car loan calculator to estimate how much time would take for me to afford a Ford Expedition. Well, I was surprised with the result it is doable!

A friend of mine whose working in Scotland as a nurse is now travelling around Europe armed with a powerful camera and european travel insurance. She sent me some naughty pictures of european man wearing traditional costume. Sorry I can’t share it with you because this blog is exclusively for foodies only, lol! Anyway, here is a picture of a cheese store she has found while strolling on the streets of Edinburgh. She knew that I love cheese so much. I really do envy her.  Cheese according to Wikipedia is milk-based food product. It consists of proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. It is produced by coagulation of the milk protein casein. Most cheeses are acidified to a lesser degree by bacteria, which turn milk sugars into lactic acid, and then the addition of rennet completes the curdling. Cheese is valued for its portability, long life, and high content of fat, protein, calcium, and phosphorus. Cheese is more compact and has a longer shelf life than milk. The pleasure of eating cheese does not end in taste but it also beneficial to our health. According to study, eating cheese is good to your heart, help prevent tooth decay, and believe it or not, help loss weight.  It also lower down blood pressure and reduce abdominal fat, blood pressure and blood sugar.

I am the number one fan of Garlic. It's strong smell and the acrid and pungent taste has a very distinct flavor. Some say it is the fifth taste. Crushed or minched garlic is often fried to add flavor to the food we eat everyday. My nanay, love it too, she said, it is the accessory of the food we eat. She's right, garlic is the number one ingredients we found in majority of Filipino dishes. Like umami, it is a seasoning found in most dishes. The garlic-ky taste in pesto, corned beef, and chicken dishes are my top favorites. The small than usual garlic often called "native" garlic here in the Philippines is tasteful. The benefits of garlic exceed not just the delightful taste, but also in health.

My mother eats it raw because it treats high cholesterol. Regular eating of garlic helps lower blood pressure, controls blood sugar, and boosts the immune system. It has also been found to reduce the risk of esophageal, stomach, and colon cancer. It also treats parasites, respiratory problems, poor digestion, and low energy. Garlic is used as anti bacterial, used to cure toothaches. Garlic's ability to fight infections and bacteria makes it an effective cure for warts and other skin problems. The only side effect of garlic that I hate is bad breath, lol! Well there are many ways to stop bad breath. Of course, brushing your teeth after eating garlicky food would definitely freshen up your breath.

Everyday, a delicious lunch is something to look forward to indulge in whether you are at home or at work. For me, a comfortable and affordable lunch set the mood for the rest of the day. If you’ve noticed I'm silent and mad midday of work, I probably had a bad lunch at the jolly jeep nearby. Lol!