Whoah! Check out the wasabi root – and how expensive it is! – I thought when I spotted it on offer in the vegetable section of the Uwaji-maya grocery store in Seattle’s International District on Sunday night. Wasabi root has an extremely strong flavor and in this form is finely grated BUT : it loses its flavor after just 15 minutes if left uncovered! The plant grows naturally along stream beds in mountain river valleys in Japan, and is also cultivated, but it is difficult to do so. Japan imports wasabi from China, Taiwan and even from New Zealand. Wasabi is sometimes called Japanese horseradish, but horseradish is a different plant.
I love your Reusable shopping bag with the frightful dragon! How can I obtain a few of these for my Japanese friends? Are they still current? With gifts inside I want to give these bags to my Japanese friends in the state of Maryland where I live. I’m willing to pay for postage of course. Unfortunately, we do not have such wonderful grocery/gift shops…only Korean… and they’re not anything half as nice as Uwajimaya.
Thanks for your comment. Unfortunately it’s been a very long time since I had shopped at Uwajimaya, so I don’t know if these bags are still available. The store is a little ways from where I live, and I cannot promise when I will be able to go there and take a look. I’m sorry 🙁