TOKYO SUMMER FESTIVAL 2024 FARMERS MARKET AUGUST 3-4 -

TOKYO SUMMER FESTIVAL 2024

FARMERS

+ FOOD

+ CRAFT

SAT + SUNDAY AUGUS 3 ~ 4

10:00 – 16:00

2024年8月3 ~ 4日

UNU building in Aoyama Tokyo

TOKYO SUMMER FESTIVAL 2024 AUGUST … JOIN US!

AOYAMA FARMERS MARKET AUGUST 3 – 4 TOKYO SUMMER FESTIVAL 2024

Welcome to the TOKYO SUMMER FESTIVAL 2024. Every week there are farmers originating from Tokyo to Okinawa. Each specialize in growing unique fruit or vegetables. Unlike grocery stores, farmers pick their produce just before they arrive which ensures the freshest possible tastes and textures. Testament to this quality is the frequency of high profile chefs visiting weekly from the Shibuya area arrive. Chefs know the freshest and best seasonal produce can be sourced here. This week is a chance to taste the great Okinawa mango. Visit the Kumejimangoo Booth at the Farmers market to see. We have enjoyed its sublime taste and silky texture – the best we ever tasted!

This weekend Japan’s best hot pepper farmer will be brining an extraordinary variety of peppers. The colors are beautiful and tastes electric. Blueberry season is coming to a close so maybe last chance for the iconic summer fruit. Mizu nasu, eggplants, cucumbers and pumpkins abound at the market.

Stop by the Kikusumi Tokyo Knife Shop booth and say hello 🙂 Every week we bring the best Japanese knives to the market many of which bear our original design. This week we have 2 special ocean salts for cooking as part of our Kiyomi 6 brand. One is roasted sea salt harvested from the Japan Sea. When added to food it boosts umami thanks to its mineral content and roasted taste. An easy way to boost flavors and enjoy your meals more. We also have a sea salt blended with kombu for the eastern ocean of Japan. It has a distinct sea flavor that goes particularly well with raw, steamed or fried vegetables.

Knife collections featuring Japanese woods are in stock. New is Black persimmon bunka knives. Each is beautiful and one of a kind. For those who treasure the beauty of nature this is your knife. Kashi is Japanese oak, Sakura is Japanese cherry tree wood and Enju – or pagoda wood – coated in FUKI URUSHI by our craftman in Echizen. We have launched our original FURU series of Japanese wood handle knives. We started this series to address the growing concern over sustainability of our resources. Black Ghost series we have a Kyoto style nakiri and santoku that utilize kiso hinoki.

KIFLORA aromatherapy products are always available and connects to the KIKUSUMI brand in that the offcuts of woods are upcycled into essential oils. Kiso hinoki has special oils that we now up-cycle into Kiflora aroma products. The future is bright when we consider our impact and value every part of the resources we consume.

BLUEBERRY KAKI GORI TOKYO

This weekend’s Blueberry kakigori Tokyo Event was a perfect foil to the summer heat. One day only – we have been looking forward to it since we first heard about this special event! Good things happen when one of the best farmers in Japan combines his fruit with talented young patisseries. In this case blueberries at peak ripeness from Mr. Kato’s farm in Kanagawa are presented in a multi flavor kaki gori dessert. One usually finds the best kakigori Tokyo in sweet shops in Kyoto our near temple gates in Ise Japan. Some claim there is a kakigori Harajuku back street that is the best kakigori Japan. What is kakigori and how a farmer from Kanagawa created perhaps the best version ever is the story.

WHAT IS KAKIGORI ?

Kakigori (かき氷) is a Japanese shaved ice dessert flavored with syrup and a sweetener, often condensed milk. Kakigori can be described as a light and fluffy ice dessert made by thinly shaving ice from pure, unflavored ice blocks. Placing a bowl, underneath the machine, a side wheel is rhythmically turned to generate a mound of airy ice shavings. Next, the ice shavings are garnished with ice cream, yogurt or sweet & fruity syrups, like melon or strawberry. Variations include green tea (matcha) , hojicha and anything that can be made sweet and syrupy. The best versions are not just sweet but present subtle flavorings and offer counterpoints to sweetness. Originating in Japan around the 10th century one can find kakigori offering outside temple gates and in in sweet shops across Japan.

KAI KATO ORIGINAL KAKIGORI RECIPE

Picking blueberries at their peak ripeness in early August captures them at their best. The perfect kakigori recipe is not as simple as it looks. Mr. Kato knows better than anyone what this is and infused some in a simple syrup for 1 week to create a blueberry sauce. Subtle complexities of lemon basil were additionally infused into condensed milk together by patisserie Nono. Inside the food truck a large ice block was sliced by machine into a mountain of airy shavings. Over top, a deep blueberry syrup was drizzled. Next dots of cool, tart yoghurt were added along with the lemony condensed milk infusion. Finally, nature’s perfect creation – the sweet & tart blueberry were added. The result was a multi flavor and textural masterpiece that teased the palette throughout while cooling the body on this hot 35 Celsius day in the heart of Shibuay Tokyo!