#Yosenabe

[boyduroy]

Making nabe (hot pot) for camping dinner! 🍲 I implore you to go watch Laid-Back Camp, it is so wholesome and sweet, it's just a bunch of high school girls going camping together 🔥⛺

[the-pardon-my-french]

Mood: Yosenabe (seafood hotpot) & Gyudon

[literaryvein-reblogs]

a list of "beautiful" words from A to Z

to try to include in your next poem/story

Astrolatry - worship of the heavenly bodies

Bloodwite - a penalty for murder; a broil or riot in which blood is spilled

Corrigendum - an error in a printed work discovered after printing and shown with its correction on a separate sheet

Diamondiferous - containing diamonds

Epizoic - living upon the body of an animal

Funebrial - funereal

Gracile - slender, slight; graceful

Heartsome - giving spirit or vigor; animating, enlivening

Intimity - intimate privacy

Jocose - given to joking; merry

Klendusity - disease-escaping ability

Lilaceous - of or resembling the color lilac

Mebos - a confection of salted and sugared dried apricots

Notaeum - the upper surface of a bird's body

Ownhood - the condition in which one holds oneself or one's own in isolation; egoism, selfhood

Perioeci - those who live on the same parallel of latitude but on opposite meridians so that it is noon in one place when it is midnight in the other

Quasar - a region at the center of a galaxy that produces an extremely large amount of radiation

Rhipidate - fan-shaped

Scrapiana - miscellaneous literary scraps

Telergy - a hypothetical action of one person's thought and desire upon the brain of another person by the transmission of some unknown form of energy

Uraeus - a representation of the sacred asp (Naja haje) appearing in ancient Egyptian art and especially on the headdress of rulers and serving as a symbol of sovereignty

Virose - having or suggestive of a poisonous quality

Wandflower - a plant or flower of the genus Sparaxis; especially: a showy often cultivated plant (S. tricolor) with tawny yellow often purple-spotted flowers

Xystus - a long and open portico used especially by ancient Greeks or Romans for athletic exercises in wintry or stormy weather; a walk lined with trees

Yosenabe - a soup consisting especially of seafood and vegetables cooked in a broth

Zeppole - a doughnut made from cream puff dough

If any of these words make their way into your next poem/story, please tag me, or leave a link in the replies. I would love to read them!

More: Lists of Beautiful Words ⚜ Word Lists

[wannaeatramyeon]

Gun Park x Goo Kim: Nabe

Sorta 479 spoilers but not really. I couldn't resist. Fluffy.

"What's that?"

Goo pokes around the pot with some stray chopsticks, glasses steaming up from the heat.

Gun plucks the offending utensils from the blonde's fingers. "Yosenabe," and snaps it in half.

"Which is?"

"Nabe. A type of stew."

"Whatever, looks and smells like shit,"

"That's fine because you're not having any,"

Goo’s head whips around, eyes narrowing in annoyance, "What! You miser!"

Trying to focus on preparing the ingredients, arranging the greens and meat and seafood, Gun attempts to tune out his partner's voice.

"After all I do for you! You tight ass!"

It's not working. His voice is particularly aggravating tonight. Sense of personal space especially lacking.

"You're not even going to share? You selfish dick! I can't believe-"

Gun grits his teeth and spits out "Fine."

"You fuck-" A pause. A blink. "Fine?"

"Fine you can have some."

.

.

Resting his chin on Gun's shoulder, Goo inspects the chopping board. The ingredients look good, fresh. Blade slightly blunt, knife skills obviously nowhere near as good as himself, but it'll do.

Almost-

"Why aren't you cutting the shiitake all pretty?"

Goo feels the shoulder tensing.

"You know, like when people cut a star into it."

“...”

"But I suppose you can barely hold a knife."

"..."

"Can you make the carrots flower shaped?"

"..."

"That's probably too advanced for you."

Goo swipes at a piece and Gun laments not cutting off his fingers in time. "This one is so much bigger!" It's not. "You can't even cut them to equal size-"

"Get the fuck out of my kitchen."

.

.

Goo chews on a prawn. It's delicious. Tender and succulent and he tells Gun it's not bad. Passable. It'll do for his refined palate.

Receives a huff of amusement in response as Gun tucks into his own serving.

The nabe does wonders to warm them both on this cold night. Peaceful, companionable silence only broken by occasional bowls being refilled, noodles being slurped, hums of appreciation.

Goo wonders if maybe he himself is a cliche, and the way to his heart really is through his stomach.

Munching on a flower shaped carrot and picking his way around the pretty mushrooms with a star carved into it, he finds a flush on his cheeks and a warmth in his chest that has nothing to do with the food and everything to do with the man that sits opposite.

"You're not going to eat those?" Gun frowns. After that bastard specifically made a fuss over them too.

Staring at the shiitake in disgust, Goo can't bear to stomach them even if they do look more appetising tonight.

Pretending to gag, "Ew no, I hate mushrooms!"

[bluebellhairpin]

yosenabe date night <3

[purplesimmer455]

Nancy must've gotten into the I'm a bear phase because she changes into a bear suit just as Cam and Piper are talking to her. I don't mind the phase but the bear suits have the most creepy realistic eyes and I kind of wish there was a mod to replace them with a cutesy/cartoony version instead. 👀😅 Still, Nancy seems happy and her mom joins her in wearing a bear suit. Cam is a bit wary of this in-game and keeps glancing at Stephanie and Nancy. After the bear stuff, Cam and Piper head inside with the family and Riley makes Yosenabe using the hot pot and calls their family and guests to the meal.

[sifasdt]

SIF2 Daily Theatre: 2024-01-24

(Transcription after the break.)

[Image transcription:]

SIF 2 Daily Theatre for 2024-01-24

Something to Help Us Forget?

Chika: There's something that's been bothering me these days... Hanamaru: What's that, zura? Chika: It's hard to enjoy the sandy beaches in winter. Hanamaru: ... Maru agrees, zura. Chika: Isn't there something that would let us forget about this pain? Hanamaru: Hmm... How about eating something delicious? Chika: Ah, hotpots! How about hotpots? It's delicious and warm, and will allow us to forget about the beaches! Hanamaru: That's a good idea, zura~! Hotpots warm the cold body, too.~ Chika: Yeah, yeah! And knowing that there's a delicious hotpot waiting for me motivates me to work harder during practice! Let's go ask Dia-san to let us have a hotpot party after practice today~! Hanamaru: Let's do it~! Maru votes for a yosenabe, zura~!!

[End transcription.]

[truly-quirkless]

Twenty Day Challenge - Day Seven

Oh, we're just gonna talk about eating habits. This's...this's gonna be a mess.

As mentioned in the past- soft bars. So. Many. Soft bars. This man's desk, his office, his home- everything is overflowing with soft bars from every brand he could get his hands on.

His favorite is Nutrigrain but it's more difficult to eat those so he's on the fence with them. Saves them for special occasions.

When he cooks for himself, it's always (or almost always) some type of soup. Very rarely, it'll be a soft food.

Absolute Smoothie King™ fan. Has a membership and everything- drops by just about every other day for a drink, and it lasts him four to six hours (it's a thirty-two ounce every time- takes small sips every few minutes).

His favorite soup is probably a lightly spicy egg drop soup.

He almost never invites others to eat with him simply because he either: takes super long to finish the same serving size, or has a very small (think 'child's size' if not smaller) serving size.

It's actually very rare for restaurants in Japan to let people take food home,- too many worries about improper storage and the like- so Yagi almost always gets a small serving when he has to eat with others.

When he could eat whatever, he wasn't a picky eater- he'd spent enough time on his own to just accept any food he could get his hands on.

It internally hurts him to admit he can't have anywhere near as much food, anymore.

Has to be so careful what he eats/how much he eats or else he will be in agony until it finishes passing through his system.

Has a soda every once in a great while, even though it hurts a bit. He just-- misses the feel/taste...of the soda, not the pain.

The fucking pickiest eater- they're a very texture-sensitive person.

To them, all fruit tastes 'like biting into a mass of cobwebs' so they're also a big fan of Smoothie King- smoothies erase the cursed 'cobweb' texture.

There are some foods where the texture-reaction is so severe Fin refuses to eat it no matter what (example: apples- the texture of those make Fin insanely nauseas every time).

They're not in America, so there's not really a lot of 'kid's menus' (hardly any restaurants have them, most of those are in Tokyo where foreigners majorly visit).- But they eat a bit under a kid's serving per meal, usually.

They feel awkward not tipping, but it's seen as rude in Japan, so...they don't.

Favorite meal is a grilled cheese with fries and chocolate milk. It's a bit of a comfort meal from their childhood- and very painful to come by, since dairy products are more expensive there.

Doesn't invite others to eat out with them often because they get nervous/afraid of being told 'no'.

Downs Red Bull like it's water.

Their favorite soup is tonkotsu ramen with half an avocado.

Mostly makes microwaveable/oven-ready meals because they burn nearly everything they try to cook (including their favorite meal).

The few exceptions to this are: tuna melts, boiled eggs, and cheese quesadillas.

Gets easily distracted.

"I remember how long these went in for," annnnd forgets. Two seconds later.

As for both of them...

Mostly have soup together, in the winter/when the two have a lot of time or want to do an all-night marathon, they'll make a yosenabe- or a freestyle hot pot.

Fin carries a few extra soft bars on hand just in case Yagi drops by/forgets his own snacks.

Yagi (every now and again) will cook some dish with extra cheese because he knows if it has cheese, Fin's highly likely to love it.

Fin gets lessons from Yagi every now and again for certain meals/how to keep them from burning.

Has to keep an eye on Fin or else they'll forget they were cooking anything.

Probably the silliest meal he ever got was going to Fin's apartment to see a black sludge in a pot, and Fin handing him a cup of instant ramen with the quietest '...sorry'. He helped them clean up the mess while he ate his ramen.

The two love showing each other strange eateries??? Like- anything weird. Yes, that includes the toilet-restaurant. Went in...once. Fin got incredibly nauseas (they couldn't stop picturing the actual thing clear in their head), they never went again- but the two do laugh about the experience every now and again.

They dropped by KFC about two weeks after Christmas, for the pure sake of it.

When Yagi found out Fin loved mac n' cheese?..he made them a pot of it. Fin has begged him multiple times to teach them the recipe-- but each time, they somehow destroy it.

[nabehotpot]

Popular Types of Nabe Hotpot and Their Ingredients

https://nabehotpot.com/ is a cherished staple in Japanese cuisine, known for its heartwarming and communal nature. This versatile dish features a variety of ingredients simmered together in a flavorful broth, creating a comforting and nutritious meal. In this article, we'll explore the most popular types of nabe hotpot and the unique ingredients that make each one special.

Introduction to Nabe Hotpot

Nabe hotpot refers to the Japanese tradition of cooking ingredients together in a single pot. The word "nabe" means "pot," and this cooking style is designed to be enjoyed communally, with everyone around the table contributing to and partaking in the meal. It's a perfect way to bring people together, especially during the colder months when a hot, steaming pot of deliciousness is most appreciated.

Shabu-Shabu

One of the most well-known types of nabe hotpot is shabu-shabu. This dish is named for the sound made when ingredients are swished through the hot broth.

Ingredients

Thinly Sliced Beef or Pork: The primary protein, cooked briefly by swishing in the broth.

Vegetables: Napa cabbage, spinach, and mushrooms like shiitake and enoki.

Tofu: Adds a soft, creamy texture.

Udon or Glass Noodles: Absorb the flavorful broth.

The broth for shabu-shabu is usually light, often made from kombu (kelp). Dipping sauces such as ponzu (citrus soy sauce) and goma dare (sesame sauce) accompany the dish, enhancing the flavors of the cooked ingredients.

Sukiyaki

Sukiyaki is a sweeter variation of nabe hotpot, typically enjoyed during special occasions.

Ingredients

Thinly Sliced Beef: Cooked in the pot with the other ingredients.

Vegetables: Leeks, shiitake mushrooms, and napa cabbage.

Tofu: Often used in sukiyaki for its ability to soak up the sweet and savory sauce.

Shirataki Noodles: Low-calorie noodles made from konjac yam.

Raw Egg: Used as a dipping sauce for cooked ingredients.

The broth for sukiyaki is a mix of soy sauce, sugar, and mirin, giving it a rich, sweet flavor. The ingredients are simmered in the sauce, creating a harmonious blend of tastes and textures.

Chanko Nabe

Chanko nabe is famously known as the dish of sumo wrestlers. It’s designed to be highly nutritious and calorie-dense to support the intense physical demands of sumo training.

Ingredients

Chicken: Traditionally used as the main protein.

Seafood: Fish, shrimp, and scallops are common additions.

Vegetables: A wide variety including daikon radish, bok choy, and carrots.

Tofu: Adds protein and texture.

Noodles or Rice: Often included to make the meal more filling.

The broth for chanko nabe can vary, but it is usually a dashi-based broth enriched with soy sauce or miso, making it deeply flavorful and nutritious.

Yosenabe

Yosenabe translates to "put-together pot," and it is one of the most flexible and varied types of nabe hotpot.

Ingredients

Mixed Proteins: Chicken, pork, beef, seafood, and tofu can all be included.

Assorted Vegetables: Napa cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, and leeks.

Noodles: Udon or glass noodles are common.

Mochi: Sticky rice cakes for added texture.

The broth for yosenabe is usually a simple dashi base, allowing the flavors of the diverse ingredients to meld together beautifully. This type of nabe hot pot is perfect for using up leftover ingredients and creating a hearty, satisfying meal.

Kimchi Nabe

For those who enjoy a bit of spice, kimchi nabe is a popular choice. This variation infuses the hotpot with the bold, tangy flavors of kimchi.

Ingredients

Pork Belly: The richness of pork belly complements the spicy kimchi.

Kimchi: Fermented cabbage that adds a tangy and spicy kick.

Tofu: Helps balance the spiciness.

Vegetables: Napa cabbage, mushrooms, and green onions.

Noodles: Ramen or udon noodles work well in this hotpot.

The broth for kimchi nabe is typically made with a combination of dashi, kimchi juice, and sometimes gochujang (Korean chili paste) for extra heat. This hotpot is both warming and invigorating, making it perfect for cold days.

Expert Insights on Nabe Hotpot

Culinary experts emphasize the nutritional and social benefits of nabe hotpot. Chef and food writer Yukari Sakamoto explains, "The communal nature of nabe hotpot encourages social interaction and bonding. It’s a dish that brings people together, making it more than just a meal."

Nutritionist Haruko Yamada highlights the health benefits, stating, "A well-balanced nabe hotpot includes a variety of vegetables, lean proteins, and complex carbohydrates, making it a nutritionally complete meal. It’s also low in fat if prepared with the right ingredients."

Conclusion

Nabe hotpot is a versatile and beloved dish in Japanese cuisine, offering endless possibilities for delicious and nutritious meals. From the delicate flavors of shabu-shabu to the hearty and filling chanko nabe, there is a type of nabe hotpot to suit every palate. By incorporating a diverse range of ingredients and enjoying the communal cooking process, we can appreciate the rich culinary tradition and cultural significance of this wonderful dish.

[hotarutranslations]

Ara Ara Kashiko, Curly Spinach!

Evening

On OX VIDEO STORE,

Sendai Broadcasts Ara Ara Kashiko "Ishida Ayumi Goes! ~Curly Spinach ver.~"

Both the show and making are uploaded🩵

OX VIDEO STORE

The hot pot was so delicious I kept eating it, I don't know how long the video will be but, I really kept eating it the whole time…… My stomach hurt…… Even though it'd be better to stop eating when your stomach hurts, It was so delicious I kept wanting to read it……

For the curly spinach episode, I haven't written a blog about it yet

Curly spinach is a winter vegetable…….

With this, everyone,

did you learn about this information,

for the first time……?

I was super impressed but, On site, there was a surprising storm, When I got home and told my parents about it,

Ah~ Thats right~~

They reacted like that, They really didn't have any big response🤦🏻‍♀️ It was sad,

In the video, really, I convey it with the tension of, The discovery of the century!!

Please definitely watch it……

The orthodox way of eating curly spinach, is perhaps Ohitashi, but,

In the show I ate it in Thai cuisine🤤

ThaChang

Its this🤤❤️ An authentic Thai restaurant🤤❤️

Those who in Miyagi who know, know? fufu Its Taa-chan's shop~~~💫 Interesting~~~💫

Ohitashi with the scent of lemon and nam pla

Making Chim chum, Thai hot pot, with curly spinach

Those are both reallyyyyy delicious

Its called Chim Chum in Japan, Its like yosenabe…… The hot pot has pork, shrimp and chicken in it, Eating it with the restaurants homemade sauce, was spicy but has umami so I really recommend it!

This curly spinach hot pot, If you want to eat it at the shop, It seems its better to check ahead of going!

Since its a seasonal thing!

I think that curly spinach itself, can be bought throughout the country🥬

Definitely watch this episode and gain knowledge, Lets eat delicious and nutritious this winter---

⋆͛📣December 27th 5:00PM~ January 2nd 12:00AM "Morning Musume '23 FC Event ~Musume xFANxFun!x Christmas~" Stream

Merry Christmas----🎄.*

December 29th COUNTDOWN JAPAN 23/24

1:15PM~ EARTH STAGE set🌎💫

📣December 31st~January 1st CDTV Live! Live! New Years Special Morning Musume '23 will be performing!

⋆͛📣Around New Years…… It seems Sendai Broadcast's "Sugo! Job" will be rerun👩🏻‍💻

Definitely read the serialization, ok

#136 Excellent Jacket Play✍️

Sendai Broadcast "Ara Ara Kashiko" If you missed, "Ishida Ayumi Goes!" its being streamed on,

OX VIDEO STORE

see you ayumin <3

[storysimmers]

The Moser twins decided to sleep at the Seiji's house for the night. Their parents were having a really bad fight and it was just too upsetting to listen to. Stephanie tried to call to check up on them but Leo declined the call, too distressed to talk right then. Elliot thinks that this is it, that this will be the fight that will break the camel's back and push his parents to separate. Seiji hates to see his friends so upset. He's made them some Yosenabe since that always makes him feel better when he's not having a great day.

[thecircusfreaks]

💯 HUNDRED POINTS SYMBOL — share three random facts about your oc that others may not know.

💘 HEART WITH ARROW — what and/or who do(es) your oc consider the most important to them?

🍝 SPAGHETTI — what is/are your oc's favorite food(s)?

🍸 COCKTAIL GLASS — what is your oc's favorite alcoholic drink, if they can drink?

🤔 THINKING FACE — what are some of your oc's quirks/mannerisms?

// shunsuke & chul

| details about ocs! |

💯 HUNDRED POINTS SYMBOL — share three random facts about your oc that others may not know.

His bestfriend is a general practitioner named Shun

Tried to quit smoking multiple times, without success

Was at the top of his class in highschool

💘 HEART WITH ARROW — what and/or who do(es) your oc consider the most important to them?

His parents and Hiashi, whom he is bodyguard of and Shun, his long time best friend

🍝 SPAGHETTI — what is/are your oc's favorite food(s)?

While he usually prefers a simple meal but if he has the time to sit down and enjoy a proper meal, then he'd easily go for Yosenabe

🍸 COCKTAIL GLASS — what is your oc's favorite alcoholic drink, if they can drink?

Umeshu. He had not tasted it prior to working for the Hiramatsu family but it quickly became his fave

🤔 THINKING FACE — what are some of your oc's quirks/mannerisms?

Whenever he's irritated, you can see his eyebrow twitch as he tries to keep a straight face.

When he gets impatient he starts playing with one of his cufflinks

💯 HUNDRED POINTS SYMBOL — share three random facts about your oc that others may not know.

He is a car fanatic

Lost his father at age 7 due to a construction site accident

For 8 years he served in the South-Korean military before transfering to 'The Ether' group

💘 HEART WITH ARROW — what and/or who do(es) your oc consider the most important to them?

His mother, his only parent since his father's passing

🍝 SPAGHETTI — what is/are your oc's favorite food(s)?

Easily his mother's Bibimbap

🍸 COCKTAIL GLASS — what is your oc's favorite alcoholic drink, if they can drink?

A simple beer, he isn't as cultured in the alcohol scene as others

🤔 THINKING FACE — what are some of your oc's quirks/mannerisms?

He likes to bounce his pecs, especially if caught shirtless by someone he doesn't know well

Running his fingers through his hair. He's a little bit vain so has to make sure his hair is on point at all times

[hurpdurpburps]

Hey thanks for the fun addition! I totally don't remember this part lol. I did a quick check on Kindle and the Japanese is accurate. And yeah the bird brain spin is genius lol.

Anyways, here's my less localised translation of the Japanese text:

「唐揚げにしてやる… ���炊きでもいい… 鍋なら魚も入れて寄せ鍋もいいな…」

"I'll turn her into karaage... Mizutaki works too... If I'm gonna do a hotpot, I'd throw in some fish as well and make yosenabe..."

As mentioned in the reblog, the "tori" (鳥) in Toriko means bird/chicken, and the "uo" (魚) in Sorawo means fish. The joke here is due to the fact that these foods are made from the animals in their names.

Karaage (唐揚げ) is most commonly made from chicken, mizutaki (水炊き) is a light chicken-based hotpot from Fukuoka, and yosenabe (寄せ鍋) refers to a basic mixed seafood (hence the fish) and chicken hotpot.

There's also something I'd like to point out about the official localisation.

The original Japanese says "鍋なら" (lit. "If it's a hotpot") but the English version says "If we had a saucepan", probably because it flows better.

For "If we had a saucepan" to be pinpoint accurate, the Japanese text would have had to say "鍋があれば" or "鍋があったら".

Mmmnn... now I'm hungry. PS. Have added some more minor details to my original post as well.

A Casual Comparison Between The English vs Japanese (and a bit of Chinese) Versions Of Otherside Picnic

Just a ramble on my thoughts as someone who buys and reads both the English and Japanese versions of all the novel and the manga volumes.

Some of my commentary might come across as a bit too pedantic but it's coming from my thoughts as a current formal translator and former manga scanlator.

Spoiler Warning: events up to Vol 8 are mentioned.

Overall thoughts

Generally, I quite like Sean McCann's translations of the novels. I think his style strikes a nice balance between the need for needle-sharp accuracy and smoothness that localisation brings. He seems to have quite a mind-boggling amount of experience under his belt according to Kindle, and also translated Side-By-Side Dreamers (another fantastic read that I will fangirl here about one day!!!), which is a standalone novel by Miyazawa.

On the other hand, the English version of the manga feels rather clunky from time-to-time. Kindle doesn't credit anyone for the English translation of the manga and I don't think it's McCann. Redrawing is also pretty lazy, with English words often simply slapped on next to the original Japanese SFX, which is kinda terrible for an official publication.

Another aspect of the English manga I don't understand is why they chose to flip the reading sequence of the Kozakura POV short stories at the end. After reading through dozens of pages of the manga right-to-left I don't think it's any more difficult to read the story in the same direction. Having to skip to the very last page then resume reading left-to-right in reverse page order is so mindbogglingly tedious and unintuitive.

Dialogue, Nuances and Characterisation

A big issue with translation is the difference in how many words it takes to convey the same sentence in different languages. Extreme cases can call for bolder deviations from the original to maintain some semblance of narrative flow.

Here's a minor example - the following lines are from Vol 3 (File 9 - Yamanoke Presence), when Toriko is slapping the shit out of Sorawo's back:

“Ow! That hurts! [1]” “Suck it up. [2]”

「いった！　痛いって！ [1]」 「我慢して [2]」 　

The more literal translation of [1] would be "I said that hurts!" but I guess the translator opted for something that's shorter and more natural-sounding.

There's also the issue of characterisation stemming from dialogue style. Sometimes I feel like Toriko comes across as slightly more aggressive in English than the original Japanese version.

[2] in Japanese is simply and most accurately translated as "bear with it."

There's a similar scene in Vol 6 (File 20 - T is for Templeborn), when Toriko sticks her fingers inside Sorawo's right eye:

“Whoa! Hold up! That’s my eye!” “Suck it up.” “You’re kidding me, right?!”

「ちょ、ま、そこ目！」 「我慢して」 「噓でしょ!?」

Personally, I feel that "suck it up" should've only been used if the original text said "我慢しろ", which implies a more callous or harsher, commanding tone. To me at least, "我慢して" is pretty neutral.

Here's another example from Vol 6, when Sorawo begrudgingly compliments Toriko for having a pretty smart idea:

“Why do you always sound so frustrated when you compliment me on that, Sorawo? [1]” “Urgh.” I hadn’t expected her to call me out on that, so I didn’t know how to respond. “Well, I’m nice [2], so I won’t get mad at you for thinking I’m an idiot.”

「その褒め方するとき、いつもなんか悔しそうだよね空魚 [1]」 「うっ」 　思わぬ指摘をされて言葉に詰まる。 「鳥子さんは優しいから [2]、バカだと思われてても怒りませんけど」

[1] is more of an observation and not a question in Japanese. "You always look kind of frustrated when you compliment me like that, Sorawo" feels perfectly serviceable and fits with the line that comes next, so I'm not quite sure about the reason behind this translation decision.

As for [2], Toriko actually referred to herself in third-person ("Toriko-san is kind") in the Japanese version, which is supposed to a convey a sense of satirical self-grandiosity. Without that part, I think Toriko comes off as more direct and less playful in the English translation.

That said, there are also positive examples of localisation in the series. Take a look at this conversation from Vol 5 (File 16 - Pontianak Hotel):

“Why would they go to all the trouble of decking the place out in Balinese style, then go and push honey toast, of all things?” I asked, but Toriko had a simple answer. “It’s honey in Bali [1], right?” “Wait… That’s it?! Because they rhyme?! [2]”

「なんでこんなにバリ島モチーフなのに、フードはハニートースト推しなんだろ」 　 私が何の気なしに疑問を口にすると、鳥子がさらっと言った。 「バリ島でハニトー [1]ってことなんじゃない？」 「……えっ、そういうこと!?　駄洒落!? [2]」

[1] actually says "Honey toast in Bali", which can be romanised as "bari-tou de hani-tou". Sorta catchy in Japanese but doesn't swing in English, so the rationale for the change is fairly obvious.

[2] literally means "pun", or I guess it's supposed to be slightly more loosely interpreted as "wordplay" in this context, but that too has to be altered so that the earlier changes to [1] make sense.

We opened all the bottles and had another toast of the not-bread variety [1]; there was a loud clinking of bottles [2].

ビール組の小瓶の栓が全部抜かれて、改めて乾杯した [1]。グラスと瓶の触れ合う音が高らかに鳴り響く [2]。

[1] can be read as "we made a toast for a change", which without alteration can be fairly confusing so the translator seized the opportunity to add a little funny spin to it.

A more literal translation of [2] would be "The sound of glasses and bottles touching rang loudly". I suppose the localisation here could be considered as a minor but factual mistranslation, as cocktail glasses were actually present in this scene, in addition to beer bottles.

For our final example of missing nuance, here's a quick glance at Vol 6 (File 20 - T is for Templeborn), where Sorawo and Toriko went for a quick builder's lunch after a morning of breaking concrete:

Settling on a place that served Western-style dishes, we joined the salarymen and construction workers for a hearty meal.

あんまり気取らない感じの洋食屋を選んで、スーツ姿のサラリーマンや工事の作業員に交ざって、がっつりボリュームのある定食を食べた。

The bolded part roughly translates to "We chose a rather unpretentious Western restaurant...", with "unpretentious" in this context referring to a place that doesn't feel very conscious/fussy about attire/appearances.

I don't think it's a big deal per se, but it's the inclusion of small details like that which adds flourish to Miyazawa's writing, and it's kind of a pity for them to be missing when they don't have to be.

Prose and Structure

Japanese is a high-context language, so writers often take it for granted that their readers can intuitively grasp who's saying what, which is not very helpful for English readers. There are certain parts of the Japanese version that is just a whole dozen lines of uninterrupted dialogue. The text below from Vol 5 (File 16 - Pontianak Hotel) is a very good example:

“Phew… Toriko, did you eat your share?” I asked. “Yeah, I sure did. It was delicious.” “Is that really true…?” “She does seem to be putting on an awfully calm face,” Akari agreed. “I feel like she was just eating the ice cream on top,” Kozakura interjected. “See, I knew it!” “Hey, hey, don’t worry about it,” Toriko tried to mollify us. “You’ve all finished your drinks, right? Let’s have another toast.” “Whose is this one, with the orange and… blackcurrant?” Akari asked. “That’s mine,” said Natsumi. “Pass it here.” “Everyone else ordered beer, huh?” Kozakura noted. “Which’s yours, Toriko?” “The Bintang.” “I had one of those too,” Kozakura said. “Well, I guess these must be for Senpai and me. Bali-hai?” “Yeah, I’ll pass around the bottle-opener,” I said.

Note all the speaker names bolded above... and how they completely don't exist in the Japanese version below:

「ふー……鳥子、ちゃんと食べた？ [1]」 「食べた食べた [2]。おいしかったね」 「本当かな」 「それにしては涼しい顔してますよね [3]」 「そいつ [4]、上に乗ってるアイスばっかり食ってた気がするな [4]」 「ほらやっぱり！」 「まあまあ [2]、いいじゃん。みんなお酒なくなったでしょ。もっかい乾杯しよ」 「このオレンジ入ってるやつ、カシスかな？　誰のですかー？[3]」 「それウチ [5]の。ちょうだい」 「ほかみんなビール頼んだんだね」 「鳥子のどれ？ [1]」 「ビンタンとかいうやつ」 「あたし [4] のもそれだ」 「じゃあ、センパイと私がこっちですね [3]。バリハイ？」 「うん、栓抜き回すね」

You might be wondering how the hell Japanese readers tell apart who's who? Thanks to the Japanese language's rich vocabulary of personal pronouns, 'tiers of politeness' and three different writing systems, personalities are easily demonstrated via dialogue.

For example, the most common personal pronoun, "watashi" (meaning "I" or "me"), can be expressed in kanji (私), hiragana (わたし) or less commonly katakana (ワタシ). The kanji form is considered "true neutral" and also used in formal contexts such as emails, while the hiragana is more cutesy.

In the case of this specific conversation, we can roughly tell the speakers apart using the process of elimination via each person's relationship with the others:

[1] This is clearly Sorawo, as she's the only one apart from Kozakura who addresses Toriko without any honourifics, and her tone soft and casual.

[2] Toriko says "食べた食べた" and "まあまあ", which translates to "I ate it, I ate it" and "Oh well, oh well" respectively. A common speech pattern of Toriko's is to say things twice, representing her casual and chirpy demeanor.

[3] Akari is the only one who uses polite language (the -masu form) in this group of misfits, and also the only one who addresses Sorawo as "senpai", notably in katakana (センパイ).

[4] Interestingly, Kozakura uses "atashi" (あたし), which is considered less neutral/softer/more feminine than the standard "watashi", but the rest of her speech style is consistently rude and masculine, such as addressing the rest as "お前ら" or Toriko with "そいつ", which has a "top-down" tone.

[5] Natsumi uses the personal pronoun "uchi" [ウチ], which is sorta a gangsta/delinquent stereotype.

Mistranslation

Translation errors are for the most part very rare, minor and always come across as a case of careless misreading rather than a lack of fluency.

Apart from the ones already mentioned in passing above, I'll list two more such examples below (taken from my OP Pilgrimage List Pt. 1):

Example 1: Vol 7 (File 22 - Toilet Paper Moon)

“I hear there’s a lounge on the fourth floor here.” “A lounge…?” “It’s got a night view and you can drink there.”

「ここ、四十五階にラウンジがあるんだって」 「……ラウンジ？」 「夜景が見えて、お酒が飲めるとこ」

Here, the Japanese text says 45th floor, instead of the 4th floor.

Example 2: Vol 6 (File 20 - T is for Templeborn)

I ordered tonkatsu curry with a black roux and lots of cheese, while Toriko had roasted flounder with ginger.

私は真っ黒なルーにチーズのたっぷりかかったカツカレー、鳥子はヒラメのカツと生姜焼き。

The bolded part states "flounder katsu and shougayaki", which actually means a piece of breaded, deep fried flounder, with pork stir-fried in ginger sauce on the side.

Chinese Censorship

As most would know, censorship is heavy-handed in China, so how does a certified Yuri series get processed over there?

The Gay™ parts get re-written or entirely scrubbed and replaced with something more 'innocuous'.

I don't read OP in Chinese, but I stumbled upon this tweet by a professional Chinese translator complaining about the censorship in the Chinese version of the novels.

In Vol 5 (File 19 - Hasshaku-sama Revival), Toriko gives Sorawo a surprise kiss after they escape Hasshaku-sama:

“With no time for me to close my eyes, our lips touched… then parted again. Freed from her hands [1], I stumbled backwards. As I covered my mouth and stared at her [2], Toriko said, “Let’s call it even with that.”

This is the original Japanese:

目を閉じる間もなく、唇と唇が触れて……離れた。 しつこい両手から解放されて [1]、私はよろよろと後ずさった。 口を押さえる私と目を合わせたまま [2]、鳥子が言った。 「これでチャラにしてあげる��

Translation: "With no time for me to close my eyes, our lips touched... then parted again. Freed from her stubborn arms [1], I stumbled backwards. As I covered my mouth, Toriko's eyes met mine [2], and she said, "Let’s call it even with that.""

Here's the Chinese text:

我甚至来不及闭上眼，只见鸟子弹了下我的额头。 好痛！ 抓紧不放的那双手放开了我 [1]，我趔趄着后退了几步，捂住嘴巴。 鸟子依然注视着我的眼睛 [2]，说道：“这样就一笔勾销了。”

Translation: "With no time for to close my eyes, Toriko flicked me on the forehead. That hurt! Her arms that were gripping strongly released me [1], and I staggered back a few steps, covering my mouth. Still looking into my eyes [2], Toriko said, "Let's call it even with that.""

As you can tell from the underlined parts, the Chinese version replaces the kiss with a flick on the forehead, but keeps the part where Sorawo covers her mouth. You can think of it as the translator screaming "it's NOT her forehead and it's NOT a flick" with their mouth taped and their hands tied behind their back.

Honestly... I can't wait for the Chinese translation of Vol 8 to come out lol, if it ever does. I'd buy a copy just to see how they deal with censoring the entire book LOL.

I also bolded some of the other parts so you can compare/contrast how the same scene is written across three languages. Apart from the censored kiss, the Chinese translation actually follows the Japanese text more closely than the English version.

Classification

A pet-peeve of mine is people calling the books light novels. OP is not LN!!! It's a bona fide novel series under the banner of a respected major publishing house which is also the largest sci-fi publisher in Japan. Don't let the illustrations on the cover fool you.

[jasmine7031]

The season for a hot pot has arrived! Nothing beats a hot pot in winter time A hot pot makes your body very warm.

[greenminister]

[bottlepiecemuses]

My Headcannon Name For Oden’s Grandfather’s Name: Yosenabe

Since Oden’s grandfather doesn’t have a canon name yet, why not give him one. I dub him Yosenabe which is named after a Japanese hot soup dish just like his son and grandson. I have it that his backstory is that he was the youngest of five brothers. However, one day their father was killed in an accident and their uncle, Ponzu, who wanted the throne for himself secretly assassinated all of his nephews except for Yosenabe who managed to flee when it was obvious that his uncle wanted him dead. He then was found by Yatagarasu who was heading back to his home and noticed that it was Yosenabe wandering around. He then told about his home situation and Yatagarasu happily sheltered him from Ponzu who was still trying to find him. During that time, Yata became a mentor and ally to him. And he vowed that he would get Yosenabe on the throne. 

During that time under Ponzu, it was a time of tyranny and he abused his power as much as he did. Ponzu was almost like a Celestial Dragon in attitude and promoted very classist policies that affected the common citizens. He also treated the daimyo like shit and often bullied the clans into supporting him and even killed some who openly rebelled against him. All except the Kurozumi clan that stood firm up against him, especially as they secretly trained and encouraged Ponzu to take back the throne. During this time, Yatagarasu helped the clans rise up against him by overcoming his policies and supporting resources that could be used against Ponzu. 

When Yosenabe was finally 18 years old he was able with the help of the Yatagarasu clan get all the other daimyo to rise up against Ponzu and defeat him. During the rebellion he even almost laid down his life for Yosenabe and the other daimyo, when Ponzu tried to pull a dirty trick on them. After Ponzu fell and Yosenabe was put on the throne, Yatagarasu was recognized for his contribution for getting the rightful heir on the throne and ending Ponzu’s tyranny. During the rest of Ponzu’s reign, he did what he could to support Yosenabe and help rebuild the clans after they suffered under the previous regime. 

(Also for those who wonder what Ponzu is a reference to it’s a citrus dipping sauce seen in many Japanese dishes) 

@crunchy-multi-fan-one-9​