Japanese Home Cooking Easy Japanese Lunch With Frozen Gyoza and a Microwave Salad
Frozen gyoza in one pan, a broccoli and tuna salad in a microwave steamer, and leftovers from the fridge: a real weekday lunch at home in Japan.
2026-09
Japanese Home Cooking 
Around the House Magnetic Storage: How to Check Your Home Before You Buy
Before buying a magnetic rack, test the surface with a magnet you already own, then check there’s a free spot near where you’ll use it.
Tools That Last Iwaki Glass Food Containers: What 8 Years of Daily Use Looks Like
After eight years of daily use, here’s what iwaki’s Pack and Range glass containers are like — sizes, oven and microwave rules, lid colors, and where to buy them in the US.
Around the House Towel Racks for Small Bathrooms: 5 Japanese Ways to Give Wet Towels a Place
No room for wet towels? Five Japanese towel racks for small bathrooms, sorted by where they go: floor, towel bar, wall, ceiling or washer.
Around the House How I Dry Laundry Without a Working Dryer: 3 Spots in My Japanese Apartment
My dryer’s been broken for years. Here’s how laundry gets dry in my Japanese apartment, using the balcony, the bathing room and a rod above the washer.
Around the House Japan’s Smaller Bath Towels: Sizes, Prices, and the Choice I Didn’t Know I Had
A Japanese phrase for switching to smaller bath towels — what it means, the sizes in cm and inches, what a matched set costs to replace, and why I’m still deciding.
Tools That Last Why I Switched from an Electric Takoyaki Maker to a Gas One (After 10 Years)
After close to ten years with a butane takoyaki maker: why I switched from a cheap electric one, how I store it, and what you can buy in the US.
Tools That Last Dry Goods Storage in a Japanese Kitchen: Glass Jars or the Fridge
How dry goods are split between a jar shelf and the fridge in a Japanese kitchen — what goes where, why rice lives in the fridge, and one thing about Le Parfait jars I didn’t know when I bought them.
Around the House A No-Drill Kitchen Shelf for Renters: 2×4 Tension Posts and a Wall of Glass Jars
A no-drill jar shelf in a rented Japanese kitchen: two 2x4 tension posts, real measurements, how the shelf heights were set, and what to check first.
About Hi, I’m Nao.
I live in Yokohama and write about what we eat, the tools I've used for years, and the parts of Japanese traditions that fit into my days.