Pairing: Making a Better Social Life with Party Appetizers and Beer (Part 1) Hello and welcome back for more food pairings to help you throw that primo dinner party! What’s this you say? Your last attempt with our guide flopped because that one person said, “I’m lactose intolerant.” Don’t sweat it! We have a few additional options to be your saving grace. Although 2 of our 6 appetizers in part 1 still have lactose, part 2 will be more appetizing. As the title indicated, we will be introducing party samplers and the range is endless, depending on your budget and where you are in Japan. Shall we get cracking? Dips Edamame Avocado Dip 170g (6 ounces) shelled edamame 1/2 onion, chopped 30g (1/2 cup) cilantro 30mL (2 tablespoons) olive oil 1 large avocado, peeled, pitted and cubed 1 lemon, juiced 15mL (1 tablespoon) chili-garlic sauce The great thing is that edamame is plentiful, and avocado is becoming more available in the Tokyo area. This dip has two advantages to it; it’s heavy in salt and fatty. The best beer to be paired with this is an American IPA. An IPA is great to cut through the fat of the avocado while the hops in an IPA tend to have more citrus notes, which balances the salt. Look for IPA’s with these types of hops: Cascade, Amarillo, Columbus and Citra RECOMMENDED BEERS Shiga Kogen – IPA Market Brewing – Various Choices Romantic Village – Grand Slam IPA Cream Cheese Fruit Dip with Tochigi Strawberries 1 (227g/ 8 ounces) package cream cheese, softened 200g (1 cup) brown sugar 15mL (1 tablespoon) vanilla extract Tochigi is famous for their strawberries, but like all fruit in Japan, it can be costly. Look for ones with a deep red color. The redder it is, the sweeter it is. A sweet strawberry will go beautifully with a light Blonde Ale owing to its low hop/bitter characteristics and light body. This dip will compliment the ale by enhancing its crisp taste. If you can find a Strawberry Blonde Ale, it will enhance the strawberry profile even greater. RECOMMENDED BEERS Helios Craft Beer – Sheequarsar White Ale Sankt Gallen – Pineapple Ale Noboribetsu (Oni Densetsu) – Sweet Strawberry Tofu Banana Dip with Banana Chips (now this is just crazy talk) 30g (1 ounce) tofu (any kind; note – this is 1/2 a container) 1 medium banana 66g (1/2 cup) chopped walnut 8g (1 tablespoon) cinnamon 1mL (1/4 teaspoon) vanilla extract 60mL (1/4 cup) maple syrup walnut pieces & cinnamon for garnish Is this just crazy talk? You wouldn’t think that tofu and banana will pair well, but hand in hand they’ll show you otherwise. There are limitations however. Avoid using tofu made from edamame or miso. Plain old, unsexy tofu is best. Also, when choosing your beer, steer clear of beers that have coriander seeds. Coriander seed has a lemon-like citrus note that will overpower the tofu and banana. We recommend an American Wheat Ale, or even a Hefe. Another fun feature of this crazy dip will be buying wheats with honey; this will add some dimension to the overall taste. Eating the dip with low salt banana chips will fit nicely. RECOMMENDED BEERS Baird Brewing – Wheat King Wit Fujizakura Beer – Weizen Cyonmage – Wheat Skewers Caprese Salad Skewers dipped in Balsamic 25-30 (1 pint) cherry tomatoes 227g (8 ounces) mini mozzarella balls 1 small bunch of basil Caprese salad is simply a combination of tomato, fresh basil leaves, and mozzarella cheese. Putting this on a skewer of course means switching to a cherry tomato. Every Japanese person has a different opinion of which prefecture produces the best tomatoes; Kochi, Nagano, and Fukoka are a few famous places. However, the type of beer will dictate the right cherry tomato for a perfect pairing of flavors. You can’t go wrong serving standard red cherry tomatoes with an herby British Pale Ale. Black cherry tomatoes tend to have a smokier flavor that is best complimented with a porter. The fruity taste of yellow tomatoes (Sun Gold) begs to be served with a light Golden Ale, or an American Wheat (go light on the balsamic). RECOMMENDED BEERS TDM 1874 – British Best Bitter North Island Beer – Stout Brimmer Brewing – Golden Ale Pineapple Grill Chicken Skewers boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes 100g (1/2 cup) brown sugar 120mL (1/2 cup) soy sauce 60mL (1/4 cup) pineapple juice 2 garlic cloves, minced 5g (1/4 teaspoon) pepper 1g (1/2 teaspoon) salt 9g (1 tablespoon) cornstarch 15mL (1 tablespoon) water 1 red bell pepper, cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes 1 yellow red bell pepper, cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes 1 green bell pepper, cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes 1 red onion, cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes 450g (2 cups) fresh pineapple cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes green onions, for garnish Fresh pineapple will be hard to find off season, but adding this for a BBQ event is well worth the effort. For a little Japanese twist, marinate the chicken in teriyaki sauce and add green peppers with red onion. The sweet spiciness combined in these skewers will have your guests asking for seconds. It only gets better when served with a hoppy American IPA of high citrus notes. RECOMMENDED BEERS Kinshachi – IPA Outsider Brewing – Gunslinger IPA TDM 1874 – IPA White Asparagus Pork Skewers 680g (3 pounds) fatty pork shoulder 236mL (1 cup ) extra virgin olive oil 2 cloves garlic crushed 3g (1 tablespoon) chopped fresh oregano 7g (1 tablespoon) – approximately 3 sprigs chopped fresh rosemary 30mL (2 tablespoon) lemon juice 1g (1/2 tablespoon ) salt 1 pinch cayenne pepper 1/2 medium Spanish chorizo or salami 4 large asparagus bunches Never had fresh white asparagus before? The difference between green and white asparagus is how it is grown. White asparagus is covered in the soil so light will not directly hit it, causing the asparagus not to activate its chlorophyll. The lack of chlorophyll imparts the asparagus with a sweeter taste with hints of bitterness. White asparagus goes well with a Belgian Tripel, but if you use green asparagus then go with an herby Pale Ale. RECOMMENDED BEERS Iwate Kura – Sansho Ale Zigzag Brewery – Tamba-Sasayama Zigzag Belgian Tripel Aoi Brewing – Zen Infused Ocha Ale