Cooking x Entertainment Kitchen Products

Written by: Rebecca Milner on May 6, 2009 at 4:52 am | In LIFESTYLE / FASHION, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS | No Comments

The trend for kitchen gadgets with entertainment value, which we’ve been charting for some time now, continues to turn out new products. Takara Tomy and Bandai are mostly behind this, introducing new products that lead the trend into different directions.

On one hand there are those gadgets that zero in on foods currently in vogue, like the “Nama (fresh) Caramel Pot” from Takara Tomy (released April 30, retails for ¥3,129). Fresh caramel is a fashionable sweet at the moment and this kitchen product offers users the opportunity to make their own version—in the microwave and with little chance of frustration or failure.

Then there are those that turn the process into a game and make a family activity out of meal preparation. Bandai’s latest item in its successful Cook Joy series, the Nagashi Somen Somenya (flowing soumen noodle shop), is a good example (released on April 18 and retails for ¥8,400).

Somen (thin noodles eaten chilled during the summer months), when served nagashi-style, are sent down a bamboo chute. During the course of the journey they cool, become sprinkled with toppings and are picked up with chopsticks. This fun, though elaborate to set up, dish would be served in a festive group setting. Bandai’s version, which looks like a children’s game or a miniature water slide, manages to bring “nagashi soumen” to the dinner table.

Meanwhile a trip to the trend-setting, upscale variety store Ginza Hands demonstrates that those gadgets that succeed in making food cuter, both in presentation and in process, are enjoying continued popularity.

Trend Potential
With cost-cutting related to home finances keeping many Japanese out of the restaurants, eating in is an attractive alternative. Even more so if the entertainment value of going out can be brought into the home.

Tags: food, kitchen
Category: LIFESTYLE / FASHION, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, DIGITAL LIFE

Bandai, Takara Tomy get cute in the kitchen

Written by: Rebecca Milner on April 29, 2008 at 11:48 am | In LIFESTYLE / FASHION | 9 Comments

Ever since the Chuboo line of fun kitchen tools caught our eye (and CNN’s too!), we’ve been noticing what can only be described as a boom in cutesy kitchen gadgets that can be enjoyed by moms (or dads) and kids alike. Major toy companies like Bandai and Takara Tomy put out their share of toy like kitchen appliances last year and have plans in the works to release more this year.

Bandai scored big with its Cook Joy series, featuring the Norimaki Makki (available HERE), a device that helps small, uncoordinated fingers roll out near-perfect sushi rolls, and the Ichi Ni Sando (product page here) sandwich press, which makes fun shaped “sandwiches” out of bread or rice. (Product Page).

Meanwhile Takara Tomy had a hit with its Sugar Bunnies-themed Ice Cooking (¥4,200) ice cream maker last summer and now has plans to release an Onigiri (rice ball) Party (¥3,675) making kit with the same character images this June.

All of the above made from colorful plastic and are hand-controlled, electricity and oven-free, focusing on either lunch box material or after school snack foods. Of course what is particularly interesting about these products is that, in contrast to the kiddy cake baking kits popular in other countries, many of these sets teach kids to make traditional Japanese food, which makes me think maybe I should pick one up myself.

Tags: appliances, Children, Customization, food, Home, kitchen, Toys
Category: LIFESTYLE / FASHION
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, DIGITAL LIFE, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

Eat your cute in a character lunch

Written by: Rebecca Milner on March 28, 2008 at 10:34 pm | In DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION | 6 Comments

Heart shaped cucumbers and moffles are not isolated incidents. The industry concerned with making lunches and lunch time preparation more fun is growing to meet the demands of competitive kindergarten moms determined to make sure their child is the most loved on the playground, or at least looks it.

The latest must-have are “chuboos,” a line of products designed for creating “kyara-ben” (character lunchboxes) from Kai Housewares. The series includes cutters for making character shapes (¥1,260), molds for fashioning rice into playful balls (¥840), kitchen craft knifes for sculpting veggies (3 for ¥2,100), and punches for creating emoticon-style faces out of nori seaweed (¥840 each).

A few more chuboo-made lunchboxes:

Now imagine how the kid with the plain rice feels.

Tags: Characters, Customization, food, kitchen
Category: DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

The Moffle: Mochi and Waffles together at last

Written by: Rebecca Milner on March 14, 2008 at 12:22 am | In DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION | 7 Comments

It’s the latest food craze! Sweet or savory, the moffle is a waffle made from traditional Japanese mochi rice cakes. The outside of a moffle gets crispy like puffed rice but the inside retains its chewy mochi-ness.

While a number of Japanese food bloggers claim that any waffle iron will do (and the trial and errors are well-documented), one clever company has already branded itself “Moffle” and produced a moffle maker. Available on Amazon Japan, the Moffle moffle maker comes in single (¥6,800) or double (¥12,790) iron models in “milk white” or “milk pink.”

The possibilities for experimentation are endless: moffles with ice cream, moffles dipped in curry, moffles and cheese. One of the moffle’s big draws is that it, while it can be handled like bread, the rice-y taste makes it an appropriate match for Japanese food. So if you prefer spicy fish roe to ham and cheese, you might want to make a moffle sandwich to go instead.

For those who aren’t ready to commit to purchasing a moffle (or waffle) maker, a few trendy cafes, like Café Milk in Harajuku have introduced moffle items onto their menu. Moffle flavors at the new (and quite stylish, we think) Cafe Milk (average ¥550) include the savory mentaiko and cheese (left) or ham and mayonaise, and a sweet plain one topped with vanilla ice cream and fresh mint (right).

Tags: appliances, food, kitchen, Moffle
Category: DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS