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Older Japanese men, lost in the kitchen, turn to housework school
So like a growing number of older men here, he signed up for classes. His six-month course at the Better Home cooking school covered skills such as how to mince garlic, chop mushrooms and shop for meat — all integral for the stroganoff he would attempt before graduating. “I had no idea how complex the cooking process was,” Yoshida admitted.
Strict gender roles have governed domestic life in Japan for generations. Men often retire without ever having held a paring knife or washed a dish. Those who lose a spouse often find themselves unable to do the most rudimentary chores. An old Japanese saying — “Danshi-chubo-ni-hairazu,” or “men should be ashamed to be found in the kitchen” — has spooked husbands from most any household work. Even those who wanted to help typically lacked the know-how.
Evidence of this isn’t merely anecdotal. According to a survey conducted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Japanese men take on less household responsibility and child care than their counterparts in any of the world’s richest countries. On average, they spend just 40 minutes a day on the combination, five times less than their wives. Only 14 percent reported regularly cooking for themselves.
As the country ages, however, and the average life span for men stretches into the mid-80s, some women are drawing a line and declaring themselves done by picking up after their husbands.
“The biggest problem is that men don’t see themselves as the responsible party when it comes to housework,” said Yasuyuki Tokukura, who runs the nonprofit group Fathering Japan and advises the government on gender issues within households. The traditional division of labor persists despite the significant number of women now working outside of the home; indeed, dual-income households are more than twice as prevalent as those with single incomes.
Simmering resentments frequently come to a head once a man’s career ends and his wife starts to question the arrangement, Tokukura said. “The power dynamic changes. The wife asks, ‘Why do I have to do all the housework if you are no longer bringing in the money?’ ”
These days, many women are pulling husbands like 65-year-old Yoshida into the kitchen. Yet the men must first learn the basics.
The government is willing to assist, with some community centers offering free classes to teach cooking, cleaning, ironing and laundering.
Motohiko Onoue is the founder of the home economics school Kaji Osu, though he tends to look more corporate than culinary in his starched shirt, navy slacks and leather dress shoes. On a Friday morning this month, he gathered a dozen students around a stove at a neighborhood center in Shiki, a city outside Tokyo, to demonstrate how to make healthy chicken nuggets from scratch. The session was part of a six-week course that addressed how to cook miso, clean around the stove burners and remove stains from clothing.
When Onoue started his school five years ago, other men laughed at him. “A housework school for men? That’s ridiculous,” he was told.
Yet he saw a niche market with much potential. Attracting students wasn’t easy at first; only one man came to his first group lesson. That’s when Onoue decided to bring his lessons to the men, working with community programs to advertise the courses anytime retires showed up with questions about retirement benefits or their national health insurance policies.
He even offers students private consultations to focus on the aspects of the housework that they find most daunting. To encourage critical thinking, recipes don’t come with the usual step-by-step sequence. “Men who are used to business thinking need a problem to solve. I give them the basic materials and instructions, and let them figure it out,” Onoue said.
These courses are also popular with men who suddenly find themselves widowed or divorced and don’t know the basics of self-care.
Takashi Kaneko, 74, decided to sign up after his wife died of liver cancer four years ago. He was living mostly on microwaveable foods and found himself desperate for company. Not only had his wife taken
Candy cane chocolate chip cookies recipe by Claire Ptak | Christmas food and drink
When I was at university, I spent my summers as the baker on a Wyoming dude ranch called the HF Bar. The focus was mainly cowboy cakes and fruit pies. Every dessert was offered a la mode.
The ice-cream freezer we had housed only four large 5-gallon tubs of ice-cream so we stocked it with vanilla, chocolate, strawberry and mint choc chip, the classics. Occasionally, the mint choc chip was out of stock and they would send a peppermint stick, a peppermint ice-cream with crushed candy can be churned through, as a replacement. I loved it so much, even though it seemed like the wrong time of year to be eating it. It inspired these cookies, which are perfect for the Christmas table or for gifts. They would also make wonderful ice-cream sandwiches with peppermint sticks, mint choc chips, or even chocolate ice-cream.
make about
unsalted butter
caster sugar
fine sea salt
eggs
peppermint extract
plain flour
baking powder ¾ tsp
dark chocolate
candy canes
flaked sea salt
In an electric mixer beat together the softened butter and the sugar until creamy. You don’t want it to be as light and fluffy as you do for a cake, so don’t beat it for too long. Scrape down the sides and add the fine sea salt, egg and peppermint extract. Mix again until smooth.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Add the chocolate and candy cane pieces and mix all together. Scoop balls of about
Heat your oven to 170C fan/gas mark
Claire Ptak is the owner of Violet Cakes, London E
How Restaurants Are Making More Money Off of Customers
With food prices at uncomfortable levels right nowconsumers are carefully weighing each potential trip to a restaurant. Those businesses, in turn, are finding strategies to keep people coming through the door, experimenting with promotions and tweaking their overall approach. But one method that’s actually working out for some chain restaurantss is a marketing strategy called barbell pricing. Even if you haven’t heard of it, you might have already experienced this model without realizing it.
What is barbell pricing?
As explained by trade publication Restaurant Business Online, barbell pricing is when a restaurant lures you in with promotions deals while simultaneously pushing higher-end items. Denny’s has been employing this strategy this yearand Red Robin is also making moves toward this model by offering a $10 meal promo while also promoting its higher-end Cheese Lovers burgers, priced at over $15 per burger.
What this does is draw in multiple types of customers. Lower-income diners, who are most impacted by inflation, come in for lower prices, while customers who might be less affected by rising food costs are drawn in by the allure of premium items, which they are willing to spend extra to get. Plus there’s always the old-fashioned upsell: Once you’re in, the restaurant has the opportunity to convince you to upgrade from lower-end items to fancier ones on the spot. Or tack on some drinks. Or maybe dessert.
Traditional across-the-board discounts (“All entrees half off!”) don’t necessarily make sense for large chains, as those price cuts guarantee that the restaurant will net less money per bill no matter what. In the case of barbell pricing, the customers dropping money on the costly items can offset the purchases of price-conscious patrons who have only come for the discounted items.
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If it feels manipulative, understand that it’s not a new concept. Deal seekers will forever remain a constant in the dining landscapeand for every one of themthere’s someone else (sigh, me) willing to impulsively upgrades on the spot—so it makes sense that restaurants have figured out how to cater to both simultaneously. Fast food chains like Taco Bell are in on barbell pricing too, by offering a $2 Cravings Menu and a $6.49 Double Steak Grilled Cheese Burrito.
It’s sort of a mixed bag for corporations, however. Restaurant Business Online reports that Chili’s has decided it’s more worthwhile to offer fewer discounts, a strategy that results in less foot traffic but nets the company a higher overall profit. The next time you’re out to eat, looking for the best deals, keep a close eye on what’s actually being offered on the value menu. The choices might be restrictive by design, in an attempt to push you toward the more expensive stuff.