初めての体験に溢れる日常 ー筍堀りー
(日本語は下)
There are many opportunities for learning outside of the classroom in daily classes.
Learning in various places such as the sea, the mountains, and the farmland has been particularly inspiring, and since Terakoya began, I've been spending my days full of new experiences.
On this day, we went into the mountains and experienced the first ever bamboo shoot digging.
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We went deeper into the mountain just behind the school building and arrived at the bamboo grove.
This time, we picked a type of bamboo shoot called "moso bamboo".
We keep our eye on the ground, stepping on the ground with feet, looking for a bamboo shoot with its head sticking out.
It's a bit difficult to find bamboo shoots since it is a wildness area.
When we find a bamboo shoot, we use the hoe to dig into the soil, looking at how it grows out of the ground.
It took about 15 minutes to pick each bamboo shoot and it was quite labor intensive. Those who are used to it can pick it in less than a minute.
About 20 shoots were harvested in about 2 hours. We take the bamboo shoots back to the school, clean them as we are taught, and eat the fresh bamboo shoot. The taste, texture, and flavor are memorized on the tongue.
The ingredients used in the class are taken home and cooked and eaten with plenty of seasonal ingredients such as rice with bamboo shoots, boiled young bamboo, and soup.
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By going into the mountains and experiencing the food directly, and experiencing firsthand how it is delivered from nature to the table, we can deepen our understanding of food.
Knowledge and information can be easily obtained on the Internet, but the real information and experiences can only be obtained by actually moving your body and experiencing it. It's something you wouldn't know about in your normal life where you're just buying and using ingredients.
The accumulation of valuable experiences gained through first experiences will build the foundation of a chef.
What firsts are waiting for us next?
What do we feel and learn from them?
I hope that I can continue to transmit this through Terakoya's NOTE.
Text by Suzuki
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毎日の授業では教室外にも多くの学びの場がある。
海、山、里など様々な場所での学びは特に新鮮で、寺子屋が始まって以降、初めての体験に溢れる毎日を過ごしている。
この日は山へ入り、筍堀りを初めて体験した。
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校舎のすぐ裏にある山を奥へと進み、竹藪へ到着。
今回は孟宗竹（もうそうちく）という種類の筍を採取した。
地面に目を光らせ、足で踏みながら頭が出ている筍を探していく。
自然の山なので、筍を探すのも少し難しい。
筍を見つけたら、地面からどう生えているのかを見ながら鍬を使って土を掘り進める。
慣れない作業で1本あたりを採るのに15分くらいかかり、かなり労力を使った。慣れている人は1分もかからずに採れるらしい。
2時間ほどで収穫した筍は20本程。校舎へ持ち帰り、習った方法でアク抜きをして、採れたての筍をまずはそのまま食べる。味の特徴、食感、風味などを舌で覚えていく。
授業で使った食材は各々持ち帰り、筍ごはん、若竹煮、お吸い物など旬の食材をふんだんに使った料理を作って食べる。
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山に入り、直に食材に触れ、自然から食卓までどのように届けられていくのか身をもって体験することで、食材の理解を深めることができる。
知識や情報はインターネットで簡単に得られるが、活きた情報や体験は実際に身体を動かしながら経験することでしか得られない。食材を買って使うだけの普通に生活では知り得ないものだ。
初めての体験を通じて得られる貴重な経験の積み重ねが料理人としての基礎をつくっていくのだろう。
次はどんな初めてが待っているのか。
自分たちが何を感じ、学んでいくのか。
寺子屋のnoteを通じて今後も発信していけたらと思う。
文：鈴木