mantou; Chinese steamed bun
China; Chūgoku region (western part of Honshu comprising the prefectures of Okayama, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Tottori and Shimane); central part of a country; main region; province of the second lowest rank (ritsuryō system)
Tōhoku region (northernmost six prefectures of Honshu); Tohoku region
regional cuisine; local cuisine
to knead; to thicken into a paste (stirring over a flame); to polish (a plan, etc.); to refine; to train; to drill; to gloss (silk)
Chinese cooking; Chinese food
stir-fried shrimp in chili sauce
stew of cubed meat or fish (esp. pork belly or tuna)
pizza manjū; steamed yeast bun with a cheese and tomato sauce filling
curry manjū; steamed yeast bun with a curry sauce filling
if I (we, etc.) could; if one were to ... then ... (an unpleasant thing would happen)
new release; putting (a new product) on sale; launch
to engrave an inscription; to call (designate) itself; to mark; to label
sale; offering for sale; putting on sale; putting on the market; release (for sale)
seasonal goods; seasonal items; faddish product; vogue merchandise; novel, film, play, etc. dealing with recent events or trends; work of ephemeral interest
accepted; fully-fledged; clear; respectable
manufacturer (esp. a major company); producer; maker; maker (person or device that makes something)
to attach; to join; to furnish (a house with); to wear; to put on; to keep a diary; to make an entry
rate; ratio; comparatively; contrary to expectations
percent; per cent; percentage
majority decision; majority vote; majority rule
my goodness!; good lord!; holy cow!
before I knew it; next thing you know; when I came to; all of a sudden
oh well, fine; fine, I guess; alright, I suppose; OK, then
anyway; anyhow; as one likes; by all means; at any cost; no matter what it takes
to become completely chilled
stimulus; stimulation; impetus; impulse; excitement; thrill
first of all; to begin with; probably; most likely; more or less (satisfactory); on the whole
to correct; to touch up; to smarten up; to put one's hand in (e.g. pocket)
to adhere to; to stick to; to keep close to; to go along with; to get involved with; to be thick with
uh-huh; mm-hmm; with a moan; with a groan
easy; trifling; harmless; nothing of the sort; not at all
hee hee hee; hi hi hi; chuckling; snickering
still; much more; (not) yet; still a long way to go; still a long way off; not there yet
meat soup; bouillon; juices (from grilled meat); gravy
alternately sucking in and blowing out air through one's mouth while eating something hot (in order to cool it down)
paste (form); (as a) paste
sesame seeds; sesame (Sesamum indicum)
remnant; fragment; fraction; odd sum; halfway; half-hearted