Welcome to the Fifth Edition of the Hakubaku Newsletter Hello to all of our registered members. 2009 has certainly thrown up all sorts of challenges so far. Our factory is situated in Wendouree, Victoria. Hakubaku is very lucky however as the awful fires of February did not come anywhere near Wendouree and Ballarat. We had the overcast days and could smell the smoke but were not directly impacted upon. We are happy to announce the first winner of our new Seasonal competition, as shown on our new packaging. It was to be a monthly competition but a seasonal competition will work better. Thank you to all who have taken part. Our Soba and Udon packets all have the new packaging and we encourage everyone to enter their favourite recipe using seasonally available produce. See our website for all competition details. In honour of our Competition winner, Jenny Anderson of WA, who has entered a celebratory-style dish we have chosen the Mango as our seasonal focus. You can find Jenny's delicious recipe below and it will go up on our website too. As always we have gathered some facts about mangos and the varieties that are available in your local supermarket. Let us know what you think of the recipe. We would like to thank all who have taken part in the Summer competition. Our Merit Prizes go out to the following: Judi Adams of TAS, Michelle Mahony of NSW and Julie of QLD.
Our Summer Seasonal Recipe Competition Thank you to all who sent in entries. The variety was wonderful and all very tempting. Our winner is Jenny Anderson of WA. Thank you very much Jenny for taking part. Jenny's recipe is our featured recipe for this month especially for our newsletter subscribers and will later be available for all on our website. Our recipe competition continues on a seasonal basis and so we welcome more entries. Start thinking of the great Autumnal vegies available and let us know how best you like to eat them with Hakubaku Organic noodles. Go to www.hakubaku.com for all terms and conditions. |
Soba with Chicken and Mango Serves: 4 Ingredients: Marinade - 3 tbs Soy Sauce
- 1/3 cup Rice Vinegar
- 1 tsp Sesame Oil
- Pinch of Salt
- 1tbs Sugar
- 1 Lime
- 1/2 Red Chilli
Combine marinade ingredients and put aside METHOD: Step one: Put noodles in rapidly boiling water for four minutes. Rinse in cold water and drain well. Pour Marinade over noodles and leave in refrigerator until almost ready to serve. Step two: Combine all other ingredients and gently stir through noodles just before serving. Serve cold with a lettuce or salad. Jenny's notes: We class this as a special meal as it is not cheap to make but worth every cent especially if you want to impress a guest. It is easy to make. Glass of wine, guests, wonderful meal. |
 Mmmmmm Mangos
Think of summer and you think of Mango. Mangos are amazingly versatile as they can be eaten raw or cooked, ripe or unripe and as a sweet or savoury dish. Indigenous to the Indian sub-continent, Mangos grow in sub-tropical regions and are sent world-wide. The ways that they are used in different countries is amazing. Mangos grow on a flowering tree that can achieve a height of 60 feet. They are a curved, oval shaped fruit which can range in colour from an un-ripe green, through yellow-orange and can go a pinkish-purple. You should not use colour as the ripeness factor because of the different varieties. Instead your best bet is your nose. Pick that which has the distinctive mango scent. Also check that there are no blemishes or soft spots. Ripen at room temperature and store in the fridge for up to five days before consuming (if you can wait that long). The Mango is overflowing with health benefits. Beta carotene (which our bodies convert to Vitamin A - great for the eyes), Vitamin C and high in dietary fibre and are low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. A mango will keep you regular and replace potassium lost through physical activity. And they taste great. You can't ask for more than that.  | Keitt Mangos This mango is found late in the season, from February to April. It has a greeny-yellow background with a reddish blush The Keitt works well in salads and sweets.
|  | Kensington Pride mango This is the most widely available mango in Australia, with its distinctive yellow-orange skin with jus a hint of pink blush. Also know as Bowen mangos, this is a great mango for creating purees for sauces or drinks or maybe swirl through some natural yoghurt. Eating fresh or in a salad will always make a special meal.
|  | Palmer Mangos The Palmer Mango has apricot-coloured flesh with a purple-red blush. It is smooth and sweet to eat. It is available between February and March As ever, this mango goes great in savoury or sweet salads, in drinks or cooked. | | | | Some further information on mango varieties may be found using the internet. We would be interested to hear of how you like to use mangos with Hakubaku Organic noodles.
Source: Wikipedia
Marketfresh www.marketfresh.com.au
Organicfood.com.au http://www.organicfood.com.au/ |
Upcoming Events:  Our Farmer's Market team have been busy. Tanya and Akira attended the Talbot Farmers Market on the 15th of February and Ballarat Lakeside Farmers Market on the 14th of March which were rained on. There was more water on the footpaths than in the dry lake bed. The following weekend was hot and sunny. Ballarat definitely comes under the saying "Don't like the weather here? Stick around for five minutes". Still, rain or not, there are many great things to try (in addition to purchasing your stock of Hakubaku Organic noodles at a very attractive price). I bought some marinated goats cheese that I am still raving about. Tanya and Akira can be found on Saturday 11 April at the Ballarat Lakeside Farmers Market. Other upcoming markets include: - Ballarat Lakeside Farmers Market - Saturday 11 & 25 April and 9 & 30 May, Wendouree Parade Lake Wendouree, BALLARAT 9.00am to 1.00pm
- Talbot Farmers Market - which runs from 9.00am to 2.00pm on the third Sunday of every month in the beautiful historic town of Talbot, Victoria. (If you are in Melbourne and looking for a day trip Talbot is well worth the drive).
- Japan Festival - Sunday 17 May, at the Box Hill Town Hall and TAFE, 1000-1022 Whitehorse Road, BOX HILL VIC 3128. This is a great event to attend with performances, exhibitions, stalls and lots of great foods to try. We hope to see you there.
| Hakubaku Organic Goes Global One of the great things about travelling overseas is being able to try new experiences and unfamiliar foods. If however you get a little homesick for that which is familiar, let me tell you that you can buy Hakubaku Organic Noodles in the following countries. New Zealand, USA, Canada, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, Laos, South Africa, UK, Iceland, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, France, Denmark, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Austria, Greece, Luxembourg, Romania, Chile ... to name but a few. Okay, you may have to search a little harder in some countries as we are still building our markets there, but be in no doubt that they can be found in all of these countries and that Hakubaku Australia is doing its best to bring the finest organic noodles to the world for all to enjoy. |
That's all from us for now. We look forward to hearing your thoughts and opinions on our products and our newsletter. We look forward to seeing what you have created in your kitchens for our Seasonal recipe competition. Don't forget to include Autumn seasonal produce in your recipes. From Jenny and the Hakubaku Team | |
