My Quiet Morning Routine in Japan | Life in My 50s

In this video, I’m sharing my usual morning routine, from a little exercise and meditation to breakfast, English study, and making bento for the week. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned that small things are easier to continue when they become part of my routine. Starting this YouTube channel at 54 is one of my new challenges. Thank you so much for watching and spending part of your day with me. Recipes from This Video All of the recipes below make enough for about 2–4 bento boxes. I usually cook by eye, so the measurements below are just a rough guide. Please feel free to adjust the seasonings to your own taste! 【Okra & Asparagus Pork Rolls】 Ingredients 24 thin slices of pork belly (You can also use pork loin or thinly sliced beef—whatever you prefer.) 8 okra 8 asparagus spears 1 tsp salt, for preparing the okra Salt and pepper, as needed, for seasoning the meat All-purpose flour, as needed, for lightly coating the meat Vegetable oil, as needed, for cooking 2 tbsp water, for steaming Sauce 3 tbsp sake 3 tbsp mirin 1–2 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp soy sauce 【Stir-Fried Carrots & Shimeji Mushrooms】 Ingredients 1/2 carrot 1–2 packs shimeji mushrooms 1 tbsp vegetable oil or olive oil Salt and pepper, to taste 2 tsp chicken stock powder 1 tbsp sake (optional — it also helps the vegetables cook a little more easily) White sesame seeds, as needed, for finishing For a little extra flavor, you can add a few drops of soy sauce at the end or use butter instead of oil. Feel free to adjust it to your taste. 【Chikuwa Isobe-Age】 Chikuwa are Japanese tube-shaped fish cakes. “Isobe-Age” is a simple way of cooking them in a batter flavored with aonori (green seaweed flakes). Ingredients 4–8 chikuwa Vegetable oil, as needed, for cooking (I use just a small amount of oil and shallow-fry them rather than deep-frying.) Batter 3 tbsp all-purpose flour 1 tsp aonori (green seaweed flakes) 3 tbsp water Umeboshi (pickled plum), optional #LifeInJapan #JapanVlog #MorningRoutine #Bento #JapaneseLifestyle