Roasted eggplant with miso is one of my favorite dishes to make in the summer. Quick and easy to bring it all together, even when preparing it for a larger group. Eggplant is the go to in August, but you can easily adapt this recipe by switching out the eggplant for either tofu or konnyaku (a chewy jelly-like cake made from konjac, a type of root vegetable found throughout Asia), either of which are available year round. Either has a neutral flavor that lets the start of the

Today, I want to share with you how the Buddhist teachings of no-mind and non-action can de-revolutionize your approach to cooking, eating, and perhaps living. In this time and place where knowledge impersonates wisdom, it felt appropriate to share my insights by way of a recipe/dharma talk. I am speaking on my own accord, as a chef and monk. This is not a scholarly Buddhist work, and really offers nothing in the way of technical culinary expertise. My apologies in advance if

Thursday, June 27, 2024, was the day that my life changed. It was the day that I graduated from the intensive esoteric Buddhist training at Enryaku-ji Temple on top of Mt. Hiei in the northeastern corner of Kyoto. I was officially ordained as a Tendai Buddhist monk, and sent back into the world to spread the Dharma. The graduation ceremony ended just before 11 a.m. After that my classmates and I had just thirty minutes to clear our belongings from our tatami-mat rooms and