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So yeah, new mainline Ōkami guys? I think I was drawing the sketch for this when the new trailer got released at the Video Game Awards…seems like a lifetime away. Can’t do much at the moment tho…broke the thumb in my dominant hand at the beginning of this month and it’s still bandaged up…

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Favorite Foods: Toph

This is the toughest food post I've done yet.

Before Toph began sneaking out of her parents' home, I don't think she enjoyed eating very much. Meals in the Beifong household were a stuffy affair, dictated by innumerable rules of etiquette that Toph found tedious and exhausting. However, I do think she liked having teatime and snacks with her mom, who wasn't as insistent on policing her daughter's manners as Lao was. Other than that, I think most of Toph's positive food memories come from sampling street food in the area around the Earth Rumble arena. Each dish is linked to a recipe, by the way.

Ròu jiā mó (肉夹馍) literally meaning "meat wedged between bread", is basically a Tang Dynasty hamburger. It's composed of chopped, seasoned meat sandwiched between two slices of flatbread called bái jí mó (白吉馍). The servants in Toph's home would make these burgers for themselves from the leftover bread and cuts of meat that the Beifongs didn't eat. Being cheap and greasy commoner's food, Lao (Toph's father) didn't allow her to have it. Of course, it didn't stop her from having a servant sneak one to her. After joining up with the Gaang, she makes a habit of always buying one whenever she smells a stall selling them.

Tang guozi (唐果子) are no-bake cakes meant to be served with tea. They're typically made of bean paste and shaped to resemble flowers and fruits. Poppy and Toph would make these cakes together as a bonding activity. Poppy would would prepare the bean paste and then hand it off to Toph to mold into whatever she pleased... They weren't always cutest creations. Still, from sculpting to eating, the two were always able to enjoy every step of the process.

Poached fruits and boiled nuts were another popular tea snack during the Tang Dynasty. Aside from bringing back warm tea-time memories, Toph also appreciates how simple they are to prepare. It's one of the few dishes Toph can make on her own. Her favorite combination is boiled chestnuts and pears poached with brown sugar.

Gu louzi (古楼子) was a decadent meat pastry popular among the wealthy, particularly high-ranking military officials, during the Tang Dynasty. Gu louzi was made up of rich layers of lamb meat, cheese, and flatbread. The meat was typically served very rare, both for for its tenderness and to add moisture to the dry flatbread layers. Toph's father would often serve this dish when entertaining generals and other military elites. However, he refused to allow Toph to eat it, believing the heavy ingredients and under cooked meat would upset his "delicate" daughter's stomach. Naturally, Toph would always blow her Earth Rumble prize money on gu louzi every chance she got.

& 6. Youtiao (油条) and tanghulu (糖葫蘆). Youtiao are Chinese crullers and tanghulu are candied fruits served on sticks. Both these foods were commonly sold at the Earth Rumble arena and quickly became Toph's go-to snacks after a match. Since Toph's household primarily served Tang Dynasty cuisine, the Song Dynasty snacks of youtiao and tanghulu were quite new and exciting to young Toph.

Fun fact: If you want an idea of what Tang Dynasty food tasted like, I would recommend finding a Chinese restaurant that serves Xi'an cuisine. Xi'an was the capital of the Tang Dynasty, when it was known as Chang'an.

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Cultural Cuisine: (Un)Fried Dough

This is definitely going to be one of my weirder posts, but it has been itching my brain for about two weeks now so I figured I’d share it with you all.

There’s this Chinese fried dough snack called yàuhjagwái (油炸鬼) in Cantonese, which literally means “Oil-Fried Devil”. It’s called this because, in Chinese mythology, the ninth level of Hell (地獄) is reserved for false accusers and the punishment is to be boiled in oil. There was once a Chinese politician named Qin Hui (秦檜) who had a beloved war hero, Yue Fei (岳飛), executed on false charges. The people of China expressed their outrage at this injustice by eating fried dough as a not-so-subtle way of telling the politician, “Screw you, we hope you boil in Hell!”

I bring this up because, in the episode “Avatar Day”, Aang learns that Kyoshi supposedly killed the beloved war hero of Chin Village, leading its residents to hate the Avatar. Aang claims that his past self did no such thing, only to be proven false. His punishment? Boiled in oil. Of course, once Aang saves the village from the Rough Rhinos, the people of Chin change their tune and celebrate Aang by eating unfried dough. In other words…

“Congratulations, we hope you don’t boil in Hell!”

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Cultural Cuisine: Dinner with the Beifongs

I've been wanting to analyze the dishes the Beifong were offering for years now, but procrastinated because I knew it would be time-consuming. After much research, I'm pretty satisfied with the headcanon I've created!

My theory? The Beifongs did not want Aang to feel welcome in their home, even before he started bickering with Toph. Allow me to provide the evidence.

Red Braised Spare Ribs

Red-Braised Spare Ribs or Hong Shao Pai Gu (红烧排骨) is a popular Chinese pork dish characterized by its sweet and savory flavor profile. This is achieved through the red-braising method: Cooking the ribs in a mixture of light & dark soy sauce, rock sugar, Shaoxing wine, and other aromatics like ginger & star anise.

While I've had this style of ribs before, this has to be the most decadent plating of the dish I have ever seen. Not only is there a giant pile of the spare ribs, but they literally lined the bowl with extra slices of marrow-filled bone. As delicious as that looks to a meat-eater, don't you think it's a bit tasteless to display all of that in front of a monk?

Sweet and Sour Fish

Sweet and Sour Fish or Tang​ Cu ​Yu (糖醋鱼) is a beloved Chinese dish composed of a battered & fried fish covered in pineapple, red bell pepper, and the ever-iconic sweet & sour sauce.

However, it seems like the chef skimped a little on the sauce and toppings, calling even more attention to the dead fish on a plate...

Pan Fried Pork Buns

Pan-Fried Pork Buns, also known as Sheng Jian Bao (生煎包) or Sheng Jian Mantou (生煎馒头), are a popular Chinese specialty. They're beloved for their contrast in textures and flavors: They combine a soft, fluffy top with a crispy, golden-brown bottom and juicy pork filling.

Not much to say, other than the Beifongs are pretty much serving up the entire pig at this point.

Steamed Lobster Tail

I'm guessing the Steamed Lobster Tails (蒸龍蝦尾) were served to ensure they had equal-parts seafood and pork dishes on the table. When I think of Chinese lobster dishes, I always think of the Cantonese-style lobster tails served at the fancy sit-down restaurants in California.

Soy Sauce Braised Chicken Wings

This one might be a bit of a stretch, but that bowl of light brown ovals looks like braised chicken wings to me. Soy sauce braised chicken wings or hóngshāo jī yì (紅燒雞翼) are a popular dish known for their sweet and savory flavor, as well as their glossy, sticky glaze. They're a staple of Chinese-American restaurants.

Compared to the previous ATLA meals I've covered, the meat-content of this dinner is kind of ridiculous.

Fried Rice

A staple of every Chinese restaurant, from mom-n-pop takeout joints to the most bourgeois of banquet halls. Fried rice can be vegetarian, but I'm pretty certain that the Beifongs' version had meat in it, since there wasn't any on Aang's plate.

So what exactly did Aang get to eat during this decadent feast?

Aang's Meal

Tea. Soup. Scallion Fried Rice. Giant Pile of Plain Rice.

And that's it.

They had one of the most important people in the world as their honored guest and the Beifongs served him the kind of meal that a broke college student might think to make. Admittedly, the scallion fried rice looks tasty but it's still just rice and green onion.

You expect me to believe that the richest family in the Earth Kingdom could only provide the Avatar with rice and soup? When there's plenty of vegetarian options within Earth Kingdom cuisine?

No, this was a very passive-aggressive way of telling Aang that he can go eff right off. Why did they not want him there? Probably because they knew his presence in their house meant he needed their help with the war effort, and they are just too wealthy to bother caring about anything outside their rich person bubble.

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Just felt a single atom bump into me

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"You big into Okami?" Don't even joke lad

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Sketchbook deleted my drawing so here’s my last process shot!

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marcille

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To Be Hero X (2025) — 01. NICE

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Aika as still a full time magical girl must be insane to have that kind of responsibility as a teen

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He's pathetic and I love him

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✎ : 𝐓𝐨 𝐁𝐞 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐨 𝐗 𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬

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✎ : 𝐓𝐨 𝐁𝐞 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐨 𝐗 𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬