Welcome to Tenzo’s Kitchen! I am glad you’re here with me. My name is Eiten—I’m a monk, chef, writer and the voice and creator behind this space.

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My intention is simple: to help you make sustainable change, rooted in wisdom by sharing plant-based recipes and insights that I have gathered along the way throughout my personal experience as both a professional chef and an ordained Tendai Buddhist monk. 

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Like you, I am someone on a journey. Mine began over thirty years ago, at Trident Booksellers & Cafe on Newbury Street in Boston. That’s where I discovered Master Dōgen, the founder of the Zen school of Buddhism, and his book, Tenzo Kyōkun, or Instructions for the Cook as it is often translated. That discovery was my gateway. Little did I know then that, decades later, I would be climbing Mt. Hiei to undergo the intense training required of all Tendai monks aspiring to walk the Bodhisattva path. Or that I would spend two months breathing the same mountain air as Dōgen, within a hundred yards of the very spot where it is said he attained enlightenment. But I did, and through a similar karmic connection it has brought us together now.

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The path I traveled to get here has prepared me for this moment: to be the guide on your journey. From my culinary career spanning over twenty years working with some of the most inspiring and respected chef personalities and hotel brands in the world, I will share with you tips and tricks of the trade that only a seasoned kitchen veteran would know. And from my first hand experience training on top of Mt. Hiei in Kyoto, Japan, I will help you put into practice the wisdom of the three core principles of shōjin ryōri, a Japanese culinary tradition refined over the course of 800 years in the temples and monasteries throughout the country.

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Discover the systems and techniques that I personally use at home to make cooking as effortless as it is enjoyable, resulting in dishes that are simple to prepare, yet have a depth and complexity that makes you want to eat them over and over again. Meal planning that makes healthy eating easy, economical and sustainable in the long term. Learn practices that can be applied both in and out of the kitchen that will gradually reshape your relationship with food and the impact that your daily dietary choices have on your own well-being and beyond.

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Recognize the truth and power behind my personal mantra:

Good for you, good for the planet!