Japan is an Eastern Asian country composed of over 5000 islands located in the Pacific Ocean. Since it is a one of the world’s leading fishing nations, accounting for approximately 8% of the world’s catch, fish and seafood are major components of Japanese cuisine. The two principal staple foods Japan are rice (the climate is perfect for rice cultivation) and noodles.
Many elements of Japanese dining and cuisine are the result of Chinese influence, including the use of chopsticks, soy sauce, and tofu (soybean curd). In fact, the Japanese first learned to grow rice from the Chinese around 2000 years ago.
In Japan, rice is normally served boiled or steamed. The second major Japanese staple food, noodles, is available in several varieties, which may be eaten either hot or cold.
Three popular noodle varieties included in Japanese dining are:
• Soba Noodles - Made of wheat flour, these thin, brown noodles can be eaten with a variety of dipping sauces or in hot soups
• Udon Noodles – These are also wheat noodles, but they are thicker than Soba noodles, also used in hot soups
• Ramen Noodles – Wheat-based, thin yellow noodles that come in different shapes, usually served in meat or fish broth
Soy sauce and soybeans are also an integral part of the Japanese dining experience. Other typical Japanese ingredients include:
• Tofu – resembling firm blocks of cottage cheese, this is a bean curd made of soy milk
• Bamboo shoots- Crisp yet tender, these are very young bamboo plants commonly used in many Far Eastern cuisines
• Daikon- This root vegetable looks somewhat like a large white radish and it is the most commonly cultivated vegetable in Japan. It is eaten raw in salads or cooked (stir-fried, grilled, baked or boiled)
• Ginger- is a widely used seasoning in Japan
• Seaweed varieties- a very important part of the Japanese diet, seaweed varieties are harvested at different times of the year, dried and then reconstituted in water before they are cooked
In Japan, green tea is much more popular than black tea. Considered to be the national drink, it is often served with desserts.
As mentioned earlier, seafood is an integral part of the Japanese dining experience. Two unique Japanese dishes that are renowned worldwide are:
• Sushi- Fresh seafood served raw (blanched, pickled or frozen) with rice and wrapped in roasted seaweed. Sushi is a very healthy food because it has a low content of saturated fat and almost no sodium, sugar or cholesterol.
• Sashimi- In formal Japanese dining protocol, Sashimi is often served as the first course of a meal. It consists of extremely fine slices of raw, fresh seafood often served on top of a salad of shredded daikon and accompanied by wasabi paste.
Japanese culture takes pride in presentation and table settings are as important as cuisine in the Japanese dining experience. A traditional Japanese table setting usually includes a soup bowl and a rice bowl, plus a number of small flat plates and, of course chopsticks.
If you are serving Japanese food, consider using an Asian table setting to recreate an authentic Japanese dining experience. Use bamboo placemats, chopsticks, pretty China bowls and an Asian-style centerpiece.
In Japan, rice is normally served boiled or steamed. The second major Japanese staple food, noodles, is available in several varieties, which may be eaten either hot or cold.
Three popular noodle varieties included in Japanese dining are:
• Soba Noodles - Made of wheat flour, these thin, brown noodles can be eaten with a variety of dipping sauces or in hot soups
• Udon Noodles – These are also wheat noodles, but they are thicker than Soba noodles, also used in hot soups
• Ramen Noodles – Wheat-based, thin yellow noodles that come in different shapes, usually served in meat or fish broth
Soy sauce and soybeans are also an integral part of the Japanese dining experience. Other typical Japanese ingredients include:
• Tofu – resembling firm blocks of cottage cheese, this is a bean curd made of soy milk
• Bamboo shoots- Crisp yet tender, these are very young bamboo plants commonly used in many Far Eastern cuisines
• Daikon- This root vegetable looks somewhat like a large white radish and it is the most commonly cultivated vegetable in Japan. It is eaten raw in salads or cooked (stir-fried, grilled, baked or boiled)
• Ginger- is a widely used seasoning in Japan
• Seaweed varieties- a very important part of the Japanese diet, seaweed varieties are harvested at different times of the year, dried and then reconstituted in water before they are cooked
In Japan, green tea is much more popular than black tea. Considered to be the national drink, it is often served with desserts.
As mentioned earlier, seafood is an integral part of the Japanese dining experience. Two unique Japanese dishes that are renowned worldwide are:
• Sushi- Fresh seafood served raw (blanched, pickled or frozen) with rice and wrapped in roasted seaweed. Sushi is a very healthy food because it has a low content of saturated fat and almost no sodium, sugar or cholesterol.
• Sashimi- In formal Japanese dining protocol, Sashimi is often served as the first course of a meal. It consists of extremely fine slices of raw, fresh seafood often served on top of a salad of shredded daikon and accompanied by wasabi paste.
Japanese culture takes pride in presentation and table settings are as important as cuisine in the Japanese dining experience. A traditional Japanese table setting usually includes a soup bowl and a rice bowl, plus a number of small flat plates and, of course chopsticks.
If you are serving Japanese food, consider using an Asian table setting to recreate an authentic Japanese dining experience. Use bamboo placemats, chopsticks, pretty China bowls and an Asian-style centerpiece.
