Japanese Cuisine

To the Western palate, Japanese cooking seems frugal but refined. Although there are few basic ingredients, they are set out with great delicacy and elegance. The worship of nature and her bounty-especially sea food , rice, soya and vegetables is reflected in Japanese cookery by the term SAPPARI’ i.e. clarity, lightness, simplicity and order.

In Japan , the emphasis not as much as on preparation, which is always expected to be perfect, thus showing cook’s skill, imagination and creativity. The main methods of cooking can be carried out  using a steamer and wok. Meals are small, the ingredients are few and simple made sharper to the taste with soy and other seasoning and there is no order ofcourse, so that the entire meal can be served together and can be hot, tepid, or cold or amixture of these. The japanese method of precise presentation was adopted by the founder of Nouvelle Cuisine.

The National dish of Japan is SUKIYAKI

Basic ingredients Of Japanese Cuisines

1. Soya bean-Miso – fermented soyabean paste
2. Tofu- soyabean curd.
3. Mirin – sweetened rice wine.
4. Sake- strong wine
5. Rice vinegar
6. Sesame oil
7. Hoisin sauce
8. Soya sauce
9. Wasabi-green horseradish
10. Squash
11. Shirataki-noodles made from sweet potato
12. Soba-buckwhat noodles
13. Bamboo shoot
14. Lotus roots
15. Pickles-prune,radish,ginger and sea urchin
16. Sea weeds- Knori, konbu and wakkame
17. Katsoubishi-dried Botino fish flakes
18. Ako Miso- red bean paste used for thickening soups

Cooking Process

• Nabemono-food cooked at table on a grill 
• Nimono – food cooked in aromatic stock

Restaurants that specialize in serving grilled food are known as ‘TEPPENYAKI’ restaurants and in most cases food is cooked on a table top grill infront of the guest.

The Japanese Meal

• Break fast – Bowl of rice and dried sea weed, miso based soups or eggs.
• Lunch-Light and eaten in a hurry. Rice and eggs, meat (pork chops or minced meat) or noodles, either cold or in a soup.
• Dinner-More extensive and sophisticate. Traditionally four different dishes are served. Tea and beer are more common accompaniments to the meal.
• Dessert- Traditionally sweets andcakes are reserved for feast days . French fruit is enjoyed between meals.

Symbolic Dishes

These are served on feast days on important occasions. E.g. clam soup at a Shinto marriage ceremony, the two halves of shell symbolizing union.

Typical food for the New Year feast is MOCHI. It is pounded sticky rice formed into pancakes and simmerd with vegetables(for savoury dishes ) and red bean paste sweetened with sugar (for dessert dishes).

The culinary art and japanese tradition reach their apogee in the ‘TEA CEREMONY‘ and attend ‘KAISEKI‘- a formal meal consisting of several courses and symbolic tea house representing a time honored ritual, symbolizing a great harmony.