Food in Japan: Let's Start with the Basics
- Gerald "Mutu" Froehlich
- Aug 31, 2016
- 4 min read
Like in every Culture, so also in Japan, Food is a big part of the Japanese Identity, more so than any other Place even. The People here love Food, for many it's one, if not The One Reason for traveling outside their Hometowns. Any Conversation you will have with a Japanese about their Travels, will almost certainly include Food and the consuming Experience. People here have a huge Passion and Enthusiasm for Food and Drinks, so for this reason many towns and cities in Japan are known first and foremost for their local Speciality, whether it be a type of Sweet, Fish, Noodle, Seaweed or Tofu.
Food in Japan is an Artform of its own, careful Preparation and meticulous Presentation go Hand in Hand.
Compared to most Western Countries, Japanese Food is very different in preparing and the way of how to eat, than what we are used to. Some Dishes you will probably like immediately, while others will need time to get used to.
If I would compare the average Japanese Dish to German Food, then it usually lacks a certain strength in Flavor here for me. Many Ingredients made in Japan, like Onions or Cucumber for example, have a comparable more subtle taste in than its continental or western counterparts. This doesn't mean in any way, that Japanese Food has no Taste, no not at all, but the Dishes are prepared fundamentally different. In Germany you have a few selected Ingredients and then a lot of Spices to bring out the Taste, while in Japan it's literally the Opposite.
Japanese Dishes have very many Ingredients and a certain Harmony of many Flavors usually without a distinct strong main Taste, so in the Beginning some meals had barely any Taste for me at all, because these had been too subtle compared to what i was used to. On the contrary my Wife can't eat some German Dishes without a lot of Bread and something to Drink on the Side, because these have too strong Flavoring compared to what she is used too.
So let's cover the Basics of Japanese Food: (Yes there is more than Sushi!)
Rice
The staple Food for Japanese for over 2000 Years, Rice is the most basic ingredient for Japanese Food. From Sweets like "Mochi" to standard white Rice as a side dish, it comes in many forms. One big difference for standard white Rice is, that it's not
"al dente", so it's very sticky and therefore easy to eat with chopsticks.
Fish and Seafood
In Japan they certainly tried and perfected the way to prepare any kind of Seafood, whether it's raw ("nama"), still seemingly alive and kicking ("odorigui"), deep fried ("tempura") or grilled ("yaki"), Fish and Seafood is an integral Part of Japanese Cuisine. (I always wonder how many people died till they figured out how to prepare Fugu, Blowfish, without killing the Customer.)
Seasonal and Local Food
As i said Japanese are very passionate about Food, so the 4 Seasons also become very distinctive and different, each with their own seasonal and also local Specialty. "Meibutsu" or local Specialties play a big role in Japan, many you will find in Souvenir Shops in Airports or Train Stations, but better eaten locally in a nice Restaurant.
Just try searching online with names for Cities in Japan, you will with absolute certainty know what's its local specialty for which season within the first Google Page.
Beef
Yeah we all have probably heard of the world famous Kobe Beef, but be prepared, beef in Japan is very different. I often discussed this with my wife and came to the conclusion, that Japanese eat meat like they eat fish.
Yeah, hard to understand, let me explain.
In western countries beef with lower amounts of fat, so more red, is usually considered better and more expensive and searched after. In Japan, it's the opposite, more white, equals better beef. The understanding in Japan is, the more fat "riding" on the Fish, the tastier it is,and this seems to be also true for Meat from the Japanese Point of View.
So yeah, Kobe Beef and the like not only will cost you an arm and leg, but will be very fatty, melt in your mouth and taste very different than for example Argentinian Beef.
Me personally, i don't like the high grade Japanese Sirloin or Filet much, it tastes good, but after more than 2 bites of it, my stomach screams "STOP, too much fat to handle" and will take quite some time to calm down.
Other
There is a huge variety of Fruits and Vegetables, Noodle Dishes and Soups, go and try em out whenever you can. If i would try to list all of the other categories as well, this would probably be the world's longest Blog Post ever, so let's just say, there are many many more, too much to count and too many to name.
But Yeah, that's the Basics of Japanese Food.
I will try to cover a few more Foods and Dishes in dedicated Blog Posts in the near Future, so check these out for a more detailed look.
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