When you think of Japanese food, what immediately comes to mind? Sushi? Teriyaki chicken? Benihana-style Teppanyaki restaurants? Probably not much else, right? Despite the fact that Japanese cuisine is becoming incredibly popular in western society, to the eyes of the average foreigner Japanese cuisine is still not much more than these token dishes.
Well, I am here to officially tell you that this is not the reality. I am a self-diagnosed food-lover, and I have found that few countries are better-equipped to provide their residents with such an astonishing range of different ideas, flavours and culinary experiences than Japan. There are so many different note-worthy styles of Japanese dining, indeed, that I have divided the general topic of food into two articles. This article is about Japanese foods that I believe stand out by themselves, and my other article, unoriginally titled "The Japanese Dining Experience" talks about several dining experiences in Japan that are well worth looking into, purely because they are unlike anything you will experience anywhere else.
With that said and done, let’s talk about cool Japanese foods.
Obentoo
This is probably one of the most well-known of Japanese foods, although it is perhaps not so much a food as it is a way of serving food. An obentoo is a Japanese-style lunch box, either made by loving mothers for their children before school every day (right up until the last year of high school for a lot of children), or bought at convenient stores by hungry university students and business people who know that they’ll be staying at work or university for lunch. The obentoo is normally divided into several sections. One section will contain some sort of meat (fish and chicken are quite popular), one section may contain some cooked vegetables, one section may contain some sort of sweet bean-paste cake for dessert, and the biggest section will consist of rice. An obentoo is, in short, a whole meal in one convenient box. Obentoo are almost always made with thought and care, and they are a great way to taste some of the token foods of Japan.
On top is a display of take-away obentoo. On the bottom is a close-up of the inside of an obentoo.
Onigiri
Another relatively well-known Japanese staple. Onigiri are palm-sized balls of rice, normally containing some sort of filling, wrapped at least partially in sheet-like seaweed called nori. The fillings in onigiri vary hugely, but some of the common fillings include umeboshi (Japanese pickled plum), kelp, salmon, canned tuna with mayonnaise, and tarako (cod roe). Onigiri can be an on-the-go snack, or they can be part of a larger meal. Two or three onigiri often function as the rice portion of an obentoo. Onigiri are incredibly easy to make, but if you are reluctant to try even the most basic of cooking, you can purchase an onigiri at your local convenience store for about 100 yen.
Above are two home-made onigiri ready for consumption. Below is a shelf in a convenience store well-stocked with different flavours of onigiri.
Takoyaki
This is one of my personal favourites. The word yaki, meaning ‘cooked item’, often makes up the beginning or end part of the names of cooked Japanese foods. Teriyaki refers to a popular sauce made from soy sauce and sweetened rice wine, yakitori literally means ‘cooked chicken’ and refers to chicken skewers, sukiyaki refers to a huge pot filled with water and meats and vegetables, made into a kind of super-chunky soup and enjoyed communally. So what does tako mean, you ask? In short: Octopus.
To anybody who considered running away just then, don’t. Trust me. I was pretty certain I wasn’t going to like it either, but I decided to try it when it was offered to me by a Japanese friend about five years ago, and since then I have never looked back.
Takoyaki are actually a type of fried dumpling, with octopus acting as its main ingredient. Other ingredients in the batter include tempura scraps, pickled ginger and green onion. Where takoyaki is served most frequently, at little takoyaki stands, the batter is divided into the semi-circular holes of a special takoyaki pan (which looks a bit like a large, unflattened muffin tin), cooked over a high heat for a few minutes, being rotated all the while to create that ball shape. A portion of the dumplings are then laid out in a tray or ‘boat’, topped with okonomiyaki sauce (which itself is made from tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, fish stock and tomato puree, and tastes kind of similar to barbecue sauce), bonito fish flakes and mayonnaise, and presented to you with toothpicks and probably one of the most necessary paper napkins in human history. It is generally enjoyed in a park or on a bench somewhere, and it is not uncommon to share a serving of it with friends. Do not let its ingredients disturb you – this is Japanese fast food as its best.
Above, mass quantities of takoyaki being prepared using the special takoyaki pan. Below, a nicely-presented serving of takoyaki.
Karaage
Karaage is a style of cooking used on a number of different foods, but most commonly on chicken. Small pieces of the food are marinated in soy sauce, ginger or garlic, coated with a wheat flour or potato starch mix and deep-fried in oil. Chicken karaage is another popular type of fast food in Japan, and it can be enjoyed in a ramen shop as individual pieces, on a stick like a fried chicken/chicken kebab hybrid, or as several pieces in a bag with a special kind of salt or extra flavouring on it (chilli and cheese being among the most popular). This may not be the most spectacular or most earth-shatteringly Japanese of all Japanese foods, but it is definitely one of my favourites, and it is definitely cool.
Some elegant serving suggestions for karaage.
Chuukaman
To be fair, this is a type of food that originated in China. But, like with a lot of Chinese things, the Japanese saw fit to take chuukaman and make it their own. chuukaman is a broad term for any type of Chinese-style steamed bun. The most popular type of chuukaman is nikuman, or meat bun, which consists of a palm-sized bun made from flour dough and filled with cooked ground pork or some other kind of meat. Chuukaman are always steamed and served hot. It is a popular street-vendor food during winter, and there are a number of different varieties of chuukaman available to try, including kareeman (curry bun), pizaman (pizza bun), anman (sweet bean bun), and chocoman (chocolate bun).
Above, a nice view of the inside of a nikuman. Below, a whole freshly-steamed nikuman.
Yakisoba
Another food with the infamous yaki in its name. Soba is a type of thin noodle made from buckwheat flour, and is used in a variety of different Japanese dishes. Yakisoba is a dish served in marketplaces, in parks, and at home. Soba noodles are mixed with vegetables (normally cabbage, carrot and/or onion), pork, and yakisoba sauce (like a thickened version of Worcestershire sauce) in a frying pan or on a barbecue, and served immediately. It is a simple dish, like all of these fabulous Japanese foods, and it is definitely worth trying.
On top is a dish of yakisoba. On the bottom is a yakisoba stand as commonly seen in marketplaces and parks.
This completes my very brief introduction to some of the coolest foods in Japan. Please also read my other article, where I talk about some of the most unique (and definitely the most cool) eating experiences Japan has to offer.
No comments:
Post a Comment