The very essence of a culture is its food. It seemed logical to approach Japanese culture by starting with cuisine. And of course, this has practical considerations, too, when traveling with three children with different levels of pickiness. It is possible to travel to an industrialized, modern country like this and never stop eating the same foods you would get at home. I am reliable told that it is possible to purchase ‘American’ food in Tokyo, as long as your yen flow freely. But, why would you do that? Just stay home if you can’t live without Poptarts and Chickin’ Nuggets. Bring on the enlightened palate!
Luckily, my children love rice and noodles, fruits and fresh vegetables, so this shouldn’t be too hard, right?
Right?
First stop, the local library where we check out every Japanese cookbook available. Which means three. I’ve sampled the American version of Japanese food, bento boxes, and sushi (yes, with raw fish), and I love the mouthwatering spiciness of wasabi peas, but I know I am out of my depth when the first four glossy pages are devoted to knives, various skimmers, strainers, steamers, and incredibly intricate but simple gadgets of obscure (to me) function. There are three pages devoted to cutting. Yes, there are 18 basic cuts featured, each with it’s own name, a detailed method and purpose, and special knife. I felt the same way when I rashly checked out Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking last spring. I know nothing. It is a wonder that I can keep my people alive here at home, let alone half way around the world. Better pack extra yen for those Nuggets.
But, my training as a scientist helps make sense of this. Look for connections, for patterns. Why are there so many knives for food preparation? Because there are no knives on the table. It is the height of impropriety to serve anything that requires cutting by the diner. Think about that. This dictates that all food is either cooked to softness, or served in bite-sized pieces that can be easily managed by chopsticks.
I really don’t know much about cooking, except I can bake. I think nothing of whipping up a fudge gateau, or ginger brownies, or muffins made with 8 kids of fruits, veggies and nuts. The Japanese, however, don’t bake much. Ovens are very rare, most homes have all the modern cooking conveniences, but only a stovetop, no oven. So my one area of moderate competence in the kitchen is out. I won’t be making Chocolate Chip cookies, or Busy Day Cake, or wondering where to buy baking powder. And, really, our American diet is too full of sweets and unnecessary carbs, so what are we missing? Secretly, I am glad I’ll be home for Christmas when I can bake my heart out!
We finally find our nirvana in a cookbook for children that has an easy to understand introduction to the ways of Japanese food. I learn that most people shop daily. Not only because the food is fresher, but because space is at a premium and there in no place to store the giant box of cereal from Costco. There are no big freezers or pantries, and you must make time each day go to the market to find what is available before you can decide what to make for diner. Because of this, there is a seasonality to cooking. Some dishes are only eaten in spring, because that is when the shirauo or warabi are available. This is a refreshing idea in an age when I can buy blueberries and tomatoes all year long at the grocery store in Connecticut. For the right price, almost nothing here has a ‘season’ anymore, and we are poorer (in the wallet and in the experience) for it.
I think a lot about food here in the US. It is a chore to decipher ingredient lists, choose between fresh, organic grapes from Chile or conventional ones from a local farm. Japan is the country, however, that flies in fresh seafood from all over the world on a daily basis, some of it unsustainably harvested. It still won’t be simple to make good choices at the market. But it will be an adventure.
Our learning moment, leafing through a cookbook on the couch in Connecticut, brings insight to Japanese culture, one I would never have expected. Why do we think of Asian food as so foreign? Because the rules for its preparation and presentation are different, the cuisine has evolved along a different path. It isn’t better or worse, just different.
A footnote:
We have been having weekly Japanese style meals here in preparation for what we will encounter. The other night we had Ramen, one poached chicken breast split between 5 people, stir-fried baby bok choy, pickled ginger. The children were indignant that I had been withholding Ramen from them their whole lives. Who would have known?
