| Tempura, sukiyaki, sashimi, sushi - even the | | | | Sushi and sashimi both are raw fish and |
| words used to describe the most basic of | | | | seafood with various spices. Impeccably fresh |
| Japanese dishes are exotic and beautiful. | | | | fish is the secret to wonderful sashimi and |
| Japanese cuisine is easily one of the | | | | sushi, served with wasabi and soya sauce. The |
| healthiest in the world, with its | | | | Japanese love of beauty and simplicity turns |
| concentration on fresh fish, seafood, rice | | | | slices and chunks of raw fish into miniature |
| and vegetables. The pungent sauces and | | | | works of art. Fish sliced so thin that it's |
| delicate flavors of fresh foods complement | | | | transparent may be arranged on a platter in a |
| each other beautifully, and the methods of | | | | delicate fan that alternates pink-fleshed |
| presentation turn even simple meals into | | | | salmon with paler slices of fish. Sushi is |
| beautiful events. | | | | typically arranged to best display the colors |
| | | | and textures to their best advantage, turning |
| The Japanese have easily a dozen different | | | | the platter and plate into palettes for the |
| names for rice, depending on how it is | | | | artistry of the chef. |
| prepared and what it is served with. The most | | | | |
| common meal is a rice bowl, a bowl of white | | | | Traditionally, meat plays a minor role in the |
| rice served with various toppings or | | | | Japanese diet, though it has been taking a |
| ingredients mixed in. So popular is it that | | | | larger and larger role over the past fifty |
| the Rice Bowl has even made its way into the | | | | years as Japan becomes more westernized. |
| world of Western convenience foods alongside | | | | Beef, chicken and pork may be served with |
| ramen noodles. Domburi is a bowl of rice | | | | several meals a week now. One of the more |
| topped with another food: domburi tendon, for | | | | popular meat dishes is 'yakitori' - chicken |
| instance, is rice topped with tempura and | | | | grilled on a skewer and served with sauce. A |
| domburi gyudon is rice topped with beef. The | | | | typical quick lunch might include a skewer of |
| Japanese adopted fried rice from the Chinese, | | | | yakitori and a rice bowl with sushi sauce. |
| and a century ago, when curry was first | | | | |
| introduced, developed Kare Raisu, curry rice. | | | | In an interesting twist, Japan has imported |
| It is now such a popular dish that there are | | | | dishes from other cuisines and 'Japanized' |
| many fast-food restaurants that serves | | | | them, adopting them as part of their own |
| several versions of it in take-away bowls. | | | | cuisines. Korokke, for instance, are |
| | | | croquettes adopted from those introduced by |
| Besides white rice served as a side dish, | | | | the English last century. In Japan, the most |
| Japanese cuisine also features onigiri - rice | | | | common filling is a mixture of mashed |
| balls wrapped in seaweed, often with a | | | | potatoes and minced meat. Other Soshoyu - |
| 'surprise' in the middle, and kayu, a thin | | | | western dishes that have made their way into |
| gruel made of rice that resembles oatmeal. | | | | Japanese everyday cuisine include 'omuraisu', |
| | | | a rice omelet, and hambagau, the Japanized |
| As an island nation, it's not surprising that | | | | version of an American hamburger. |
| seafood is featured in Japanese cuisine. | | | | |