The Japanese speak of aki no mikaku (autumnal eating pleasures). Of the many foods placed in that category, a slender, sleek, and steely-colored fish called sanma (Pacific saury; Cololabis saira 秋刀魚) has always been considered shomin no aji, or “food for the masses.” In historical novels and period-piece TV dramas, its the common folk, never…

The Japanese have long believed that foods beginning with the syllable “U” (written” う in hiragana), have special beat-the-heat properties. Most famous is UNAGI (eel, rich in vitamin B1) known as an antidote for summertime lethargy. The current custom of eating soy-glazed eel (unagi no kabayaki), specifically on Doyō Ushi no Hi (Midsummer Day of the Ox), can be traced back…

MA-GO-WA-YA-SA-SHI-I (Grandchildren are kind) This acronym helps speakers of Japanese remember the names of food groups that support a healthy diet. Each of the seven sounds represents a food group, while the total spells out a lovely adage (lauding the kindness of grandchildren). MA refers to mamé (beans), GO refers to goma (sesame… and other…

JUNSAI (water shield; Brasenia schreberi) grows naturally in lakes, ponds and slow streams in many parts of the world but only Japan and China have a long history of cultivating the plant as a food. The Japanese especially love foods with a tsuru tsuru (slippery, slithery) texture and young, unfurled junsai sprouts covered in a…

Before mechanical refrigeration was available, people throughout the world struggled with keeping fresh food from spoiling. A variety of ingenious techniques were developed including drying fresh food in well-ventilated shade. In Japan, the resulting foods are known collectively as kambutsu (literally, “dried things”) and are an important category of comestibles in both home and professional pantries.  Indeed the traditional…

Takénoko (bamboo) shoots that are left to grow become mature pole-like bamboo trees.The youngest, most tender, barely breaking-through-the-ground shoots, however, are edible after brief parboiling (instructions on how to do this in this month’s KITCHEN CULTURE Blog).  The flavor potential of takénoko can be awoken in many ways. Indeed, bamboo shoots easily become the focus of a menu, served…

The world’s oldest known cookbook, “The Art of Cooking,” attributed to Marcus Gavius Apicius (AD 14–37) contains a “recipe” for garum, a funky fish sauce made by layering fatty fish with salt and packing the mix in clay pots. When set in the hot sun for several months, the contents of the pots fermented. The fermented…

Akila Inouye runs the Tsukiji Soba Academy in Tokyo. A fan of molecular cuisine, his teaching method relies on getting to know the history of soba, grasping the underlying chemistry of its preparation and of course cooking and eating them in different ways. In November 2023 I embarked on a research trip to Japan for…

This collective offers illustrators the chance to represent the Japanese capital by adapting the style of covers from ‘The New Yorker’. With regard to press illustration, the publication that has long been considered an international reference is The New Yorker, founded in 1925. Across the world, graphic designers have since paid homage to the American magazine,…

On April 14th 2023 I hosted an online session called “Slow prosperity: Empathy and Business” with 6th generation Japanese master craftsman Takahiro Yagi of Kaikado. Kaikado has been making tea caddies – 茶筒, chazutsu – since 1875. The wide-ranging conversation followed some of the topics covered in Taka’s book, “共感と商い” (“Empathy and Business”), published in March 2023, and…