Japanese
Food History
Traditionally,
Japanese food is fresh, healthy, and low in fat. The Japanese
believe that food should satisfy all the senses. Food is
always prepared with great care and beautifully presented. The
freshest ingredients are combined in ways that delight the eyes
as well as the taste buds. Seasonings are generally very
simple in order to enhance the natural flavors.
Sushi combines seasonal seafood and rice, the staple diet of
the Japanese people. A wide variety of vegetables can be
used in such, too.
Sashimi means “raw” in Japanese and is generally used
to refer to the delicately arranged plates of raw seafood and
sliced fresh fish that are served with soy and other dipping
sauces.
Sushi refers to vinegar-flavored rice topped with sashimi, omelettes
and vegetables, or rolled with a variety of fillings in dark
green nori seaweed.
Sashimi is usually served as an entrée, and sushi as
a main course or as the penultimate dish in a Japanese dinner,
prior to dessert. Miso soup may be served with sushi. There
is an enormous variety of sushi. The ingredients are almost
limitless and there are many different ways of making sushi. Sushi
is a simple, light and healthy food. Raw fish and seafood
contain many vitamins and minerals, a high amount of health-giving
omega-3 fatty acids and little cholesterols.
