Japan The Cookbook 0714874744

Table of contents :
INTRODUCTION 9
A HISTORY OF JAPANESE FOOD 17
T H E R E C I P E S 29
CHEFS 391
GLOSSARY 427
INDEX 448

Citation preview

NANCY

SINGLETON

HACHISU

,I

II

i

JAPAN THE

COOKBOOK

NANCY

SINGLETON

HACHISU

A p A N THE

COOKBOOK

INTRODUCTION A HISTORY

9

OF JAPANESE

T H E RECI PES

CHEFS

391

G L O S S A RY INDEX

44s

427

FOOD

29

17

zensa1

BEFORE

n1mono

29

T H E

aemono

MEAL

91

VINEGARED

mushimono

185

STEAMED

RAW

sunomono

153

SOUPS

DRESSED

namamono

SIMMERED

shirumono

59

121

105

itamemono

STIR-FRIES

207

agemono

227

yakimono

253

GRILLED

RICE

nabemono

349

ONE-POTS

275

NOODLES

gohan

319

PICKLES

FRIED

menru1

tsukemono

kanmi

375

SWEETS

289

shefu

CHEFS

391

INTRODUCTION

When I was first approached

by Phaidon

The Cookbook,my immediate enthusiastic,

response

"Yes! "

This kind of "can do" nai:ve attitude us Americans, sometimes project

Japan:

to write

was an unequivocal, is common

with

and I believe makes us both endearing

unrealistic.

yet

Had I known how gargantuan

would prove to be, spanning

the

over an intensively

packed three years , I still would have agreed to write this book. With all of the collective artisans

inJapan

, the photographers

this final work is impressive less the author moment

in time of Japanese

Japan ' s topography stretches

prefecture,

Hokkaido,

Okinawa,

is hardly simple. to its southern of hundreds

divisions

The Japanese island

island prefecture,

Kyushu , Okinawa) independent

of islands.

of the country

Tokai, Hokuriku,

are complex.

(greater

Kyoto)

is often cited, but in apposition

greater

Tokyo region. is 73 percent of coastline

land. Mountain

Tohoku ,

, Shikoku ,

The Seto Inland Kansai

mountains

of

Even the

(Hokkaido,

Kinki , Chugoku

of these regions.

kilometers)

this

food .

which has a land area of only o.6 percent

ten principal

Japan

. I feel like

for sharing

from the vast northern

and is comprised

Kanto,

, and the publisher,

in its contribution

and more the conduit,

archipelago

Japan

effort of the cooks and

to Kanto,

with 18,486

Sea is

Osaka / the

miles (29 , 751

but only about 12 percent

of arable

ranges divide plains and basins and are

often very steep, but volcanoes

seem to pop up wherever

they want, for example

Fuji and Mount

Mount

The climate

ranges from the cool mountains

snowbound

in winter,

south.

to the subtropical

cultivation,

9

of the north,

islands in the

As a rainy country , receiving an average of 60 inches

(15 cm) of rain per year, Japan Japan

Asama.

agriculture

,;1:[; o6 ,:

is perfectly

the crop that symbolizes .

I NT R O D U C TI O N

suited to wet rice

the heart and soul of

Today's

food distribution

systems are such that almost

all global foods are available in Japan. traditional

culinary

is an increased of Japanese

mores,

nostalgia

ingredients,

small producers,

This has diluted

and one ironic

result of that

for those very traditions

. All kinds

even somewhat

ones from

obscure

are also now accessible

which has given rise to a renewed

throughout

interest

about previously regionalJapanese foods. Because everything is available everywhere

in this day and

age, Japan:The Cookbookis not an examination cooking

traditions,

Japan's

culinary

as much as a curated

framework

of "regional"

experience

of

from a specific moment

Using both fine and generous what I hope is a broad

Japan,

and excitement

strokes,

in time.

I have put together

and rich picture

of the food of this

island nation. I immediately

split up the country

I know and admire regarding

sharing

Part of my request

was to meet with local grandmothers home cooking.

In fact, the only grandmas

cook for me did so as a great favor. Cooking else takes tremendous

energy.

Nonetheless,

and opportunity

with the Japanese

countrywomen

food and everything and live inJapan. Friendship

. Those hours

life.

can come on the first meeting.

one and a half years visiting each chosen photos

spent letting

of how we work

trust need to be forged.

or three times before

returning

I spent

area at least two

with my photographer.

in this volume

are a true record

The of the

as it is today , and for that, a treasure.

Mostly, the Japanese the prospect

I talked to shook their heads at

of capturing

all of Japanese

food between

two

covers. The obstacles

to such an endeavor

are many, one

being that the origins

of classic Japanese

food came from

the upper regional food,"

for

as we talked about

is the foundation

No request

and mutual

atmospheric

for someone I was grateful

else gave the whole project

relationships

who did

I had to sit and drink tea

down our hair and those guffaws traded Building

only

whom I met had the energy or desire to

cook for me to record.

any information

to

While the chefs were

in the course of two years of research,

a few grandmothers

country

them

their local foods with me for this book.

learn about the regional enthusiastic,

into areas where

chefs, and began to contact

classes and were without roots.

This homogeneity

spawned

from eateries

immediately

visible

also extends

to "town

of urban

areas such as Tokyo,

Osaka , and Kyoto . Historically,

rural Japan

on a subsistence

local foods exist today, but

generally

level. Certainly

there is less regional

I took another traditional generated

IO

t;t [;

variety than one would expect.

look at all of the material

from chefs, local grandmothers, food and decided

lived and ate

I had gathered

and artisanal to concentrate

makers of on the dishes

from two of the most gifted Japanese

ell) t:

INTRO

D UC TI O N

home

cooks whom I had ever met: Harumi Watanabe.

Their

countrywide

shared

and 1980s. sensitivity

food represents

Kawaguchi

and Teiko

the local as well as the

aspects of Japanese

Both cooks approach

food of the 1970s

food with a clarity and

that is often missing

inJapanese

home cooking

these days. After World War II, Japan of severe food shortages

gradually

dug out of a period

and overall deprivation

the legacy of war and trade embargos.

that was

In the 1960s city

dwellers were already eating a wide range of foods, including native Japanese

as well as Western

the 197osJapanese

and Chinese

home cooking

of luxuriousness,

thanks to the availability

and the prosperity

dishes.

By

had taken on an aspect of ingredients

at the time. The food in this book is

from that time and thus reflects clear, elegant flavors and beautiful

colors.

The food of the 1970s and 1980s does not appear and exists only in out-of-print who was working a discerning

interesting-looking,

delicious

made the material assistant,

more alive and accessible.

recorded.

Somewhere

recipes

and began reading

From that point,

a wealth of material

in the form of out-of-print

opened

and Japanese

Kawaguchi,

ryori) restaurant

a Zen nun whom I have

When I first met her, she was cooking

every other weekend

at Shisuian,

food (shojin

a temple

in our town. Kawaguchi's

yet full of flavor from seasonal she shared

is from before

temple

food. Her "recipes"

she became

were ingredient

permission,

from these sketches, about Japanese encountered.

The yet

as does her lists without

I reconstructed

and became

food and this body of material

as well as the harmonious The enthusiastic grandmothers,

nature

that I newly

I became

my assistant

even more

of many dishes,

flavors and elegance

tasters-my

school students

of the food.

and their

Ryoko, and son Andrew-all

The food is delicious

i;tt;.l6i:

recipes

even more passionate

As I tested the recipes,

excited by the vegetable-centric

rr

a nun,

and a bare sketch of how to put each dish together.

With Kawaguchi's

agreed:

food

ingredients.

the food has that same purity and mindfulness amounts

books

of the recipes in this book reflect the

of Harumi

known for decades.

temple

methods.

up for me

about local foodways.

A large portion

material

listening

the Japanese

cookbooks

of

from the methods

along the line, I stopped

to the recordings

is gentle,

My

Ryoko Ozawa, made audio recordings

and I set about writing

writings

two books

The fact that I knew the

the books,

written

foods.

two books as acceptable-the

I also felt were the most inspiring. authors

this book, has

so I asked him to mark various books

only deemed

Japanese

online

My son Andrew,

for me while I was writing

palate,

when he spotted Andrew

books.

INTRODUCTION

and special.

My other

mentor

formidable,

in food was Teiko Watanabe , a

yet kind octogenarian

in northeasternJapan. Oigen

Ironworks

semiannual

from Iwate prefecture

I had become

close to the people

there and was invited

food event : "Food,

the main attraction. notes of her cooking.

to their

Food, " where Watanabe

I have copious

photos,

I also realized

was one that my son Andrew

periodically

that her published

had designated

staff and she gave me complete

to her material.

I translated

heart and integrity I made the recipes Many people

excellent

unfettered

approach

for

my own to share here. mother-in-law

to cook Jap anese food . This is not true.

all of my life . My husband,

when I first arrived

I left the Japanese

cooking

Tadaaki,

bride,"

in Japan

I have is an

food

from America

to him , except Japanese

salads . Once we renovated the "resident

the

and less sweet palate,

cook , so other than a foray into temple

cooking

the access

recipes . Adjusting

assume I learned

from my Japanese been cooking

book

as interesting

thi s to English , keeping

of the Japanese

a slightly more modern

was

video clips , and

and worthy of att e ntion . I cont a cted Teiko through Oigen

at

my in-laws'

farmhou

in 1988, - flavored

se, I became

and took over the mak ing of tempura

(I like it hot and crispy) and kenchinjiru (page 171), the country soup we make before

the New Year when friends

mochi [glutinous

help pound

rice]. Writing

always been my life 's ambition the begining became

of our marriage

come to

cookbooks

had

; I have taught cooking

since

to achieve that goal. I also

active in Slow Food and, along with my husband

put great effort into preserving

,

and reviving the foodways

of our local area . I had first looked

at the Japanese

food in

our family as "Tadaaki's

food."

Over the decades , Japanese

recipes were transmitted

to me orally and I faithfully

recorded

the heart and spirit of the dishes before writing the recipes and then testing them. Proportions

and amounts

be based on logic, and that logic is generated cooking

needed

experience.

Like everywhere , modern-d ence foods and instant myselfinJapanese traditional

cuisine

rely on conveni-

. Part of why I immerse

is to advocate for a look back at

foods and artisanal

ingredients

ay Japanese

preparations

yet been lost. Chefs around

ingredients

that have not

the world are using Japanese

and flavor concepts , though

sometimes

do not have access to the finest quality ingredients. important versions process Japanese

to put great effort into finding of any of the key ingredients, of getting

Well-made

ingredients

ti [; ol6t:

I N TROD

Sourcing

learning

top

curve

will be excellent

Once a sense of how to use

the ingredi e nts and how they interact

12

It is

especially while in the

at least in the initial

in and of themselves.

they

the best possible

a sense of how to use them.

ingredients,

time, is essential. teachers

to

from years of

UC TION

with each other is

achieved,

it is important

mid, or low-and mirin will overpower mirin will interact

a quality level-high,

low-quality

high-quality

soy sauce, while low-quality

perfectly. is a mnemonic

Sa-shi-su-se-so

ingredients

to maintain

stick to that. For instance,

of Japanese

for the main flavoring Sa=sato [sugar or mirin],

cuisine:

shi=shio [salt], su=su [vinegar],

se=seu the archaic

reading

of sh'!)lu [soy sauce], and so=miso. These are the only essential

I suggest putting

ingredients.

level that integrates There

are a few other

that appear sesame:

important

throughout

most important

some time into getting

the

best with the other ingredients.

secondary

primarily

seasoning

this book. Without flavoring

ingredients

question,

the is

after sa-shi-su-se-so

seeds and oils , but also sesame pastes.

It is ideal to find white and black sesame seeds, and , if possible,

gold . Gold sesame is the most common

variety in Japan most people

and is used to produce local organic

sesame,

as a top roaster.

Wadaman

best sesame roaster Wadaman

plum"

sesame seeds as expertly

Sesame in Osaka is perhaps

in the world,

and certainly

sesame is worth seeking

I have also become in English,

like coffee. We

but there is no possible

way for me to roast my local organic

Japan.

the sesame oil that

use. Sesame seeds are roasted

have excellent

seed

the

the best in

out.

obsessed with ume . Called

"sour

ume is actually part of the apricot

family.

The fruit is picked while still green , then brined

for a couple

weeks until the sun comes out. After sun-drying

for three

with red shiso leaves), the velvety soft, salty-

days (sometimes

sour umeboshi [dried

sour "plum"]

for one year before

using,

was soaked before

sun-drying

called umesu [labeled

is packed away to mellow

and the brine

in which the ume

is used as a vinegar

alternative

as plum vinegar].

My local

in English

soy sauce, miso , tofu, and pickle company, also has a contract organic them.

farmer

in the hills near us who produces

umeboshi, ume paste, umesu, and red shiso powder

for

I make my own umeboshi and they are some of the best

I have ever tasted.

But the vibrant

Masanori

makes is stunning

Yoshida

ume paste and umesu that in comparison,

notes of sour, salt, and fruit to steamed such as daikon and turnip.

vegetables

umesu is put through it is bright

a centrifuge

and compelling

red shiso is dipped being pulverized I became certainly

The naturally

cloudy

to clarify , so

(even by the spoonful).

in umesu and sun-dried

And the

three times before

and added to top-quality

more and more interested

and add

white fish or root

by Yoshida

seaweed and dried fish as I traveled

Japanese

sea salt.

in exploring

around

Japan.

Although

a special treat in the spring when freshly harvested ,

reconstituted

dried sea greens are still absolutely

I buy the dried sea greens in the summer wives association

13

YamakiJozo,

(;I: (.; 6"J(;::

in Tanohata

INTRO

Village of northern

DUCT

ION

delicious.

from the fishermen's Iwate

prefecture,

and I keep a stash of them in my larder for use

throughout the year. There are quite a few recipes in this book with daikon, burdock,

lotus root, taro root, komatsuna (Japanese

napa cabbage ( Chinese

mustard],

leaf), and shiitake, which may not all

be easy to find. By all means substitute

similar vegetables,

mushrooms, sea greens, or fruits for any that are not readily available. There is no obligation to use every ingredient. Many of the recipes contain a number of vegetables to add complexity and also color and texture. Just be aware of how the dish will be affected and make the decision with confidence

and a clear heart. There have been countless

times that I skipped an ingredient

or two or substituted

without impunity. Use a lighter hand with the seasoningless is more with Japanese food . Though

usually best when freshly made, any dish can

appear at different are written

meals throughout

the day. These recipes

for four and six people . They are written with

a baseline

flavor in mind-if

is desired,

adjust accordingly.

more salt, sweet, sour, or spicy

I believe the unique approach to Japanese food and the recipes in this book have been replaced with quicker, more convenient

foods or cooking methods.

more traditional overlooked.

I like to think this

way of eating and cooking is not lost-just

And it is my hope that the recipes in this volume

will speak to home cooks inJapan and around as much as they have spoken to me.

14

ti [;