Japanese cuisine is known around the world for its distinctive taste and appearance. Esthetically pleasing displays of the varied dishes are considered just as important as the food itself. The mood of the season can often be felt in the dishes, and they should give a sense of visual satisfaction. Each Japanese dish is artfully arranged in individual bowls, plates, and/or dishes for each person. Often, all courses are presented at one time and eaten in no particular order.

Japan is surrounded by the sea, and consists principally of four main islands. Her total size, location, and population, all combine to demand that much of the people’s food come from the ocean, and her world roving fishing fleets supply that need admirably. It is esti-mated that the average Japanese consumes 70 lbs. (31.7kg.) of seafood a year. Among the various methods of fish preparation, the most popular are to fry, or present them raw, as in sashimi or sushi. Perhaps sushi, bite-size pieces of fresh fish pressed onto a ball of vinegared rice, and tempura, shrimp and vegetables coated with an egg batter and deep-fried, are best known to Westerners. Meat dishes were introduced in the last century as a new “Western cuisine.”

Japanese culinary tradition has been much influenced by that of Korea and China. Bud-dhism arrived via Korea in the 6th century, and the eating of meat was discouraged. Chop-sticks and soy sauce came from China in the 8th century. The introduction to Japan of Zen Buddhism in the 13th century held as one of its tenets strict adherence to vegetarianism, and the consumption of meat was banned until about a hundred years ago. During the course of her long history, nearly every part of Japan developed its own delightful regional food specialties, and the people became skilled in preparing a number of beef dishes. Sukiyaki is one of the most widely enjoyed of such distinctive Japanese dishes. Today, Japanese restaurants are spreading throughout the United States, and the rest of the world. In spite of the fact that many people enjoy Japanese foods, they may be reluctant to try making them at home. Perhaps it is because they lack the knowledge and skills necessary, or feel hinderd by the limited availability of ingredients. Japanese cooking doesn’t have to be a complicated task. There are many one-pot dishes, cooked at the table somewhat like fondue and these tend to create an intimate and cozy setting. Preparation orderly beforehand at the table of utensils and ingredients leaves you time to enjoy your company, rather than being stuck in the kitchen. With that idea in mind, emphasis throughout this book has been placed upon easy and efficient preparation of different dishes, along with serving sugges-tions and appropriate table etiquette where applicable. For the favorite dishes of SHABU-SHABU, SUKIYAKI, TEMPURA, TEPPAN-YAKI, and TERIYAKI the necessary ingre-dients are available either at large supermarkets, or oriental grocery stores. Also, we’ve listed as many substitutes as possible. To make these dishes enjoyable for everyone, each of the recipes has as many process pictures shown as possible, so that the directions can be followed easily, rather than having to depend entirely on written instructions. You can be assured of consistently good results. The following are explanations of the above mentioned dishes:

SHABU-SHABU: A dish consisting of paper thin sliced meat cooked in a stock with vege-tables. Good quality meat is essential, and as it is thinly sliced, it takes only a few seconds to cook. Shabu-shabu is supposed to represent the sound of the simmering cooking stock being swished back and forth by a piece of meat which is held by chopsticks. The meat and vegetables are cooked according to the “drop-and-retrieve” method to the diners taste and dipping sauces are provided.
SUKIYAKI: This is one of Japan’s best known dishes. It is somewhat similar to Shabu-shabu, but the main difference is in the cooking sauce. Sukiyaki is thinly sliced beef, generally sirloin tip, which is cooked in a broth of dashi stock (See p. 76), sake or mirin (Japanese sweet cooking wine), and/or sugar, with tofu and other vegetables. All diners serve themselves by taking what they want from the shallow, simmering cast-iron pan, and then dipping it into a bowl of beaten raw egg, which adds to the taste, and also helps to cool the food avoiding a burnt tongue. You may skip the raw egg if you wish. Hot rice served separately is the standard accompaniment.
TEMPURA: Tempura was first introduced to Japan by the Portuguese in the 16th century. Tempura is shrimp or prawns coated in a light, delicate batter made with egg, ice water, all-purpose flour and deep fried. To eat first dip into a mixture of soy sauce, dashi stock and grated daikon radish, a touch of chili pepper or lemon juice may be added if required.
TEPPAN-YAKI: Tenderloin or sirloin steak and vegetables are diced and cooked on a smooth, hot grill. Since everything is eaten with chopsticks, the meat and vegetables are cut into bite-size pieces for cooking. A teppan-yaki restaurant is a Japanese steak house. The chef cooks the meal on a hot, stainless steel grill right in front of you. The presentation is unique. Since beef is relatively new in Japanese cooking, some people consider this style of cooking as “Western cuisine”.
TERIYAKI: The word teriyaki comes from ten (shiny or glazed), and yaki (grilled or broil-ed). The most popular meats, beef or chicken, are marinated in a mixture of soy sauce, sake, minin, and/or sugar, grated ginger root, and garlic, then cooked either in a skillet or on a grill.

The editors of Joie, Inc. and I hope that this book will help you to enjoy the food as much as we have.

Two of the amazingly good tasting and visually beautiful sushi dishes you can easily make right in your kitchen from products you can buy at your supermarket or at a Chinese grocery.
SUKIYAKI Page 34	TEMPURA Page 52