Japanese Art
History of sushi.
There is hardly a person alive today who is not familiar with Japanese sushi. Even though it has only been over the past 20 years that sushi has gained great popularity in the West, sushi in Japan is a traditional food which dates back over 1,000 years and is believed to have developed in Asia as a way of preserving fish. The fresh, raw fish was pressed between a mixture of rice and salt over a period of several months. As the rice fermented, lactic acid was produced which pickled the fish and kept it from spoiling. It is believed that this way of preserving fish was introduced to Japan from Asia at the same time that rice cultivation was introduced. The first evidence of sushi in Japan dates back to the Lake Biwa area in Shiga Prefecture where it was made from local carp. This sushi, called nare-zushi was fermented for about 2 months.
Traditionally the fish was eaten, however the rice was discarded until about the 15th century in Japan when it was decided that the rice was too precious to waste. This was the beginning of a kind of sushi that is still popular in Osaka called hako-zushi or “boxed sushi”. However, it wasn't until the Edo Period (1603-1868) when sushi as we know it today was first developed. In 1824, Yohei Hanaya started the practice of serving fresh raw slices of seafood on bases of vinegared rice at his food stall located in the popular Ryougoku district of Edo (present day Tokyo).
Over the years, sushi stalls sprung up all over Tokyo, however they were banned after World War II by the Allied Occupation due to sanitary concerns. Gradually, these stalls gave way to the counter type Sushi restaurants that today have come to typify the sushi experience worldwide.
Hibachi
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In North America, the term "hibachi" is used to refer to a small cooking stove heated by charcoal (actually called shichirin in Japanese), or to an iron hot plate (teppan) used in Teppanyaki restaurants. Although the word is Japanese and the device is strongly associated with Japan, the hibachi originated in China as a type of portable charcoal brazier used to heat the homes of the nobility. Early hibachis were made from dug-out cypress wood lined with clay. Traditional hibachis can be very attractive objects in themselves and are today sometimes sold as antiques. They were originally used mainly by the samurai classes and aristocrats but gradually spread among ordinary people. It is a flat surface of heat, to be more specific. |
Sushi
Why do we love food?
This is due to a few, but very similar reasons:-
- It tastes exceptional
- It keeps your body going
- Its a reason to socialise
- It keeps the economy going
- Gave rise to food fights
神戸ビーフ Kōbe Bīfu
The Wagyu cattle that produce the highly prized meat were introduced into Japan in the second century as work animals, used in rice cultivation. The mountainous topography of the islands of Japan resulted in small regions of isolated breeding, yielding herds that developed and maintained qualities in their meat that differ significantly from all other breeds of cattle. Resulting herd isolation and the distinctive feeding techniques put in place because of the limited land availability have lead to distinguishing features that make the meat both superior in marbling and in the ratios of unsaturated versus saturated fats.- Why is food great?
- Kobe Beef