A new Japanese restaurant has just opened in Clonmel. It’s good to welcome new businesses but I get even more excited when they are offering something new. Now I have no intention of attempting to explain Japanese food in one newspaper column. First of all I wouldn’t have the knowledge and secondly, like any nation that has a rich food culture, the subject is far too wide and varied to capture properly. However I have been to Japan several times and my food experiences have always been good. I’ve learned a little more each time and I can honestly say it is a country of unique flavours and distinctive cuisine. I was so impressed with their Wagyu beef, I even brought it home with me to breed and Whelan Wagyu will be available very shortly.
The first thing to know about Japanese food is that it’s not “just sushi”. I can confirm that the entire Japanese nation does not survive on little packets of rice and raw fish flavoured with vinegar, even if they are delicious. The truth is that the Japanese eat very well and the traditional Japanese diet has always been considered a contributing factor to the general longevity enjoyed there. I believe their secret is that they have learned to balance meat, fish and vegetarian cuisine much better than we do here in the west. There are two other distinctions in Japan that I always marvel at. First of all if you think I am crazy about local food or that the French country people are big on farm gate and territory then the Japanese outdo us all. Local food is very important in Japan. And it’s not just about being local, it is also about quality and how it is produced. The other thing that stood out for me is the way they present food on a plate. The aesthetic is of the utmost importance and at the start of a meal it is considered polite to comment on how good the food looks on the plate or the artistry of the chef before you tuck in. This precise and sometimes elaborate food arranging even comes down to simple things like a lunch box. In Japan they are fond of a food arrangement commonly known as ‘Bento’. It is a tremendous insult to Bento to describe it as what we know as a TV dinner, but I use it to give you a visual as the general layout is not too far off the mark; each food in its own little compartment or section. However the actual food is a thousand times better. Bento traditionally consists of rice, fish or meat and one or more vegetable. While shop bought Bento boxes can be elaborately arranged even home prepared Bento is carefully placed. I like the idea that time is taken to make a meal look good, even if it is just a packed lunch. As humans we eat with our eyes as much as our mouths.
So if it is not all about sushi then what is the basis of Japanese food? It would be easy to list a few dishes but that would be very unfair. It would be like saying that Irish food is just Lamb stew and bacon and cabbage. I feel it will give you more of an overview if we look at some of the commonly used ingredients.
There’s no doubt about it but Japanese cuisine is largely based on rice; white or brown. Noodles are also common but more in modern Japanese cooking. Soy sauce is important, but there is a difference between Chinese Soy and Japanese Soy. Seaweed, several different varieties, is widely used (well they are an island nation) and Miso is a very common Japanese seasoning. There are many varieties of miso and it is used widely for sauces and spreads, as a meat and or vegetable seasoning and for adding to soup stock. The taste of miso has been described as salty, sweet, earthy, fruity, and savoury! Sake is a sweet sherry like drink that is also used as a common ingredient and Mirin is an alcohol made from rice but used exclusively in cooking. Rice vinegar is also common. While many people here might attempt to substitute white wine vinegar for rice vinegar in a recipe, the latter is milder and sweeter and so to achieve an authentic taste it is vital. By the same token a lovely Japanese girl explained that Sushi Vinegar is just rice vinegar with added flavourings. Sesame seeds and sesame oil, particularly dark sesame oil, shitake mushrooms, fresh ginger, white radish and spring onions and also used widely. Tofu and tofu products figure largely and there are plenty of spices; seven ingredient red pepper powder, ground curry powder, mustard and wasabi sauce.
This is by no means an exhaustive list but if you take these basics and add meat or fish you can see a general pattern of great taste, great flavours and generally healthy food emerging. While many of the spices and the seaweeds are dried, the rest of the ingredients would be fresh and therefore nutritious and healthy. Even the traditional and much loved Japanese Tempura batter used for deep frying is considerably lighter than the usual heavier batter we are used to. Tempura dishes are commonly eaten in Japan and everything from meat, fish and vegetables are coated and deep fried.
As a potted version of Japanese food this is really quite a poor description of this rich, fresh and mainly natural food. Perhaps the main thing we can learn from the older Japanese is balance. They also respect their food, the people who cook it and they take time to eat it. There are many small but pleasant rituals attached to eating in Japan that remind them daily about gratitude and nourishment; we could certainly learn a thing or two there.
Now I have no doubt that some of that tradition, like every corner of the earth, is being gently eroded by the modern world and the Japanese are facing their own problems with overly processed foods, but the authentic food is still an intrinsically good and balanced diet. I haven’t been to the new restaurant yet but I’ll let you know how it compares to those in Japan when I do. I would also encourage you to try it for yourself and make sure you spread the word that Japanese food is not just sushi.
This post was written by me, Pat Whelan, owner of James Whelan Butchers and a passionate advocate of local artisan food. My family have been producing quality Irish Angus beef for generations using a traditional dry aging process. This tradition is one that I continue to practice at our abattoir on our family farm in Garrentemple, Clonmel. These posts aim to impart some of the wisdom to readers and help them get the best out of the meat they eat! Our meat is available online here! I welcome your feedback to [email protected]
We hope you enjoyed reading this post by Pat Whelan of James Whelan Butchers. Pat is a 5th generation butcher, cook book author and the director of James Whelan Butchers with shops in Clonmel, the Avoca Handweavers Rathcoole and Kilmacanogue, Dunnes Stores Cornelscourt, Rathmines and Swords in Dublin. Sign up to our newsletter for more updates from James Whelan Butchers
Tags: bento, foodie articles, James Whelan Butchers, Japanese, miso, Pat Whelan, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sushi, tempura batter, tofu, wagyu beef, wasabi
