Cooking Japanese – Here’s How

Cooking Japanese: These spices should not be missing

Spices also play an important role in Japanese cuisine in order to create a unique taste experience. However, the ingredients differ from the European spices known to us. At first glance, the Japanese ingredients seem a bit unfamiliar, but they are a must for cooking Japanese.

• Mirin is a rice wine that is only used for cooking, it is not drunk. At 13 to 22 percent, it has an alcohol content that is quite high for wine, but this disappears when it is cooked.
• With Shiso you ensure that your dish gets a peppery-lemon aftertaste. The leaves are usually not chopped up but added to your food whole or in slices.
• Shoyu, the well-known soy sauce, should not be missing in any Japanese kitchen! This tastes not only with sushi but is part of many recipes. However, you should make sure to buy a Japanese soy sauce! The Chinese are sweeter in taste.
• Anko finds its use more commonly in sweet dishes. This is a sweet red bean paste made by cooking azuki beans with honey or sugar. This is used like marzipan.
• Kuzuko (also called kudzu powder) is a healthier version of the cornstarch known here. It is an arrowroot flour and is used to thicken sauces. The sauces remain colorless.
• Katsuobushi (also known as bonito flakes) consists of smoked bonito fish that is dried over a long period of time and then sliced. You can use the resulting “flakes” as a topping for various Japanese dishes, or to cook an aromatic fish broth.
• Dashi is a fish broth used to cook many Japanese dishes (e.g. soba). In this country, you can get them in the form of granules in Asian shops or on the Internet.

Typical vegetable for Japanese cuisine

When you cook Japanese, the types of vegetables used play an important role in addition to the spices. Here, too, you can find most of the ingredients in Asian shops or during the Asian Action Week in your supermarket.

• Ginger gives your dish a slightly spicy note. The bulbous plant is either grated or cut, boiled, or pickled. The ingredient is used in both main dishes and desserts.
• Hakusai is a type of Chinese cabbage and is eaten throughout Japan. Withstanding winter weather conditions, it is a popular winter vegetable and is pickled or boiled.
• Gobo is a root vegetable that has long been used medicinally. Today it is used in soups or to make tea. You can also conjure up a tasty sauce with sake or fish.
• Enoki is a type of mushroom that is eaten in both salads and soups. Depending on your taste, you can serve the mushrooms raw, fried, or boiled.
• Daikon is a Japanese, mild variant of the radish. You can eat winter radish raw or cooked! In addition, Daikon also tastes fried, roasted, or steamed.
• The root of the lotus flower is called renkon. It is also used in Japanese cuisine, where it is pickled or used in salads. For a long time, the hard, crunchy vegetable was considered a symbol of Buddhism and was eaten at the New Year festival.

Typical Japanese dishes

Japanese cuisine has all sorts of subtleties to offer. We present a three-course menu that is guaranteed to make your mouth water! We will also name other dishes that are typical of Japanese cuisine.

• As a starter, the Japanese like to eat filled dumplings, the so-called “gyoza”. The delicacy originally comes from China but was transformed into its own variant in Japan. These are filled with minced meat and/or vegetables, as you like. Soy or gyoza sauce goes well with it.
• For the main course, the Japanese like to have Japanese curry, the so-called “kare”. It has a thick consistency and can be both mild and spicy in taste. Rice or the traditional udon noodles go well with this.
• “Dango” are balls made from rice flour and water, which are often eaten for dessert. The candy is available in different colors and flavors. In Japan, you can find the specialty in supermarkets or in shops specializing in dangos.
• Other dishes you should definitely try include soba, udon, don, tempura, nabemono, sukiyaki, tonkatsu, and omuraisu.