I’m sure many of you are familiar with Japanese food. You have probably experienced sushi rolls and delicious ramen soup. You may have thought that these items were all there was to Japanese food. That would have been a very false assumption!
During this wonderful trip to Japan, we have had an opportunity to learn and experience why Japan ( Okinawa to be more specific) is classified as one of the Blue Zones. Blue Zones are areas where people live past one hundred years old due to several factors. Among these are a sense of purpose, getting outside to walk and move your body and the foods they consume. It makes perfect sense that the fuel we put into our mouths would create or destroy health. Several Japanese foods can help us live longer in a state of ease instead of disease and who wouldn’t want that?
First I will mention fermented and pickled foods. Every morning at breakfast the breakfast buffet includes a huge and varied array of pickled vegetables...pickled daikon, pickled cucumber, pickled beets, and many others. The Japanese know that pickled foods aid with digestion. The fermented foods are rich in probiotics, also promote gut health and aid with immunity. You may have had kombucha or sauerkraut, but there are many more fermented foods available here. Miso soup and umeboshi plums are always on the buffet. If you are feeling under the weather, a chopped up ume plum in a cup of green or twig tea will fix you right up. I never travel without my ume concentrate, a concentrated form of ume.
If I have overindulged, I put a dot of this thick paste into a hot glass of water, mix it up and drink it down. Pretty soon, I’m feeling much better.
Another type of food common to Japan is seaweed. You may have had nori on the outside of your sushi roll or wakame in your miso soup. In Japan, hijiki is a frequent element of the breakfast buffet. Seaweed has iodine to help with thyroid function, contains antioxidants and is a great source of vitamins and minerals.
Then there is the category of noodles. Whether it is thick udon noodles, buckwheat soba noodles or ramen noodles in a delicious broth, they are a staple food here in Japan. As it vegan it has been difficult to find broth that isn’t made with fish, chicken or beef broth, but we have discovered some vegan restaurants that offer delicious vegetable broth.
Next there are the unusual foods I have never seen before. The first one is okonomiyaki. We joined a long line to try this delicacy when the restaurant’s window boasted, “Vegan food.” This was the strangest concoction. On a grill in front of us, several cooks were making a pancake, topping it with bean sprouts and other veggies, topping that with noodles and then turning it over to crisp and then top with a kind of ketchupy barbecue sauce. Most customers opted for chicken, beef and cheese on theirs. It was surprisingly tasty.
A food creation that is common here is called Tamagoyaki. It is an egg omelette that is stuffed with rice and topped with ketchup and mayo.
Takoyaki is a flour mixture, mixed with onion, diced octopus and pickled ginger and poured into molds to cook. These balls can be found everywhere! Curry is found in many establishments here. It is like a brown gravy served with rice. We were able to try a vegan version and it was pretty good.
Japanese treats are an art here. Cookies with intricate designs, cream puffs, mochi stuffed with bean paste, monju cakes filled with pumpkin, green tea filling and many others, and I could go on and on. The basements of department stores are filled with booths with the most beautiful desserts I have ever seen. Unfortunately they were made of the eggs and milk and sugar I am trying to avoid.
Our trip to Japan has been a true culinary experience and a feast for our eyes and our other senses. I feel so fortunate to get to enjoy this amazing culture.
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