The History on my Japanese Dish - Research Paper Example

The History on my Japanese Dish (Food as History) 26 April (estimated word count = 677) The History on my Japanese DishIntroductionThe Japanese as a nation has been very unique, with its own set of cultural values as shown in its way of life, warrior code of bushido, extreme courtesy to one another, and other practices which set them apart from the other nearby cultures, like the Chinese or Koreans. It is manifested through their food and diet, in the tea ceremony and how food is prepared. It is the aim of this paper to illustrate how so much history is embedded in a simple Japanese dish.

An observant person can easily identify or associate certain foods with a particular culture, such as French fries or French rolls, bacons and hamburgers as uniquely American or English, pizza, spaghetti or pepperoni cheese as Italian and so it is with the Japanese, with their food.DiscussionHistory of chopsticks – Asian culinary culture and history is closely intertwined with the development and spread of chopsticks. These so-called sticks are actually two pieces that are about 9-10 inches in length and rectangular in shape, used to pick up small pieces of food.

These first originated in China some 5,000 years ago and most probably was invented by the people who first used branch twigs to pick out hot food from a pot, since they cannot wait any longer for cooked food to cool down a bit (must have been really hungry already!). Using the chopsticks requires a degree of manual dexterity, as food could easily fall off or slide down in the process of picking it up and putting it into the mouth. Eating using chopsticks means to eat from a bowl because it cannot possibly be used to handle soups, so the bowl makes it easier to just gulp down the soup or any liquid while using the chopsticks to scrape for solid tidbits.

Japanese chopsticks – the Japanese are an enterprising and innovative people. They are quick learners too, and adopted the chopsticks from the Chinese, like the Koreans and the other Asian nations or cultures such as the Vietnamese and Malaysians of Chinese descent. In Japan, their chopsticks are round in shape instead of rectangular, and the lower ends are now pointed or tapered instead of being flat or blunt. Chopsticks as used in Japan are associated in their religious ceremonies and the so-called fine art of dining, together with the tea ceremony.

Eating in Japan is not merely for the sake of eating to assuage hunger pangs but rather a very elaborate affair, designed to prolong the gustatory delight of savoring delicious food. Chinese chopsticks were like tweezers, as they were joined at the top but this reduces flexibility as it is being used. Japanese innovated by making them into two separate sticks and made them out of materials other than bamboo (the most common, being quite abundant and has no lingering taste or odor in it) such as animal bones, ivory, jade, coral or agate.

Precious metals were used also, like gold, silver or a cheaper metal like bronze. Japanese chopsticks are lacquered. History of sushi – this is one unique Japanese food, together with sashimi. Sushi is a dish made out fresh raw fish wrapped inside a sticky rice paste while sashimi is also raw fish but served with soy sauce instead. Japanese cuisine is strongly influenced by the religions of the country, which are Buddhism and Shintoism. Being Buddhists made Japanese eschew any meat and so fish was once a large part of their diet in compliance with religion.

The Japanese became strictly vegetarians for several centuries with the introduction of Buddhism. ConclusionOther Japanese foods which are distinct from other countries include ramen (instant noodles), soba (thin brown noodles) and udon (thick white noodles). Green tea is the favorite beverage, together with sake (strong wine from fermented rice). The essence of their cuisine is explained by its cultural context, as an expression of national identity (Ashkenazi & Jacob 188) and eating is considered both a ritual and a form of art in terms of its aesthetic value.

Work CitedAshkenazi, Michael and Jeanne Jacob. The Essence of Japanese Cuisine: An Essay on Food and Culture. Philadelphia, PA, USA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2000. Print.