Fruits of the Mountain

~Blog post #3~

April 19, 2015

By: Brianna Serrano

Sushi. Digital image. Ashley Marketplace & Cafe. Ashley Marketplace, n.d. Web.

            When looking through a typical Japanese menu, you will have noticed how endless your variety of delicious foods is. Although your options reach infinity, traditional cooking is based off only a few key ingredients. Most meals are based on white rice, which is generally paired with miso soup. Besides the main ingredients, Japanese meals change according to season. The Japanese use a term called seasonality, and this is when meals are complemented with the “fruits of the mountain”, or the ingredients that are abundant depending on the season. For example, bamboo is used most during the springtime, whereas chestnuts are used during autumnal season. Though some foods vary due to seasonality, most traditional Japanese dishes include fish and vegetables. The fish is typically served raw, which is called sashimi. As for the vegetables, they are typically deep-fried in a batter called tempura. Typical traditional dishes include sashimi, tempura shrimp or vegetables, soba/udon noodles, and sushi, of course.

            Japan’s traditional cuisine is a result of its location. Being surrounded by water gives the Japanese abundant resources of seafood and vegetables. Japanese meals often give a purifying sensation because of the detoxing use of vegetables and water. Most of the meals aren’t as fattening as they are salty, which is because a lot of the preservatives used for the fish and vegetables are made with salt (JustHungry). One of the saltiest ingredients used in traditional cooking is soy sauce, where about 36% of 1 tbsp of soy sauce is primarily salt (Wikipedia). Soy sauce is a seasoning used in almost everything. It is used in much of East and Southeast Asian cuisine, but for the Japanese, soy sauce is typically served as a dip for sushi and sashimi. Personally, I find the taste to be a bit overwhelming, so I typically don’t associate my sushi with soy sauce, although soy sauce is an important ingredient.