Photo: Digipub/Moment/Getty Images It’s not what you might have guessed My dad brought up the question at the dinner table: “What do you think is the most consumed vegetable in Japan?” My sister chimed in: “Onions? Or potatoes maybe?” “I think it could be cabbage. They use them in salads all the time.” “Do soybeans […]
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Don’t Forget to Eat Your Sea Vegetables
Illustrations: Kaki Okumura A friendly introduction to adding Japanese sea vegetables into your diet I sometimes forget that not a lot of people were raised like me, eating sea vegetables. To some, the idea of using seaweed in food can seem intimidating, foreign, and frankly sometimes unappealing. I first made this realization when I was […]
The Psychology Behind Why Japanese People Are So Healthy
Visit a McDonald’s in Japan and you’ll understand why Whenever I talk to someone who has visited Japan, an ex-pat who has lived there or a tourist just passing by, they will more often than not mention something about the fast-food chains there. “If they tried to pull the same stunt in the United States, […]
How To Make A Healthier Version of Your Favorite Sweet Asian Sauces
Finessing The Foundation to Japanese Seasoning I was making dinner that night, and so I went into the living room to ask my roommate if she wanted me to make enough for her as well. I was thinking teriyaki salmon, with a side of steamed vegetables, rice, and maybe some miso soup. I hadn’t been […]
Rethinking Food As Nature, Not Diet Science: Japanese Shoku-Iku
What is Shoku-iku? Shoku-iku refers to food and nutrition education in Japan, but it is quite different from the food education you might receive in the United States or other western nations. While western eating guidelines tend to focus on diet science–technical calculations on when to eat, how to eat, and what not to eat–, […]
