In his preface, the author (whom Craig Claiborne calls "a sort of Renaissance man of Japanese and world gastronomy") discusses the essence of Japanese cooking, with its emphasis on simplicity, a balance of textures, colors, and flavors, seasonal freshness, and beauty of presentation. This cookbook is much more than an accumulation of recipes. Raw ingredients should be glistening fresh and of the best quality, and flavors, however elaborate, are built up from just two basic seasonings - dashi, an easily made, delicate stock, and shoyu, naturally brewed Japanese soy sauce. Actually, Japanese cooking is surprisingly simple. Yet enjoyment of Japanese cooking is still largely limited to an occasional night out at a Japanese restaurant, and for far too long it has been assumed that this food is difficult to make in one's own kitchen. Japanese food continues to grow in popularity in the United States.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |