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January 05, 2025
 

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Elizabeth Andoh
Japan's traditional New Year cuisine has a long history, though modern developments have led to slight changes in the way things work.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Dec 22, 2024
A brief history of ‘osechi ryōri,' Japan's edible tradition for the new year
In addition to wordplay, color and shape often determine the reason why certain foods are part of Japan’s New Year holiday menu.
In Japan, these sweet morsels are a traditional New Year's treat, but they share a surprising overlap with American Thanksgiving flavors, too.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Nov 10, 2024
The winter sweet that matches perfectly with autumn
If I’m in America for Thanksgiving, I’ll serve "kuri kinton" (syrup-stewed chestnuts in sweet potato paste) as a festive accompaniment to the holiday turkey.
From mid-August through late September, eggplants reach their height of flavor in Japan.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Sep 1, 2024
Japan’s autumn eggplant: Too delicious for your daughter-in-law
In Japan, autumn eggplant has become a shorthand symbol for keeping the most pleasurable things in life to yourself.
Sardines may not be the traditional choice for Japan's special midsummer eel-eating day, but with a few special touches, the fish can be a satisfying and sustainable replacement.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Jul 21, 2024
Going eel-less for Japan’s midsummer tradition
Japanese eel is endangered, but sardines are an ethical — and delicious — substitute for this year’s double Doyo no Ushi no Hi.
This is the dish that hooked me on the traditional Japanese ways of the "washoku" kitchen.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
May 26, 2024
Land and sea come together in traditional kitchen staple
For a dish of ingredients that display such culinary affinity, the Japanese have a go-to phrase: "aishō ga yoroshii" (good compatibility).
During cherry blossom season, lunchtime thoughts turn to outdoor picnicking, and savory sakura-flavored rice bundles are the perfect choice.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Mar 23, 2024
Cherry blossoms are just as beautiful on a plate as a branch
With Tokyo’s cherry blossom season imminent, the tree takes center stage in sweet and savory dishes alike.
'Oden' may not be an iconic dish outside Japan, but during winter, there's nothing Japanese diners love more.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Jan 28, 2024
In a Japanese winter, homemade ‘oden’ warms the body and soul
In poll after poll, this warming assortment of slowly simmered foods is the top-ranking comfort food for blustery winter nights.
A squeeze of fresh "sudachi" citrus is the final element in this earthy, warming dish perfect for cooler temperatures.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Nov 19, 2023
Here’s the tea on traditional dobin teapot-steamed mushrooms
Dobin mushi pairs well with meat, fish, tofu, omelets and other vegetables. You can also serve dobin mushi in lieu of soup at any meal.
Edamame are perhaps best known as a beer snack, but they can turn into a versatile topping for desserts and tofu alike.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 17, 2023
Sweet or savory, edamame 'zunda' is a soybean revelation
Today, a whopping 66,000 tons of edamame are domestically grown and consumed annually.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Jul 16, 2023
I scream, you scream, we all scream — for amazake aisu
Today, amazake is commonly made by combining warm, cooked rice with kōji, Japan’s magical mold.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
May 21, 2023
Any way you slice it, burdock root stir-fry hits the spot
Named after a folk hero, this dish frequently appears tucked into bento, as a side on family dinner tables and on the menu at pubs and other casual eateries.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Mar 26, 2023
Springtime sawara: Fresh fish, sweet sauce and a perfect sear
Don't settle for storebought teriyaki when you can perfect your own without too much trouble.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 22, 2023
Celebrate Setsubun with a dish of demon-ousting beans
Don't believe in soybeans' exorcising qualities? Maybe this recipe will convince you of their culinary merit instead.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Oct 30, 2022
The Ichimatsu motif: Cooking for both flavor and fortune
There's more than meets the eye for foods cooked with this distinctive checkerboard pattern.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Aug 28, 2022
Harnessing togi-jiru, Japanese cuisine's secret weapon
Every time you pour rinse water down the drain, you might be discarding a way to elevate every Japanese dish in your cookbook.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Jun 26, 2022
Tsukudani: Simmer your way to rice's best friend
Hundreds of years after it first gained popularity, tsukudani remain a mealtime favorite across Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
May 1, 2022
Brush up on your bento basics
Spring has more than sprung, making these eye-catching bento the perfect addition to your next warm-weather picnic.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Feb 26, 2022
Chirashi-zushi: The go-to dish for any holiday bash
Thanks to its flexibility as a main dish, scattered-style sushi is often a favorite at parties where you don't know how many people might show up.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Dec 26, 2021
Liven your year-end spread with the 'three friends of winter': pine, bamboo and plum
'Nishime' is a favorite dish among the Japanese during the year-end holidays, and this recipe will help ensure your spread makes the cut.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / Washoku Essentials
Oct 23, 2021
Why the land-and-sea mindset is so important for Japanese meals
Chefs have consciously included ingredients from both land and sea in the same washoku meal for centuries. What makes the practice so enduring, and how can you use it in your own kitchen?
The real-life violence that inspired South Korea's 'Squid Game'
Riot police march in front of the main building of Ssangyong Motor in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, on Aug. 6, 2009.
Japan’s ‘quiet revolution’ of luxury travel nears fruition
Scheduled to welcome its first guests in early 2025, the Waldorf Astoria Osaka is just one of many luxury hotel openings Japan has seen in recent months.
Japanese chip industry poised for a comeback
An attendee looks at a prototype of a 2-nanometer gate-all-around wafer produced by Rapidus and International Business Machines Corp. at the Semicon Japan exhibition in Tokyo in December.
Three people found dead in Kobe home
Two people who were found Thursday in their relative's home in the city of Kobe had sustained wounds like they had been beaten.
Nippon Steel rejection shows national security means whatever you want
An entrance sign for Nippon Steel's East Nippon Works Kashima Area facility is pictured in Kashima, Ibaraki Prefecture, last month.
Traveling for sake's sake: The emergence of brewery tourism in Japan
Tonoike Sake Brewery has been gearing their brewery toward tourism since the late 1980s, attempting to lure tourists to the town of Mashiko.
Guitarist Marty Friedman goes to bat for J-pop in new autobiography
One of the themes in American guitarist Marty Friedman’s autobiography “Dreaming Japanese” is that while he has become a star in his own right in Japan, he still feels that he doesn’t “belong.”
Sumo’s brotherhood gets latest inductee
Chugo Saito at Isenoumi stable on Friday. Saito has joined his older brother, Seigo, at the stable.
A year after a deadly earthquake, Noto Peninsula still faces long road to recovery
Photos taken from the same place but at different times in the Noto Peninsula towns of Wajima (left) and Suzu illustrate the progress made following the devastating earthquake that hit these areas of Ishikawa Prefecture on Jan. 1, 2024.
Japan’s go-slow approach to selling high-speed rail globally
At 60, the shinkansen has been mostly stuck in Japan, with only one system ever sold overseas.

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