I received two books on Japanese cooking for Christmas last week. They are very nice cookbooks with lots of colourful illustrations and easy to read instructions. Only thing is... I don't cook. My refrigeration is probably the most underused appliance in the apartment. On days of drought, you'd open the fridge to see only a can of coke and a bottle of ketchup inside. Perhaps I'll amuse myself by trying out a couple of recipes, but I doubt I'll be opening a sushi bar anytime soon. Here are some interesting facts that I got from browsing a few pages.1) Sushi was originally invented as a method of preservation. The fish is first salt-cured and then marinated in cooked rice and salt. This is a way of preserving fsh; the rice and salt was later discarded. I guess that's why the food purists eat only the salmon sashimi slices and conceal the rice during Sakae Sushi lunch buffets...
2) Each region in Japan produce their own versions of bento (packed lunch) using local produce or speciality foods, which are sold on the platforms of train stations. These are called ekiben (station bento). One famous ekiben is the Kama-meshi (nine local ingredients on top of tea rice in a pot) at Yokokawa station in Tokyo. Now imagine Ba-Chor noodles in Bedok MRT station or the Geylang beef Hor-Fun in Aljunied MRT station.
3) There are reputedly about 6,000 brands of sake (Japanese rice wine) produced by about 2,000 makers in Japan, ranging from mass-produced nationwide brands to smaller regional, exclusive names. Since each brand has a few different types, there are in total a bewildering 55,000 different kinds of sake sold in Japan. Staggering, considering that what Singapore has to offer is Tiger beer, plus our Yeo's packet drinks.
