Japanese cuisine is widely represented in our country by national restaurants, where you can taste and appreciate the authentic dishes of the Land of the Rising Sun. However, not everyone knows how to eat traditional Japanese food properly. All the intricacies of Japanese etiquette are in this review.
Osibori
This is a small wet towel, rolled up in a tube, which is brought to the guest before meals. It is necessary, according to Eastern philosophy, to absorb all negative emotions. Of course, you need to use it for its intended purpose – to wipe your hands during and after a meal. Do not wipe the corners of the lips, face and other parts of the body with a towel. After use, the towel should be placed to your left.
Sticks
Almost all dishes in Japan are eaten with chopsticks – hasi, and not learning how to use them is bad form. Before eating, you do not need to rub a stick on a stick, as European traditions say, in Japan this is not done.
It is not customary to prick food on hashi, so you have to practice thoroughly before visiting a real Japanese restaurant. The use of sticks perfectly trains hand motility and thereby improves mental abilities.
It is indecent to poke around with chopsticks, because everything that hashi touched should be eaten immediately. Therefore, choose a piece in advance with a glance.
Sticking chopsticks into food is a bad omen, this is done exclusively at funerals.
Putting the sticks should not be in a plate, but in a special stand – hasioki, this should be done with strictly sharp ends to the left.
Sticks cannot be pinched in a fist (a sign of aggression), pointing them at someone, waving them in the air, licking them, wiping them with a napkin, putting food on a stranger’s plate.
Soups and hot dishes
All liquid and hot dishes in special bowls or cups should be held in the left hand at chest level while eating. It is indecent to bring a bowl of food to your mouth.
If the dish is served in a lidded cup, it should be closed again after eating. And dishes on wide plates or stands should not be lifted or moved across the table.
Japanese soups are traditionally eaten in two stages: first, the liquid is drunk over the edge, and then the hard pieces are eaten with chopsticks. If a spoon is served with the soup, you need to eat with it. Ceramic spoons for Chinese first teeth are served.
Noodle soups are eaten in the opposite way: first with chopsticks – noodles, meat and other solid ingredients, and only then drink the broth directly from the bowl. Do not wrap the noodles on sticks, pick up the hasi pasta, put it in your mouth and suck it along its entire length. Don’t be afraid of squelching sounds – they are pretty decent in Japan.
Sushi and rolls
Sushi in Japan is any dish that uses rice and vinegar. Rolls are also sushi (sushi).
Sushi and sashimi are eaten exclusively with chopsticks. Biting off a piece of sushi or sashimi is, however, bad taste. They need to be put in the mouth whole or divided into smaller pieces on a plate. Nigiri sushi is allowed to be divided into rice and fish and eaten separately.
Rolls are allowed to be taken by hand, but only for men. Women still eat this dish with chopsticks.
Ordering more than three types of sushi at a time is not nice, since the Japanese believe that one should first enjoy some flavors and then proceed to others.
The first is sushi with white fish, then with red. This is done so that the taste of salmon or tuna does not interfere with the taste of perch or cod.
Soy sauce
Soy sauce is consumed in small quantities and poured into the bottom of the bowl. During the meal, you can always add a little more sauce from the common container. Dip nigiri sushi with the fish side and only a little so that the taste of the sauce does not overwhelm the taste of the fish. While eating, a bowl of sauce is held in the hand at chest level.
In general, the Japanese believe that seasonings are unnecessary and may look for the taste of the dish, so sauce, ginger, and wasabi are eaten in small quantities, unlike Europeans.
Ginger and wasabi
The Japanese never put ginger on food. They freshen their mouth between meals to “wash away” the previous taste. Of course, you need to take ginger with chopsticks.
Wasabi in traditional Japanese cuisine is added immediately during cooking: it is placed on rice under the fish. We serve it separately, as most European people do not like the too spicy taste of the sauce. Wasabi can be simply placed on a piece of food, or you can dissolve it in soy sauce.
If you’ve eaten too much wasabi, don’t try to suck in air with your mouth – you will only make it worse. Breathe deeply through your nose and the burning sensation will disappear.
Beverages
In Japan, it is customary to drink alcohol only with food. Sweet soda and cocktails don’t go well with seafood. It is customary to drink sushi with green tea, which improves digestion and is neutral enough not to interrupt the taste of food. White dry wine or beer is suitable as alcohol. Fruit cold sake varieties are matched to sushi.
During the meal, drinks are constantly poured, because an empty glass or cup is a sign of bad taste.