A Warm Winter

         There are four seasons in Japan, winter, summer, autumn and spring. I really envy Japan because I've always wanted to see some snow. Unfortunately, this is impossible in the Philippines unless you live in a refrigerator.

           My friends who've experienced the winter season in other countries told me that it's freaking COLD. They said that it felt like their ears were going to fall off with just a flick of a finger. I wondered how the Japanese, in particular, are able to keep warm during the winter. There are three answers: hot springs, hot pot and kotatsu. Hot springs are widely appreciated by the Japanese, regardless of their age. There is an abundance of hot springs in Japan which are usually occupied during winters. Though hot springs help keep them warm, they also have a special dish to keep them full and warm at the same time.So what are hot pots? Hot pot is a Japanese cuisine that is eaten during the winter. It's soup that contains many simple ingredients. An example of this is sukiyaki. Sukiyaki is made up of thinly-sliced beef with noodles, mushrooms and vegetables. The Japanese eat hot pot on a kotatsu. The kotatsu is a desk that is layered with blankets it also has an electric heater under the table.

             Eating hot pot warms the Japanese during winters. It also warms their hearts because of the delicious flavors brought by the hot pot. Lastly, it binds a family by eating together and keeping each other warm.

Cuisines from the Land of the Rising Sun

            Sukiyaki, Ebi Tempura, Gyoza, or rice, which among them is the tastiest? It's a hard choice! I must say that they are all inexplicably delicious.

                

              The Japanese love RICE! They call rice in Japan as Gohan. Whenever I eat at a Japanese restaurant, I always check the consistency of the rice. It seems I have inherited their being finicky towards the rice they eat. This started when I first tasted real Japanese rice. The fluffy  texture made it seem like it would melt in my mouth. The consistency of the rice was heavenly. It was sticky and easy to chew, making it less trouble to eat. Rice isn't the only food that the Japanese can be proud of.

                 

              Sukiyaki is yet another scrumptious dish by the Japanese. This is a nabe dish or a hot pot dish. Sukiyaki is usually prepared in a hot pot on the table. This is usually eaten during winter to soothe the Japanese from the icy cold weather. This particular nabe is prepared with thinly sliced meat, vegetables, mushrooms, tofu and shirataki (konyaku noodles). The best Sukiyaki I have ever tasted, so far, is from Teriyaki Boy. Every  element of this dish complemented each other. The noodles are perfect and bouncy. It has great elasticity and is fun to eat. The soup is simple. It doesn't overpower any of the other ingredients. It only makes them more delicious. 

         The next dish, perhaps, is one of the most well-known Japanese dishes among the Filipinos. Yes, It's Ebi Tempura! This is a shrimp coated with tempura batter and is deep fried. There are different types of tempura but the most notorious one is Ebi Tempura. I love the crunchy exterior that makes it such a delectable dish. The element that makes the greatest impression for me from this dish is the sauce. It's a mixture of sweet and salty flavor at the same time. 

          Don't forget the Gyoza! Gyoza are dumplings with a filling usually made of minced vegetables and ground meat. Gyoza were introduced to Japan from China. In Japan, Gyoza are usually prepared by frying. The filling inside isn't the only element that makes this dish distinct from other dumplings. It also depends greatly on the wrapper. It can't be too thick or too thin. When it's too thick, the dumplings would taste floury and it will overpower the filling. When the wrapper is too thin, it would easily break. 

           Japanese cuisine is one of my favorite food. I love the balance and subtlety of the flavors and I love how their culture can be seen in their food. There are a lot of Japanese restaurants in the Philippines, but only some can really produce the taste of genuine Japanese food. Japanese food may not be the most popular dish in our country right now, but those who have tasted it will definitely crave for more. There are a lot more Japanese dishes I have yet to discover. I don't know which dish that I mentioned above would be the tastiest, but maybe I have yet to discover the tastiest Japanese dish.