Japanese eating links to longevity

“Hara hachi bunme.” — This is a Confucian saying that teaches people to eat until they are 80 percent full.

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Rational thoughts on healthy eating and longevity raise the topic of the way the Japanese eat. Although it remains an intriguing fact to many, the Japanese are recognized to be among those who have longer life spans. National Geographic asserts that the remarkable longevity of Japanese citizens springs from a culture of temperance, low-fat and high-protein diet, small portions of food serving, and love of nature.

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With regard to healthy eating, a typical genuine Japanese meal is about one-half smaller than the size of an average Western meal. This generally consists of soy, vegetables, fish, and tea. Takako Sodei, a gerontology teacher at Ochanomizu University, explains to ABC News why the Japanese have long lives, and it has to do with their diet: “I think Japanese food is very good compared with United States … because we don't eat much meat, and we don't eat much sugar."

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Eating and preparing an authentic Japanese meal helps lose those extra pounds, prevent diseases, and ultimately contributes to longevity.

Get more ideas on how to eat healthy, the Japanese way, from this Men’s Health article.

JC Uni-tec’s website provides options on how to prepare healthy Japanese dishes at home.

REPOST: 10 Ways to Eat Healthily at the Japanese Restaurant

Are you planning to dine in a Japanese restaurant soon? Then better be guided by this MensHealth.com article that features what Japanese food to avoid and indulge in if you want to stay on the healthy side.

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According to a 2010 World Health Organization report, the Japanese have the highest life expectancy in the world. And that may be partly due to their diet, which traditionally consists of vegetables, rice, legumes, and fish. Another outstanding feature of the Japanese diet? Their ways of preparing foods: raw, boiled, steamed, and using a wok. That said, Americans have a way of perverting even the healthiest dishes, drowning them in sodium-packed soy sauce or serving elephant-sized portions. Eat Japanese food the way its originators intended with the 10 tips found in this slideshow [article].

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Miso Soup

Miso is made from fermented soybeans, which means that every bowl brings a wholesome serving of isoflavones. These powerful compounds have anticarcinogenic properties, and at least one study shows that they prevent your body from overproducing fat cells.

Edamame

Consisting of nothing but fresh soybeans, edamame makes a great start to your meal. Working them free from their pods keeps you from eating too quickly, and each bean provides a nourishing mix of protein, fiber, and omega-3 fats. Just ask for your bowl unsalted and add a small pinch at the table.

Noodle Soups

Soba noodles are thin buckwheat noodles, while udon are thick and wheat-based. Think of udon like normal spaghetti, while soba can save you calories and boost your fiber intake.

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Vegetable Tempura

Vegetable or not, this is still the Japanese version of deep-fried food, which makes it essentially the same as Southern staples like fried okra and onion rings. The batter might be slightly lighter than the American version we're used to, but with so many truly healthy items on the menu, why waste your calories on fat?

Sushi Roll Decoder

Cucumber Roll: 110 calories, 0 g fat
Tuna Roll: 140 calories, 2 g fat
California Roll: 255 calories, 7 g fat
Spicy Tuna Roll: 290 calories, 11 g fat
Dragon Roll: 490 calories, 12 g fat
Shrimp Tempura Roll: 510 calories, 21 g fat

Nigiri

This is slabs of raw fish fastened to ice cube-size blocks of rice with pieces of seawood. Most people find raw fish easier to handle when it's mixed with rice, but beware: That rice acts like a sponge as soon as you dip it in soy sauce. Every tablespoon you eat gobbles up as much as 40 percent of your day's sodium limit.

Unagi

The consumer-awareness organization Seafood Watch has warned consumers to avoid eel for fear of adding more pressure to the already declining population. Worry not, though; using salmon as a benchmark, eel has less protein and 80 percent more fat, plus it's often prepared with a crust of cooked sugars. Skip it and go straight for the salmon.

Sashimi

Seafood in its purest form, this dish consists of nothing but thin slices of raw salmon, tuna, squid, or whatever else is fresh. No matter which fish you choose, you're guaranteed to get a massive load of protein with relatively little fat.

Omakase

The Japanese equivalent of a multi-course tasting menu. Go ahead, let the chef feed you; he knows what's truly fresh, and unlike American cooks, sushi masters aren't likely to stuff you until you're stuck to the chair.

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Sake

The rice wine might go well with sushi, but you're better off drinking beer or regular wine. A 6-ounce serving of sake has about 230 calories. The same amount of wine—or  a 12-ounce beer—has about 150. Choose accordingly.

JC Uni-tec is the premier provider of Japanese kitchen equipment in the U.S. To know more about the company and get updates about Japanese cuisines and cooking, follow this Facebook page.

REPOST: Cookbook watch: 'Japanese farm food'

This Los Angeles Times article talks about the cookbook written by Nancy Singleton Hachishu  which features "Japanese Farm Food".

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Holiday traffic, gift shopping, partying…. It’s a relief to slow down with a good cookbook that reflects an idyllic life on a farm in northern Japan, where the cooking revolves around food that’s grown at home and prepared simply. “Japanese Farm Food” by Nancy Singleton Hachishu, who moved from California to Japan and ended up marrying a farmer and living in his ancestral home two hours from Tokyo, is a transporting respite.

The book opens with a description of her Japanese farmhouse kitchen, a place of wood posts and beams, filled with her collection of 100-year-old baskets and bowls. In her pantry: soy sauce, sea salt,katsuobushi (dried, smoked bonito), konbu (dried kelp), rice vinegar, sake, mirin and miso are the basics she encourages readers to use. (A full glossary describes more-unusual ingredients: roasted soy bean powder, soy milk skin, Japanese dried chiles, agar, etc.) Though she makes her own tofu and plucks ducks at Christmastime, most of the recipes in the nearly-400-page book are approachable. It’s “bold, clear, direct” food, she writes. She cooks and eats what the farm yields, as well as meat from the local butcher and fish from the fish market. Snacks to go with drinks include treviso and sansho leaves served with miso mixed with pecans (hers are homegrown), or hard-boiled eggs marinated in soy sauce. Simple pickles include turnips and their leaves mixed with sea salt, Meyer lemon and chile.

Living on a farm, “you don’t choose the vegetables, they choose you.” Hachisu incorporates asparagus into small pots of savory egg custard, or pours the custard into emptied sour orange halves with flowering mustard. Cauliflower gets tossed with miso and sesame, broccoli with tofu and yuzu, and salt-rubbed eggplant with ginger and shiso. Bittermelon is stir-fried with egg and chiles.

“Touching vegetables while they are living is something every cook should do. You have to accept them, not force your will on them.”

My favorite chapter might be the one on noodles and rice, which includes recipes for simmered gyoza(pork-filled dumplings), homemade ramen, udon noodles, soba with walnut dipping sauce, somen with ginger and scallions, salty salmon rice balls and miso-grilled rice balls, yellowtail sashimi on hot rice with broth, Throughout the book are notes on technique (washing rice and cutting sashimi, for example), on ingredients (natto, or fermented soy beans) and on farm life (edamame season). I'm already thinking about summer when I can make umeshu, the cordial traditionally made with sour plums. Soak a couple of pounds of apricots along with sugar in a neutral spirit for three months in a cool, dark place -- next winter around this time I'll be sipping on the umeshu. And still daydreaming about a farm in Japan.

Salt-massaged cucumber with miso and sesame

1 3/4 pounds Japanese cucumbers (7 or 8 small)

1/2 tablespoon fine sea salt

4 tablespoons unhulled sesame seeds

3 tablespoons brown rice miso

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

6 shiso leaves

1. Slice the cucumbers into paper-thin rounds and toss with the salt in a medium-sized bowl. Let sit 10 minutes.

2. Toast the sesame seeds over medium-high heat in a dry frying pan until they are fragrant and start to pop. Grind the sesame seeds with a suribachi (Japanese grinding bowl) or mortar until most of the seeds have broken down and are almost pastelike. Add the miso and rice vinegar and blend until creamy.

3. Squeeze the cucumbers by handfuls to express the water, then add the cucumbers to the sesame-miso mixture.

4. Stack the shiso leaves, roll into a cigar shape, and slice into fine tendrils; toss gently but well with the cucumbers.

Apricot cordial

2 pounds apricots

1 pound organic sugar or white rock sugar

2 quarts white liquor (or plain vodka)

1. Wipe the apricots and place them in a large clean jar or sealable crock. Add the sugar and liquor, and cap securely. Shake to distribute and help dissolve the sugar.

2. Let the fruit and liquor macerate for at least 3 months in a cool, dark place. Shake occasionally. Taste after 3 months, and if the liquor is sufficiently infused with apricot, it is ready to serve. This cordial keeps practically indefinitely, though the taste will intensify over time.

3. Serve cold over ice as a before-dinner drink.

More information about Japanese cuisine can be found by visiting this JC Uni-tec Facebook page

REPOST: "10 of Tokyo's best high-end restaurants"

Planning a Tokyo trip anytime soon? Let this article from The Guardian  take you on a cyber tour to some of Tokyo's best high-end restaurants:

Kozue

No other restaurant in Tokyo has a setting to rival Kozue. Perched far above the fray on the 40th floor of the Park Hyatt, Kozue is still as swish as the day it opened in 1994, with a contemporary look (soaring ceiling, stylish tables and chairs) to match the confident modern inflections on kaiseki (japan's version of haute cuisine). The menu features torafugu puffer fish in winter, ayu sweetfish in summer, matsutake mushrooms in autumn, and year-round shabu-shabu of perfectly marbled beef from premium wagyu cattle. Book a window seat to enjoy a peerless view of the western hills and even (if the weather gods are smiling) Mt Fuji's cone silhouetted in the distance.

Park Hyatt Hotel, 3-7-1-2 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, +81 3 5323 3460, tokyo.park.hyatt.com, lunch from ¥3900 (around £34), dinner from £115. Open daily 11.30am-2.30pm and 5.30pm-10pm, closed Wed. English spoken 

Mikawa Zezankyo

Tetsuya Saotome at Mikawa Zezankyo. Photograph: detsugu on Flickr/some rights reserved

Tetsuya Saotome produces flawless tempura, succulent morsels of premium seafood and vegetables served straight from his deep-frying wok to your plate. He follows the classic Edomae style, using only ingredients that (with a couple of exceptions) would have been available 150 years ago. He works solo, which is why he can only seat nine at his counter. The cuisine and configuration may be traditional, but the eclectic decor – from European antiques to traditional lacquer-work and an extractor hood in the shape of a fedora – certainly isn't. There are many contenders for the crown of Tokyo's finest tempura, but none take it to quite the same level of idiosyncratic artistry. Zezankyo is hidden away in the residential back streets to the east of the Sumida river, but it well repays the effort and taxi fare to get there.

1-3-1 Fukuzumi, Koto-ku, +81 3 3643 8383, lunch from £90, dinner from £140, mikawa-zezankyo.jimdo.com. Open Thurs-Tues 11.30am-1.30pm and 5pm-9pm. English not spoken

Nodaiwa

 

The speciality at Nodaiwa is unagi, charcoal-broiled freshwater eel. This is one of Tokyo's unsung plebeian pleasures, but here served with refinement and a grand setting – a transplanted timber mountain farmhouse. The fifth-generation owner-chef uses eel caught in the wild rather than from fish farms and the flavour is incomparable. The cosy ground-floor dining room is fine for a simple (but rich and satisfying) lunch of unaju (juicy eel fillets broiled golden-brown, on a bed of white rice). Up the stately staircase, the private rooms are best for a full banquet. The highlight: shirayaki, eel that's lightly steamed and grilled, then topped with caviar. Perfect with a bottle of crisp local koshu wine.

1-5-4 Higashi-Azabu, Minato-ku, +81 3 3583 7852, nodaiwa.com, set menu £60, a la carte from £17. Open 11am-1.30pm and 5am-8pm. Some English spoken

Nihon Ryori Ryugin

 

Ryugin sprang to prominence on the back of chef Seiji Yamamoto's imaginative application of modern cooking techniques to classic Japanese cuisine. These days, he has no need for any molecular magic: his vibrant contemporary kaiseki speaks for itself. Yamamoto is now at the top of his game (as recognised by his third Michelin star), drawing massive depths of flavour from his premium ingredients – such as sakuradai snapper, from the Naruto Strait close to his hometown, creamy an-kimo (monkfish liver, known as the foie gras of the ocean), or hand-reared Iwate wagyu beef. Yamamoto's candy pear dessert nitro-chilled to -196C and served with a sauce of the same fruit heated to a scalding 99C, is the stuff of legend.

Side Roppongi Building 1F, 7-17-24 Roppongi, Minato-ku, +81 3 3423 8006, nihonryori-ryugin.com, dinner £200. Open Mon-Sat 6pm-1am (last sitting 10.30pm). English spoken

Aronia de Takazawa

 
Chef Yoshiaki Takazawa's bijou restaurant has long been one of Tokyo's most intriguing secrets, more talked about than actually visited. Hardly surprising, since Aronia only sits two tables (maximum eight people) each evening. His French-Japanese signature dishes include: a ratatouille terrine, with vegetables layered into multicoloured cubes; carpenter's salade niçoise, with sashimi tuna and tapenade sauce solidified in the shape of spanners and screws; and his hot balloon of seafood slow-cooked with bamboo shoot and seaweed. Takazawa stands centre-stage in this hushed, windowless chamber, with its sleek wood panelling and dramatic spot lighting, preparing or finishing each course himself, while his wife Akiko serves and explains in faultless English.

Sanyo Akasaka Bldg 2F, 3-5-2 Akasaka, Minato-ku, +81 3 3505 5052, aroniadetakazawa.com, from £140. Open daily 6pm-9pm (last sitting). English spoken 

Narisawa

 

Creativity lies at the heart of the eclectic modern cuisine dreamed up by Yoshihiro Narisawa at his impeccably polished Aoyama restaurant, with its swish, modern dining room and gleaming kitchen revealed through massive picture windows like a balletic silent movie. The fundamentals may be French but Narisawa's ideas and execution are his own: from the foraged herbs and edible soil to the damper-style bread cooked at the table. At times, it all feels overly cerebral, but his delectable char-cooked vegetables and wagyu beef bring a sensual satisfaction, and the desserts seem to never stop arriving. Narisawa also boasts a cellar especially strong in Burgundies, as well as a groaning cheese trolley.

2-6-15 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, +81 3 5785 0799, narisawa-yoshihiro.com, lunch from £65, dinner from £185. Open Mon-Sat noon-3pm and 6.30-9pm. English spoken

Sushi Mizutani

 Sushi doesn't get much finer than at Mizutani – or more austere. There is virtually no decoration on the plain ochre walls of the small 9th-floor room where Hachiro Mizutani holds court. Nor are there tables, just one long counter; a single massive timber of smooth-scrubbed cedar and 10 plain chairs. The air is crisp with the faint aroma of rice vinegar and the atmosphere is hushed. Sushi veteran Mizutani is taciturn in his own language and speaks no English, but there's little that needs saying, except to specify beer or sake (there's only one brand of each). The sushi arrives in a set order, determined according to whatever is in peak season. A succession of flawless morsels of seafood on lightly vinegared rice kept at exactly skin temperature, it will include several cuts of the finest bluefin you have ever tasted, and the best abalone too. A couple of caveats: perfume is frowned upon, as are cameras and mobile phones. Nothing is allowed to disturb the serenity.

Juno Ginza Seiwa Building 9F, 8-7-7 Ginza, Chuo-ku, +81 3 3573 5258, lunch from £130, dinner from £180. Open Mon-Sat 11.30am-1.30pm and 5pm-9.30pm. English not spoken 

Tofuya Ukai

 
In a city of contrasts and surprises, few are greater than discovering the traditional garden, carp ponds and sprawling low-rise wooden architecture at Tofuya Ukai. There is no central dining room, just a warren of private chambers (most with tatami mats and low tables, but some with chairs) with garden views built around the timber buildings of a former sake brewery. The multi-course kaiseki meals focus on tofu, produced freshly at Ukai's own small workshop in the hills west of Tokyo. In winter, the house-special tosui-tofu delivers a triple whammy of bean goodness: cubes of tofu cooked down at your table in a creamy, savoury casserole of soya milk blended with chicken broth, topped with layers of yuba tofu skin

4-4-13 Shiba-Koen, Minato-ku, +81 3 3436 1028, ukai.co.jp, lunch from £50, dinner from £75. Open daily 11am-10pm (last sitting 8pm). English spoken

Bird Land Ginza

Toshihiro Wada was one of the first artisan chefs to elevate the humble craft of grilling skewers of chicken (yakitori) to a cuisine of substance and subtlety. He uses only top-quality free-range shamo gamecock, cooking the morsels of meat and offal over premium Bincho charcoal. Open the meal with his trademark liver pate, continue with wasabi-coated rare sasami white meat, and don't miss the sansho-yaki, succulent breast meat dusted with piquant Japanese pepper. In another break from the tradition of smoky neighbourhood grills, Wada stocks a small cellar of Burgundies and New World wines – perfect with grilled fare of this caliber. 

Tsukamoto Building B1F, 4-2-15 Ginza, Chuo-ku, +81 3 5250 1081, ginza-birdland.sakura.ne.jp, dinner from £55. Open Tue-Sat 5pm-9.30pm. Some English spoken

Akasaka Kikunoi

 

From the bamboo-lined, lantern-lit path to the simple, traditional wooden decor of the rooms (with either chairs or tatami mats), Kikunoi is a microcosm of traditional Kyoto. The Tokyo outpost of one of Kyoto's most illustrious kaiseki houses, it serves the rarified cuisine of Japan's ancient capital – expect to spend a good three hours at table if you're having the full-course dinner. For a more concise, affordable introduction, the lunchtime Kodaiji bento is an exquisite tasting menu in miniature, served in a lacquered box with several side dishes. Owner-chef Yoshihiro Murata is revered for the depth of umami he coaxes from the dashi soup stock that underpins all his dishes.

6-13-8 Akasaka, Minato-ku, +81 3 3568 6055, kikunoi.jp, lunch from £45, dinner from £140. Open Mon-Sat noon-1pm and 5pm-9pm (last sitting). English spoken

For more information go to the Japan National Tourism Organisation's website: jnto.go.jp/eng

Log on to JC Uni-tec's website for more information on Japanese cuisine.

Source:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2012/feb/01/top-10-high-end-restaurants-tokyo

The blade that cuts: Why sharp knives are so important in a kitchen

Razor-sharp knives make a chef’s work precise and efficient. It is no wonder a good number of chefs import expensive knives from Japan or Germany.

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Hell’s Kitchen (2005) or Jamie’s 15-minute meals (2012) would zoom in on world-famous chefs like Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver slicing, dicing, chopping, and mincing all sorts of things from leafy vegetables to prime cuts of meat and fish with unnatural speed and precision—it greatly has to do with skills, but really sharp knives get their seconds of fame, too.

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Ordinary people may be afraid of too-sharp knives because they think sharper would be more dangerous than duller ones. This is far from the truth. A sharp knife is actually safer than a dull knife because it cuts through any food like a hot knife through butter, decreasing the risk that it’ll slip and cut the person using it. Sharper knives also improve food preparation time. This is why it takes only minutes for a professional chef to prepare a meal at a fancy restaurant and more than an hour for an ordinary person to prepare the same meal at home.

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Generally, high-quality knives from Germany or Japan are expensive. However, generic stainless steel knives can also achieve the same level of sharpness that more expensive knives have; all one needs is the right sharpening tools, like the Chef’sChoice Diamond Hone Sharpener from Cabelas, Inc. and the Water Rolling Sharpener from JC Uni-tec, Inc.

JC Uni-tec offers high-quality kitchen equipment engineered by experts in Japan. Visit its website for more information about its products and services.