Japanese food | JAPAN Educational Travel (2024)

Traditional Japanese cuisine, or “washoku”, revolves around the concept of seasonality. Japan has four distinct seasons—spring, summer, autumn and winter—each with its own unique offerings of fruits, vegetables, seafoods and more. Washoku is about appreciating those seasonal foods and connecting with mother nature in the process. Traditional Japanese cuisine uses locally sourced fresh ingredients and utilizes special cooking techniques and utensils to bring out the natural flavors. Presentation is also key. Different dishes are served on or in complimentary types of tableware, varying in shape, size, color and pattern. Washoku is more than just a type of cuisine, it’s an art form. In 2013, UNESCO added washoku to its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Food is an integral part of Japanese culture. Most Japanese households have their own set of traditions and rituals when it comes to dining, both for special occasions and for everyday meals. One such example is “miso shiru”, or miso soup, an iconic Japanese dish. Although miso soup is basically made from only three simple ingredients—kombu (a type of seaweed), bonito (a kind of fish) flakes, and miso paste—the flavour of the finished product will vary depending on the cooking method, cooking time, and the ingredients used (e.g. red, white, or yellow miso), and every household has their own family recipe.

To celebrate food and nature, many regions hold festivals and other events centered around local delicacies for which they are famous. At the beginning of each new planting season, many shrines hold “Otauematsuri” festivals to honor the rice fields and to pray for a bountiful harvest. Otauematsuri usually includes a religious ceremony where food is served to the gods and a rice-planting ritual. Aside from observing the rituals, students can also enjoy traditional Japanese performances while eating local delicacies. These events not only allow educational travel students to have the opportunity to enjoy delicious food, but they also remind students to appreciate nature and the foods it provides humans, and to admire the beauty of different seasons.

Japanese cuisine is centered around fresh, seasonal food. Rigorous food safety management helps food stay fresh even after being delivered to local markets or restaurants, making sure almost nothing goes to waste. Highly advanced food preservation methods can let consumers enjoy delicious food at a later date and a number of different food preservation methods (e.g. pickling, sugaring, canning, etc) add flavor to Japanese cuisine. The Japanese food industry strives to constantly refine and improve its food processing and preservation techniques in order to provide an even wider selection of food to more people.