How Japan Invented a New Cuisine
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- čas přidán 8. 07. 2024
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There's a cuisine within the cuisine of Japanese food, and it contains a lot of dishes you might not associate with Japan. This time we look into "yoshoku", Japan's western-inspired cuisine and how it depicts a relatively homogenous country as one that is open to changing the features that define its culture.
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Credits:
Producer - Matthew Li
Production Assistant - Mana Chuabang
Script Supervisor - Louis Govier
Special thanks:
Yusef Iqbal
Yeevonne Lim
Dylan Payne
Brandon Goddard
Kevin Thomas
Timestamps:
0:00 - The restaurant that invented tonkatsu and omurice
1:46 - Japanese hamburg steak
3:35 - Sakoku
5:57 - The Meiji Restoration
7:22 - The cuisine of yoshoku
9:00 - Eating yoshoku dishes
11:55 - The legacy of yoshoku
That's interesting about "Turkish rice." In Mexico, there are tacos called tacos árabes, literally "Arab tacos," which are made with pork. Sounds weird, considering the Muslim ban on pork, but of course it's important to understand that not all Arabs are Muslim, and the Arabs who first served tacos árabes were Lebanese Christian immigrants to Mexico.
Well some of the original tacos arabes were made with lamb as well. This of course would eventually become al pastor and adobada tacos made from pork with corn tortillas instead of pita bread.
@@ech4ng Ooh, I'd love to try the lamb version!
@@valmarsiglia Yes, there are lots of Lebanese christians, but I'll bet pork dishes would be hard to find in Beirut, even among the Christians.. Doesn't mean they didn't sell pork tacos in Mexico, of course... 😁
Tacos a la verga too
It probably has to do with the "Arabian style" of preparing the meat, not the entirety of the food.
Yoshoku is everywhere in Southeast Asia, and particularly in the Philippines, where sushi isn't necessarily the go-to dish in restaurants.
They're the gateway drug into Japanese cuisine.
Also, don't forget about Korea's counterpart in yangsik, as opposed to hansik (in contrast to the foodways of its native minorities the Jeju islanders & the Jaegaseung, both quite different from Korean food)
I think it's basically what they serve in Tokyo Tokyo.
Hong kong has the same , western style food, every asian country that has western influence does this. This can be said about asian food in america. Some Chinese dishes in America are not served in China
Most curry is eaten with rice, but you hear "curry" and think Indian cuisine, yet you hear "curry rice" and know it's Japanese cuisine.
And curry itself was introduced in the Navy as a dish to address the problem of beriberi among sailors. One of the inducements for enlistment was unlimited white rice; the more refined rice was, the higher class it was considered. Milling rice, however, removed the part of the rice containing thiamine. Navy curry, adapted from British curry made from curry powder, supplied the thiamine missing from the rice-only diet some sailors ate. There is an article on the adoption of curry in Japan on the Atlas Obscura website.
There's an interesting comparison to be made yoshoku, cha chaan teng dishes, and the 'soy sauce western' food of Malaysia/Singapore
Check out the OTR video on Thai "Cook Shops" I linked in a separate post. There's also another one on American Fried Rice (which is rather amusing). They take a REALLY deep dive into Western-inspired Asian cuisine, and I recall the term "cha chaan teng" was used (in relation to Hong Kong, IIRC). What I'd like to know is why "Nasi Goreng Pattaya" is called "Nasi Goreng Pattaya"... 😁
The Portuguese influence on Japanese food is actually seen despite their expulsion. The tradition of having fried fish became tempura, which is now as integral to Japanese cuisine as soba or sushi.
Still not used to the idea of serving both rice and spaghetti in one dish.
There is also a version of “Asian” western food in Hong Kong which incorporates Chinese ingredients and western techniques and vice versa.
And Portuguese gave us egg tarts from Macau and Hong Kong and beyond. Basically a version of crème burle in an edible shell.
yep also the Portuguese introduced one of the first breads or in this case cake that Japan encountered from the west is Bolo de Castela which the Japanese just call Castella which is still made today and one of the very first makers in Japan this year celebrated 400 years of making said cake.
Love these kind of videos that teach history through food. It get a greater appreciation of the food and culture behind it.
I think for Japanese curry, it's actually the influence of Queen Victoria that led British Navy to adopt it as part of their food, and quite a number of Japanese military officer went to Britain as part of their training, leading to introduction of Curry in Japan. That's why the method of cooking is similar to a stew rather to an indian curry.
Doria, the casserole rice dish also exists in Cantonese/Hong Kong Cafe cuisine. Doria also is taken from a potato dish called gratin where the potatoes are replaced with rice
This is one of your best videos, great topic, I learned a lot about Japanese food which I could kind of see myself but never had it articulated and explained in an interesting way. Your video is crafted well with dynamic editing, b-roll, actual on site boots on the ground food tasting, I watched 100%, thanks!
There are some interesting Japanese delis in New York with the Japanese versions of Western baked goods, sandwiches, etc. There's one called Zaiya on E41st right by the library that had some great box lunches.
When looking at the title, I'd have thought you'd be covering some of Japan's minority foodways such as Ryukyuan & Ainu plus Hachijo, but yoshoku does (with tragic historical reasons folded in) have a counterpart in Korea known as yangsik (in contrast to hansik & those of Korea's native minorities such as the Jaegaseung & Jeju islanders, quite different from Korean food that's often known). In any case, yangsik is just as fascinating as yoshoku & can often be found in bunsik places
I’d love to make an Ainu video someday, would probably have to travel to Hokkaido for that one.
The Japanese Hamburg steak reminds me a bit of Salisbury Steak, but more refined and with the egg, which looks awesome.
Awesome video, really enjoyed this one!
Fantastic video! I think this has got to be one of the best videos you've made so far. The mix between you trying the food and it's history transitions is so smooth and doesn't feel forced.
it's interesting to hear how visitors perceive a country's culture - yoshoku is like comfort food for people of my generation. I guess kids these days eat a lot more sophisticated dishes and it's understandable that the "Showa Retro Kissa" is now a a popular novelty.
beautifully made video!
This is a brilliant video, really great editing and info.
One of the most interesting, well put videos combing history, culture and food, that I have seen on CZcams! Great job!
This is such an interesting video about all of the dishes in Japan! I'm SO excitied about the dishes!!!!
Thank for your beautiful and very informative footage! Here in Germany (maybe in all of Europe) industry is trying to establish „Asia Food“: instant noodles with a thickened curry sauce or the same noodles with a thickened sweet chili sause. The Japanese definitely did a better job with Yoshuku!
Thanks for being a star food journalist. The way you take food and interplay with a society's experience is masterful and engaging. Keep doing what your doing because your are doing amazing work. I can't wait to watch your future episodes.
This is such an interesting video!!!! Thank you so much.
Very informative and interesting documentary. Good job 👍
In France we have a simple version of the burger with a fried egg, it's called "steak à cheval", it was popular in the 80/90 ( I eat that a lot), but not so much now. Impressive to see a japanese version of this plate.
The Doria near the end kinda reminded me a little of Spanish Paella with a Gratin twist to it
Well done...great insight!
great videos ... thanx for the history lessons as well!!!
Interesting and well thought out video. Thanks
I learned something. Great video!
The curry powder first used in Japan was Madras curry powder, which itself was developed for English consumption.
So interesting watching (but sometimes I just listen) to your videos. Thank y'all for sharing !
Great video!
Great episode! We could get this type of food in HK when I was a child (90s). My Japanese friend told me the curry became common after WWII as the returning service men would eat it regularly as it was easier to cook in large quantities than traditional Japanese food. Did a bit of googling and it seems that there is truth to it.
What a fantastic video. What I subscribe for. Thank you.
Great video! A lot of what you said really resonated with me because I've also been using food as a vehicle to explore culture, history, and especially how they change over time.
I hope this video pops of, came for a food video, stayed for a well told history lesson
Thank you! I loved how you gave us a background for why these dishes exist. I found it particularly interesting how beef was not a regular part of the Japanese diet until the Meiji restoration and within roughly one hundred years Japan is now responsible for some of the most highly prized beef in the world. Thank
Great video! It really showcases something I always loved about food but couldn't put into words until recently, and that's how much of a culture's stories can be told by their food. The context, ingredients, techniques, history, and ideas that accumulate collectively over time to culminate in a particular preparation that cannot be found anywhere else.
Sampling a culture's authentic food has become one of the main reasons I travel now.
This was a really good video!! Ever since I lived in Japan (13 years ago) I kind of have always wondered a bit about these types of dishes (but apparently not enough to google it myself hehe), so I was really happy to learn from this video. I wouldn't mind a part two with more indepth info about the different dishes and the inspiration behind them.
The edit with the maps and historical material is very good. Like these kind of videos
I love Yoshoku so much, thank you Matthew for explaining the history!
Good vid, bro. You deserve more subs.
Thank you. I really enjoyed the video.
Great insights into Japanese cuisine with relevance to Japanese history and how its food culture is shaped over the years. Nice video editing, pace, and presentation too! Good job!
Hello, I am from Turkey. Pilaf (or as we call it Pilav) is one of main Turkish side dishes for centuries. We always have beans, meatballs or chicken as a main dish with pilaf. The brown thick sauce looks like Balkanian-Turkish dish called Gulash and/or Yahni. This is also one of the special dishes in Ottoman Empire Cuisine. So i guess, pilaf and sauce part of that dish is inspired by Turkish-Balkanian food. Cheers and smiles… 😋
Love the video 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾🔥
Great vid! I subscribed
Tonkatsu, are amazing.(I specificaly prefer the irekatsu variation ) I like that they are served with salad or cabbage. They even have some sort of tonkatsu who looked like cordon bleu, with cheese and ham on the inside.
Also culinary speaking, Nagasaki is really interesting. They are a lot of western and chinese influence here. Like for exemple, they do a special dessert, castella (カステラ ) but they import it before the sakoku (the isolationist policy). So technicaly it's a yoshoku dish but it's was introduced before the meiji era where yoshoku where invented. Even more strange is that Portuguese today didn't do this meal ^^ (but a couple of mixed portugo-japanese tried to reintroduce it in the mid 90s )
It's so fascinating to me.
The Portuguese do eat castella, it is called pão de ló
Well some of these things are certainly staples on Japanese menus in the US. Then again, the majority of "Japanese" restaurants in the US are actually owned and run by Chinese or Koreans. The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture estimated that only around 10% of Japanese restaurants in the US are owned by people of Japanese descent.
Yep, it's notable to me when it's actually a Japanese owner or staff. It's typically higher end establishments.
Actually, there are a number of dishes in Hong Kong and Macau, which are similar to Japanese Doria. They are categorized under "Hong Kong Western Food". One classic dish is: "baked Portuguese chicken rice" ( 葡國雞焗飯 ). It signifies how cuisines evolve in Hong Kong and Macau region under Western Influence.
Man your video is so good the way you speak is just perfect ✨✨✨✨
Your videos are amazing! Very high production quality for such a small channel. As someone who loves cooking and history this channel is the perfect mix. Keep doing what you're doing and you're going to be big! (Like Tasting History grew a lot as well).
It's a wonderful thing when food is reimagined in this way. I became aware of these dishes trough the Yakuza games but I didn't know about the how and why. Great video!
really enjoyed this video, thank you for the history lesson!
love this channel justy found it
the hamburg steak was actualy most likely introduced by the dutch as they are the only people that both refered to the Buttelle (as it is called in Hamburg itself) as Hamburg meatballs (fried midsiced meatballs preserved using onions and pepper and fried outer crust) , in distinction to Königsberg Meatballs (a large cooked meatball preserved in an barrel of slightly acidic sauce for long see voyages) and Swedish meatballs (small meatballs small enough to be frozen using ice and prepared "fresh" on a ship), and had access to japan.
Wow this video is great
It was great to hear about the earlier versions of these dishes. I did not expect this video would be about yoshoku though, since I think a lot of people who have an interest in japan already know about it.
I was expecting something niche like some form of fermented soy/vegetables that is only eaten in a small town because the dish has almost died out. Or insects or konowata (fermented sea cucumber guts).
Comment for support. I like your content, keep it up!
What a cool multidimensional video!
Great! Perfect way to tell the story (history) via cuisine! ありがとう!
Thank you. I knew about the isolation, of course. It’s nice to learn a major reason for it.
One of the things that drew me into wanting to know more about Japan when I was younger was their sheer amount of varied cuisine within their culture. All of which look amazingly delicious. Every thing I have had the chance to try has been wonderful, save for a few cheap dishes that were not made well. Food would be a major draw for me if I ever got to visit Japan. XD
I love your content. History fan, food fan, info graphic fan
Great video. Don't know much of Japan's history. Thank you
Your videos are addicting
One of the most rarely discussed impact of Meiji restoration is the institutionalisation of Shinto religion, a separation between Shinto-Buddhist syncretism. It is done for a lot of things, also to fight off Buddhist dietary restriction.
Other "western food" like Tempura (introduced by the Portuguese, along with firearms) are not typically considered "Yoshoku", since they were introduced way earlier during the beginning of Sengoku Jidai era (even before Edo period).
Plus, Yoshoku is indeed kind of a very specific introduction period - that Meiji era. They evolved accordingly and becoming kinda "faux western" like Indonesian-western of the 1970s-1990s, which are mostly learned from Japan. The popularity of Hamburg steak and the popularity of the belief that "western people are bigger and stronger because they eat meat", is not a coincidence with the popularity of James H Salisbury's idea of promoting health through meat-eating in early 20th century. His recommended recipe of ground beef steak is named after him "Salisbury Steak" in the US since 1897.
Ideas travel and kinda stayed, lagged in a foreign country during the pre-internet era. My parents and grandparents still believe that eating carrots improve eye sight as the British propaganda ministry suggested to the Germans, when they are wary about successful night bombing interception rate by RAF during WW2 - which was due to secret radar technology instead of RAF night fighter pilot's diet.
Western food are reappropriated everywhere, in Indonesia, particularly Central Java, we have 'Selat Solo' - a form of Hamburg steak with caramelised onion as the sweet sauce. It was never labelled as "Indonesian food" back then, just like how Spaghetti Neapolitan (Naporitan) sold in Japanese Sogo Dept Store's cafe Chatterbox chain is always labelled "Western Food" instead of "Japanese Western Food".
European influence also varies within Asia - Indonesia is not necessarily influenced 100% by the previous colonisers like Dutch, Portuguese, or British. My grandparent's RAF influence (carrot story) obviously reveals their Cantonese Hong Kong background. Then there is also fashionable Japanese obsession with anything French or Britain, depending whether it is Eastern or Western Japan - which is the same story with their electricity grid system.
Food reflects history and societies. I love that you embrace this!
I stumbled on Yoshoku cuisine by chance in my area. Quickly became obsessed with Tarako Spaghetti and trying to do the same type of reimagining with my cambodian and thai food.
Food is moreso representative of history and our journey rather than tradition. We experience food with flavor, texture, and smell but also the memories associated with it. If we confine ourselves by being overly concerned with tradition, then we might rob ourselves of creating a new memory by clinging to the old.
This is so cool and epic
Loved it! Food, history and Japan- what's not to like?
Great video! Reminds me of Hong Kong's food culture, where some of its quintessential food that you see in their cafes are heavily influenced by the British
Really interesting video! The link between western culture and curry is pretty deep! When the British empire colonised india, they brought their foreign tastes and ideas to India. The british were very keen on having "gravy" with their meals, so to cater to demand from the British stationed there, the Indians served them dishes with "gravy" using their traditional flavours and spices, which evolved into the curry sauce we know today. Traditional Indian cuisine is typically drier, like my favourite biryani! Same flavours, less sauce! Curry is Japan's national dish, but did you know that curry (tikka masala) is also Britain's national dish? :D Many parts of the world are grateful to India for their influence on cuisine!
Amazing video! By the way how do you eat that curry? 😅
Its a really good video
The remnants of (specifically) Portuguese influence still sticks around within Japan's yо̄shoku, which in my opinion permeates the cuisine more strongly than the other colonial powers, aside from probably the French. I'm surprised that one of Portugal's contributions, tempura, didn't get a mention.
Tempura is a weird one, cause despite it coming from Portuguese influence, it happened before the Sakoku policy and Meiji Era, so it’s often tagged as washoku.
@@offthemenuyt interesting, I never knew. So that would also extend to a few Japanese bread-based dishes then, like castella cake and all dishes covered in panko? If memory serves, bread itself also came from the Portuguese, and from around the same time.
Yup, I just looked up some recipes to try and make...
Very well thought out video. Reminds me a lot of Hawaii and its seemingly endless melting pot of ethnicities, cultural beliefs, and the tasty food that came with or was born from it. Saimin, manapua, and meat jun are just a few that come to mind.
This reminds me of how bell peppers are an intrinsic component in western Asian food
WAY TOO FIREEE FOR THIS WORLD THANK U MATTHEW LI FOR THIS VID!!! FOOD HAS NO BORDERS, IT'S THERE TO PASS AROUND & ENJOY!!!
At 11m17s, the Doria (sp?) - that looks like a take on, or an inspiration for Coquille Saint-Jacques. While it is traditionally made with scallops, the basic ideas are all there. Thanks for the great content!
Some of the most interesting food that I had in Jaan a few years back was "Italian" food, but not actually Italian, but rather Japanese adaptations of Italian food. Thus making something new.
You’re the best man
The Baked Rice is also done and quite common in Southern China, HK, Malaysia and Singapore. From the seafood one like in the video to chicken and mushroom.
Food History Culture. What a great combination
Will there one day be a video about Osho and Japanese Chinese food like Tenshinhan? I used to frequent Osho quite often when I was living in Kyoto.
Its interesting, Yoshoku reminds me of American Chinese food, or indeed American Japanese food (or That or Indian, but most especially Chinese) in that it is an entire cuisine based on adapting a foreign food culture to local tastes.
Very good message at the end. Food must be one of the only things that has to remain out of politics and confrontations in our ever-polarizing world. Cuisine exchanges are fascinating and allow us to expand our minds. Nice video 👍
Thank you for this fascinating video. I'm trying to track down these dishes to see if they're available in the San Francisco Bay Area, and it's hard with the automatic captions to get the spellings. Please be so kind as to proofread and correct them so I can get some of this deliciousness you've introduced me to into my mouth if it's here - I love Japanese curry but several of the other dishes are new to me. (Correcting auto-captions is a blessing for deaf people, too, just so you know.)
My Russian Mom cooks plov a kind of pilav it's the same rice dish without the spices. The rice colorings are from the vegetable (mostly carrots) and meat is taken what ever there is. Since we had our own pigs, it was pig meat. (But the fatter the better.) But the origin is middel east - it like the dumpling - it's kinda everywhere in their own kind (Pilmeni (Russia), Maultaschen(Germany), Ravioli & Tortelloni(Italy), Bao zi (China), Gyoza (Japan), Manty (Kasakhstan), etc. ...)
If I were to guess as to where Turkish Rice got its name, it might've been a case where it was inspired by Koshary; a rice and pasta dish from Egypt. Egypt and Turkey must've just been mixed up.
For a moment I thought this video would be about Shojin Ryori.
I love Yoshoku, particularly the fried fish and chicken cutlets ❤
Incidentally, something I've been trying to figure out might have something to do with this video's subject matter. In Kamakura there's a little cafe called "Milk Hall" (I ate there three weeks ago). It's featured in a certain manga (Aoi Hana) set in that town and the surrounding area. There's another "Milk Hall" in another manga, this one was a cafeteria in a girl's school where the "ordinary" girls ate lunch (the "elite" girls had their own clubhouse with a dining table). So it occurred to me that the term "Milk Hall" might actually mean something. Google Maps shows something like four in Tokyo, and one in Hokkaido. The ones in Tokyo seem to offer cafeteria type Western dishes, the one in Hokkaido is.. well, sells milk products.. So what exactly WAS a "Milk Hall"? Were there a lot more of them during the Showa era, post-war? Were they anything like the Thai "Cook Shops" in the OTR video?
According to Japanese Wikipedia, they used to serve milk and light meals (and at some point sold newspapers as well). They were popular in the Meiji and Taisho eras and completely disappeared after WW2. The article says that the modern Milk Halls simply use the name.
ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%9F%E3%83%AB%E3%82%AF%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%AB?wprov=sfla1
doria is a rice version of the japanese gratin which is made with macaroni
Yoshoku is a secret?
Most non-Japanese people who don't study the culture don't know that the Japanese drew a metaphorical box around certain dishes and pursue development of them within a specific subgenre of the overall Japanese culinary umbrella.
8:07 talking about washoku keeping the most traditional foods of Japan, but using salmon nigiri, a modern addition that only happened in the past 50 years 🙊
Hayashi beef or hashed beef combines tomato, demi glace, and onions.
2:40
I think i've heard of that in the Yakuza game-Series before.