Rice, Noodle, Fish - Matt Goulding

A little off my normal YA, fantasy, sci-fi, fiction path.


In the next year or two, we are planning a month long trip to Japan.  As such I have been scouring the internet for ideas/recommendations etc for anything about Japan.  One website I came across was www.boutiquejapan.com.  And they had some excellent book recommendations.  So off to the library I went to find some of them, and at the moment this was the only in.

This isn't like your normal tour guide book.  It's filled with tons of useful information like phases you should know, full page color pictures and the like but what's the most interesting is the author's take and experiences.  He takes you into the side streets, the small family run izakayas (japanese pubs) and the behind the scenes fish markets.  He talks about the food culture in Japan and how it isn't just about sushi (don't get him or me wrong - Japanese sushi is/would be the best in the world) but it's about the dying art of the Shokunin (craftsman) and how these people have dedicated themselves.  It isn't about the food business or money, it about the individual ingredients.  These men and women have studied individual ingredients for decades and their understanding far surpasses just putting a piece of tuna on a bed of rice.  You may have heard it said that sushi apprentices spend 4 years or more just learning how to make rice.  And oh how the Japanese are obsessed with rice!  In Japan rice isn't about buying it from the grocery store and cooking it.  There it's about what region the rice came from, what was the weather like when that particular crop was growing, how does this particular facility process the rice THEN once the rice has been scrutinized that way it's about cooking it - rinsing it so many times, at the right temperature, with the right seasoning, cooling it to the right temperature etc etc etc.  Rice is a religion in Japan and they take it VERY seriously.  I have a newfound respect for rice now and see it in a new light.

I digress, this book was more like literary storytelling for both the intrepid traveler and armchair reader seeking adventure.  It was informative, enlightening and one I will most def be picking up and adding to my repertoire not only for my trip but also to keep coming back to re-read.  Even tho I've haven't been to Japan (yet) this book took me to the country in a way that was all encompassing - I could hear the greetings entering the establishments, shouts of kampai (cheers) from various patrons, almost smell the sizzling hot oil cooking tempura and feel the smoky coals broiling various bits meats.

If nothing else, pick up this book and make the journey.  So worth it.