East Asian Studies at Ohio State University Libraries is happy to announce that our collection of Japanese food culture-related resources has grown with a new donation of Japanese recipe books! They cover everything from trendy new food creations to traditional home style cooking.
Japanese cuisine is wonderfully diverse, with a strong emphasis on freshness. Fruits and vegetables are commonly eaten in season, and fish and seafood play major roles. Regional specialties are abundant throughout Japan; even the smallest towns are often famous for their local specialties. The foundation of traditional Japanese food, though, is undoubtedly rice. Rice is so important that the Japanese word for cooked rice (gohan, ご飯) is a synonym for “meal.”
Food culture is taken very seriously in Japan, permeating everything from pop culture and tourism to area and culture studies. Manga such as the best-selling Shokugeki no Souma or the long-running Oishinbo accentuate the inspiration and drive of Japanese chefs, while Japanese television shows such as the indie cult-classic Kodoku no Gurume (English Title: The Lonely Gourmet) intertwine Japanese food with the heightened reality of Japanese television dramas. Reflecting the importance of food in both culture and Japanese studies writ large, academics have found the cross-section of Japanese food and area studies a rich field of study.
The newly donated books are currently in processing and will be made available very soon. Here is a preview of just some of the recipe books found in the donation:
Eigo de tsukuru washoku: Nihon no shoku bunka, dentō o tsutaeru (英語でつくる和食: 日本の食文化伝統を伝える) by Yuko Fujita and Navi International (編著藤田裕子, ナヴィ インタ一ナショナル) (Tōkyō: Natsumesha, 2004)
Designed for an international audience, this recipe book has many colorful pictures to illustrate the step-by-step instructions and is written in both Japanese and English. The ingredients’ measurements even include Imperial units! The bi-lingual contents make this book particularly useful to those studying either English or Japanese. The book covers the fundamentals of Japanese cooking, basic Japanese recipes, and even introduces table manners and dish arrangement.
Onigirazu aideachō : mainichi no obentō o oishiku, kawaiku, kantan ni!(おにぎらずアイデア帳: 每日のお弁当をおいしく, かわいく, かんたんに!) by Erika Kanamaru (金丸絵里加) (Tōkyō: Tōkyō Shoten, 2015)
This book introduces a popular new style of おにぎり (onigiri), or Japanese rice balls. This new style of おにぎり is called おにぎらず (onigirazu), which resembles おにぎり, but is folded instead of shaped into a ball. The ingredients are packed between layers of rice, much like a sandwich. The book presents combinations of Asian and western styles with many colorful, delectable-looking pictures. Inside you can find useful tips and careful instructions on how to make おにぎらず. While rice may be the focal point of おにぎり, おにぎらず emphasizes the delicious ingredients inside. おにぎらず is a kind of wordplay– おにぎり comes from the verb “握る”（にぎる, nigiru), which means “to mold with your hands.” おにぎらず, then, means “without molding with your hands,” hence its flat shape.
Harumi san no ryōri wa naze oishi (はるみさんの料理はなぜ, おいしい) by Harumi Kurihara (栗原はるみ) (Tōkyō: Fusōsha, 2015)
This is a culinary magazine from the Japanese celebrity homemaker, Harumi Kurihara. She has been called the “Martha Stewart” of Japan, as her culinary specialty is home cooking, and she often appears on television. She has also written over 20 bestselling books and has her own line of cookware. In this magazine, she introduces nutritious daily home cooking using seasonal ingredients found during spring. The magazine shows us a variety of dinner options, from different meat and grilled fish dishes to noodles and fried foods. Included along with her recipes are personal comments, including explanations of how certain recipes were born, keys to creating restaurant-quality food, and other general advice.
EAS at OSUL’s collection of Japanese cooking-related resources:
For readily available resources, please check out OSUL’s entire catalog for Japanese food culture-related materials. Here is just some what you can find in our collection:
Japanese food culture
Edo no shokubunka : washoku no hatten to sono haikei (江戶の食文化 : 和食の発展とその背景) by Harao Nobuo (原田信男) (Tōkyō: Shōgakkan, 2014)
Food and fantasy in early modern Japan by Eric C. Rath (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2010)
Reading food in modern Japanese literature by Tomoko Aoyama (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2001)
Japanese cuisine in pop culture
Oishinbo (美味しんぼ) by Kariya Tetsu (雁屋哲) (Tōkyō: Shōgakukan, 2000)
Kodoku no gurume (孤独のグルメ) by Mizoguchi Kenji ( 溝口憲司) and Hōrai Tadaaki (宝来忠昭) (Terebi Tōkyō: Hanbaimoto Ponī Kyanion, 2012)
More Japanese home-cooking recipe books
At home with Japanese cooking by Elizabeth Andoh (New York: Knopf: Distributed by Random House, 1986)
Let’s cook Japanese food! : everyday recipes for home cooking by Amy Kaneko (San Fransisco: Chronicle Books, 2007)
Kukkingu papa no dokusha gojiman no reshipi (クッキングパパの読者ご自慢のレシピ) by Ueyama Tochi (うえやまとち) (Tōkyō: Kōdansha, 1998)
Kukkingu papa no shūmatsu no reshipi 201 ( クッキングパパの週末のレシピ201) by Ueyama Tochi (うえやまとち) (Tōkyō: Kōdansha, 1997)
