Washoku

Yesterday I decided to try my hand at preparing washoku (traditional Japanese food) for dinner. Having never ventured far into this genre, I thought a good place to start was with our washoku cookbook of the same name by Elizabeth Andoh. After three hours of browsing recipes that called for fish heads and devil's tongue (I kid you not) we had chicken for dinner and "Washoku" (2005) went back on the shelf. I think I need a little longer to get used to the idea of a diet that as Tyler says, "comes from someone standing in the ocean with a butterfly net and eating whatever gets caught in it." In the meantime, however, I am very impressed with the ethos and aesthetics of washoku as presented by Andoh. Here are the five principles of washoku that can be applied to meals with or without fish heads.

Five Colors (go shiki): Every meal should include foods that are red, yellow, green, black (or dark purple/brown), and white. Vitamins and minerals will come into balance naturally if your food is colorful.

Five Tastes (go mi): Have a harmonious balance of flavors - salty, sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy -to stimulate the palate without overwhelming it.

Five Ways (go hoh): Prepare food with a variety of methods such as simmering, boiling, and steaming to limit the total amount of sugar, salt, and oil consumed.

Five Senses (go kan): Be mindful not only of taste, but also of sight, sound, smell and texture.

Five Outlooks (go kan mon): This principle is concerned with the way in which you partake of food and has its basis in Buddhism. First, respect the efforts of those who made the meal possible. Second, do good deeds worthy of nourishment. Third, come to the table without ire. Fourth, eat for spiritual and physical well-being. Fifth, be serious in the struggle to attain enlightenment.

For those of you still in doubt, here is an example offered by Andoh of a soup-and-sandwich lunch that follows these principles. "Imagine the following: pale and creamy potato-leek soup, nutritionally and aesthetically enhanced by a garnish of snipped chives and minced parsley, alongside tuna salad spread on triangles of whole-grain toast, accompanied by a lemon wedge, several cherry tomatoes, crisp radish sprouts, and pitted black olives . . . this American lunch follows the color, flavor palate, and multi-preparation guidelines of a washoku meal. Because it adheres to the five principles, this soup-and-sandwich lunch also achieves nutritional balance and visual interest" (p. 5). And there you have it! Perhaps by following these principles I will somehow eventually acquire a taste for dried sardines and kelp.