What are the characteristics of Japanese traditional food culture "harmony with food"

Food is the foundation of all cultures. In terms of food culture, as the "world's number one omnivore", the Japanese diet structure is worth exploring. Because it can reflect the Japanese spiritual structure, social structure and the way of understanding things, and reflect Japan's cultural character and characteristics.

As early as the rope-text era, Japan had a clear division of labor between the sexes: women picked nuts and men hunted and fished. After that, with the introduction of rice planting technology into Japan, the Japanese diet structure has changed greatly, but the basic characteristics of omnivore have not changed. On the contrary, with the development of society, their recipes are more and more abundant.

Due to the influence of natural environment, animal husbandry in Japan was once underdeveloped. At the same time, in history, because domestic animals were mainly used for pulling carts on cultivated land instead of eating them, and Buddhism prohibited killing animals, Japanese people's meat intake was insufficient for a long time. However, this situation has changed in recent decades. As an important part of diet, meat is increasingly competitive with fish-Japan is surrounded by the sea, and there are more than 300 kinds of marine fish that can be tasted in Japan. The Japanese call themselves a "complete fish-eating nation" and are proud of making full use of seafood. After World War II, the average life expectancy, height and weight of Japanese people have been greatly improved. According to reischauer, one of the main reasons for this situation is that "food is more colorful".

The eclecticism of Japanese diet is closely related to their ideas. Influenced by China's theory of "Yin-Yang and Five Elements", the Japanese believe that "balance" is the first priority of everything. Because all kinds of foods are divided into yin and yang, the Japanese have always implemented the omnivorous principle to ensure the balance between yin and yang. It is this concept that makes omnivorous food a major feature of Japanese food culture.

Another feature of Japanese food culture is "raw" and "fresh". According to the Japanese concept, fresh things are the most nutritious and energetic in the body, and the best eating period of any living thing is its freshness. Japanese people like to eat raw food, not only vegetables and plants, but also eggs, fish and meat. According to modern medicine, freshness is good for health, while freshness is good for health. Because, when it is "fresh", growth hormone is the most vigorous and its nutritional value is of course the highest. The Japanese have realized this for a long time, and the narrative of eating "seasonal" things that can often be seen in Leaves Collection is undoubtedly a proof.

The third characteristic of Japanese food culture is "pursuing beauty in shape". Japanese cuisine pays attention to "artistry" and "elegance". In Japanese food, names related to natural scenery account for more than half, such as Song Feng, Hongmei Shao, Shisong, Taoshan, Peony cake, Zhou Bin, Shi Shui, Xue Yue and Dayan. Apart from the name, China people who have been to Japan may find Japanese food more pleasing than pleasing to the eye.

In recent decades, the Japanese lifestyle has undergone profound changes in all aspects, among which the most striking change is the daily diet. In today's Japan, with the diversification of people's tastes and the constant influence of western culture, all kinds of delicious food are flooding the market and cooking methods are also different.