Rice – Rice served in Japan is of the Japonica variety and is a vital part of Japanese cuisine and history. It was once considered so vital that it was one of the primary measures of currency in the country. Often, it is served in a bowl and is known as gohan. Rice dishes include the likes of Kayu, Okayu, donburi, and Sushi.
Noodles - Noodles are another vital part of Japanese cuisine, coming in the form of Soba (buckwheat) and Udon (wheat) noodles which are often served either hot or cold. Ramen noodles have become popular only in the last 100 years or so.
Basics of Japanese Cuisine
The Japanese cuisine is usually defined by its combination of food staples like noodles and rice with soup and a okazu(meat, fish, vegetable, tofu) to add flavor to the staple. Flavoring is often done with low fat, high sodium things like soy sauce, miso, and dashi.
Most standard Japanese meals consist of three okazu and one soup, with multiple styles of cooking for each okazu, including methods such as sashimi (raw) grilled, boiled, deep fried, steamed, or dressed. Cookbooks will often be broken down into these categories for this reason. Additional chapters in these books will cover things like sushi, noodles, rice, and soups, as well as desserts in separate sections. Menus are also often divided by the cooking method.
Seafood is a common okazu ingredient because of Japan’s location on the water with a lower emphasis on eating meat from animals due to their rarity. Additionally, the Shinto and Buddhist perspectives have had profound effects on the use of meat in dishes.
