The mold kōji (Aspergillus oryzae) contributes to the sweetness of sake and plays a vital role in alcoholic fermentation and in the creation of Japanese foodstuffs like miso and soy sauce. While scientists are uncovering kōji’s genetic past, the mold’s history is also told in the records of early modern (1600–1868) sake brewers, who may not have understood they were using microorganisms but managed to develop sophisticated means of cultivating the filamentous fungus and comprehended well its impact on the taste of their beverages. A section from The Idiot’s Guide to Sake Brewing (Dōmō shuzōki), completed in 1688 and translated here, offers the oldest discussion of how brewers worked with kōji in Japan. When viewed in the context of earlier references, it shows that kōji’s role as a sweetener was historically secondary to its primary function to facilitate alcoholic fermentation.

The Illustrated Rat’s Tale (Nezumi no sōshi emaki), an anonymous Japanese picture scroll created between 1550–1650, depicts a rat wedding banquet, and for a period with few other visual references of cooking, it is an important source for understanding the staff and procedures for food preparation in elite warrior households, which it emulates. The wedding party of the rat lord takes inspiration from the festivities for late medieval (1400–1600) warlords, and it includes rodent equivalents of the great performers and cultural influencers of the age. Analysis reveals the gendered division of labor and status in the duties of food preparation in a late medieval (rodent) warrior household with male chefs in charge of flavoring and carving at the top of the kitchen hierarchy and female servants performing manual labor outside at the bottom. For both rats and humans, the picture scroll further demonstrates that food played a powerful role in the representation of authority.

Research Article| May 01 2022 Translating Foods of the World: A Roundtable Discussion on the Challenges and Triumphs of Translating Foods Krishnendu Ray, Krishnendu Ray Krishnendu Ray is a professor of food studies at New York University. He is the author of The Migrant’s Table (Temple University Press, 2004) and The Ethnic Restaurateur (Bloomsbury, 2016) and the co-editor of Curried Cultures (University of California Press, 2012). He was a faculty member at the Culinary Institute of America (1996–2005) and president of the Association for the Study of Food and Society (2014–2018). Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Miranda Brown, Miranda Brown Miranda Brown is professor of Chinese Studies at the University of Michigan and a co-editor of Global Food History. She is the author of ThePolitics of Mourning in Early China (SUNY Press, 2007) and The Art of Medicine in Early China: The Ancient and Medieval Origins of a Modern Archive (Cambridge University Press, 2015), as well as “Mr. Song’s Cheeses: Southern China, 1368–1644,” which appeared in Gastronomica in 2019. Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Saumya Gupta, Saumya Gupta Saumya Gupta is associate professor in history at the University of Delhi. She is currently a Fellow at Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi, working on a project on the transformation of everyday cooking in North India. Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Eric C. Rath, Eric C. Rath Eric C. Rath is a professor of history at the University of Kansas where he teaches courses on food history and premodern Japan. His books include Oishii: The History of Sushi (Reaktion Books, 2021). He is a member of the editorial collective of Gastronomica, writes for the SakeTimes, and is currently completing a history of sake Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Robert T. Valgenti Robert T. Valgenti Robert T. Valgenti is a philosopher, educator, and translator based in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. He was professor of philosophy at Lebanon Valley College from 2006–2020, and is currently a visiting researcher at the University of Turin, Italy. His work explores the philosophy of food, contemporary Italian philosophy, and hermeneutics. Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Gastronomica (2022) 22 (2): 2–14. https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2022.22.2.2 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Guest Access Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Krishnendu Ray, Miranda Brown, Saumya Gupta, Eric C. Rath, Robert T. Valgenti; Translating Foods of the World: A Roundtable Discussion on the Challenges and Triumphs of Translating Foods. Gastronomica 1 May 2022; 22 (2): 2–14. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2022.22.2.2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentGastronomica Search On December 14, 2021, the roundtable discussion “Translating the Foods of the World” took place virtually with the support of Gastronomica: The Journal for Food Studies, the Culinaria Research Center at the University of Toronto, and the Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Kansas. The event was hosted by Daniel Bender, the director of the Culinaria Research Center, and moderated by Krishnendu Ray, professor of Food Studies at New York University—both are members of the Gastronomica editorial collective. The roundtable was the first of a series of events in support of Gastronomica’s recent call for submissions of translations and reflections on translations about foods of the world. The dialogue has been minimally edited for publication. Particularly relevant to our virtual panel today is the Indigenous law of this land, Toronto, or Tkaronto, that lies in the “Dish With One Spoon Territory.” The Dish With One... You do not currently have access to this content.

This article presents the first English translation and commentary on Sake Journal (Goshu no nikki), the earliest guide to sake brewing and one of the most important sources for understanding the history of sake making in medieval Japan (1192–1600). Sake Journal includes six recipes for sake, five of which are translated here, along with the directions for pasteurization. Besides providing insights into the technology and tools of medieval brewing, as a secret manuscript whose dissemination was strictly controlled, Sake Journal documents the professionalization of the brewing craft and the popularization of certain styles.

This chapter describes how food, beverages, and tobacco proved their entertainment value to commoners in the early modern period as the focal point of struggles ranging from eating and drinking contests to fantasy battles in which brands of sake fought different sweets or blends of tobacco. The foodstuffs, drinks, and drugs depicted in the writings about various gustatory competitions described in this chapter are all quintessentially early modern. Collectively the evidence of gustatory competitions suggests a level of fun to be had with food, drink, and tobacco, one that rivals the prominence of these goods in modern Japanese culture. In other words, fun with food in Japan was constructed as a male pleasure. Kobayashi's achievements might seem an aberration to Japanese food culture, famous for its small servings-particularly at sushi restaurants-but he would have faced some tough challengers in early modern Japan.

Funazushi, a fermented food made with crucian carp, is often described as Japan's most ancient form of sushi. This article evaluates these historical claims and offers some tasting notes, exploring traditional versions of the dish and new interpretations that offer a possible future for sushi. I could never write a global history of sushi without having eaten what has been called the most “ancient form” of sushi, the funazushi found in Shiga Prefecture (Hosking 1996: 43). So on a recent trip to Japan I set aside two days to try to eat as much funazushi as possible. This proved to be challenging for many reasons, not the least of which was the taste of funazushi, which many people find disagreeable. What I learned from the experience was less about sushi's past than a possibility for sushi's future.

After the 1923 Great Kantō Earthquake, Tokyo rebuilt and extended its transportation infrastructure to bring the major areas for residence, business, and pleasure within walking distance, and that sparked a new genre of food writing, the Walker's Guide to Dining (tabearuki). First published in 1929, the year of the Great Depression, and continued up to the mid-1930s, the books by different authors that shared the title Walker's Guide documented affordable places to eat and new communities of restaurant customers, while pioneering new ways to write about food. Gaining particular attention in these books for their inexpensive and varied menus and their mixed gender clientele were trending restaurants called shokudō, a term that referred both to diners and dining halls in department stores. The Walker's Guides and the diner / dining hall can be called technologies of taste for the way they assembled diverse culinary experiences and made them legible for a mass market.

Research Article| November 01 2020 Technology and Taste in East Asia: An Introduction Eric C. Rath Eric C. Rath Eric C. Rath is Professor of History at the University of Kansas, where he teaches courses on food history and premodern Japan. A specialist in Japanese food, his books include Food and Fantasy in Early Modern Japan (University of California Press, 2010), Japan's Cuisines: Food, Place and Identity (Reaktion Books, 2016), and the forthcoming Oishii: The History of Sushi (Reaktion Books, 2021). Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Gastronomica (2020) 20 (4): 51–52. https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2020.20.4.51 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Eric C. Rath; Technology and Taste in East Asia: An Introduction. Gastronomica 1 November 2020; 20 (4): 51–52. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2020.20.4.51 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentGastronomica Search This content is only available via PDF. © 2020 by the Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved. Please direct all requests for permission to photocopy or reproduce article content through the University of California Press's Reprints and Permissions web page, https://www.ucpress.edu/journals/reprints-permissions.2020 Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.

"Chop suey and sushi from sea to shining sea: Chinese and Japanese restaurants in the United States." Food, Culture & Society, 22(3), pp. 376–377

Research Article| August 01 2017 Historical Reflections on Culinary Globalization in East Asia Eric C. Rath Eric C. Rath University of Kansas Eric C. Rath is Professor of Japanese History at the University of Kansas specializing in cultural and culinary history. His publications include Japan's Cuisines: Food, Place and Identity (Reaktion Books, 2016) and Food and Fantasy in Early Modern Japan (University of California Press, 2010). Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Gastronomica (2017) 17 (3): 82–84. https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2017.17.3.82 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Eric C. Rath; Historical Reflections on Culinary Globalization in East Asia. Gastronomica 1 August 2017; 17 (3): 82–84. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/gfc.2017.17.3.82 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentGastronomica Search This content is only available via PDF. © 2017 by the Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved. Please direct all requests for permission to photocopy or reproduce article content through the University of California Press's Reprints and Permissions web page, http://www.ucpress.edu/journals.php?p=reprints.2017 Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.

Rice, Agriculture, and the Food Supply in Premodern Japan demonstrates that rice’s significance as a foodstuff and as a cultural symbol has been vastly overestimated in the history of premodern Jap...

would have been significantly meliorated by a glossary that gathered all the terms and names introduced in the text. It would also have served as a valuable reference work in itself, complementing the breadth and depth of the essays included in the volume. It is almost inevitable that the ‘grand sweep’ approach adopted by Salz will find its detractors if for no other reason than that the work must necessarily focus more on breadth than depth. The value of this volume lies in its admirable efforts to strive for the latter through multiple perspectives even as it presents a panoramic view of theatre, writ large, in Japan. That it is largely successful must be credited to the stellar roster of contributors and the deft touch Salz displays in his editing. It is equally true that when reviewing a project of this nature, the reviewer will find some particular pet interest underrepresented or, heaven forefend, absent. I could say that I would have liked to see fewer pages devoted to classical theatre, which has already been extensively described elsewhere, and more given over to exploring the intercultural matters, or the critical controversies surrounding theatre scholarship, for example; but, in the end, that would do a disservice to the work that Salz has constructed. Indeed, I can readily imagine pairing the work under review with a few judiciously chosen anthologies of Japanese drama, say, and building an undergraduate class around them. The accessibility of information, the breadth of coverage, and the variations in style make this an ideal reference work for anyone seeking to comprehend the basics (and then some) of the Japanese dramatic tradition.

The development of the iemoto (family head, 家元) system shaped the history of many traditional Japanese performing arts and continues to have a weighty influence on training, repertoire, and staging in noh and kyogen, nihonbuyo (classical Japanese dance), and kabuki musicians. Additionally, the iemoto system offers a point of commonality between traditional drama and other arts, such as tea ceremony, flower arrangement, and martial arts’ organizational structures. Conversely, the lack of an iemoto distinguishes kabuki from noh and kyogen, although several kabuki actors head schools of classical Japanese dance. As scholar Nishiyama Matsunosuke has explored, familiarity with iemoto and their institutional powers, which comprise an “iemoto system,” sheds light on continuities across traditional arts.

Local food is a concept that seems to define itself: the ingredients available for consumption in a given zone in contrast to foodstuffs that are either ubiquitous or are found in different places. Discovering local foods would appear to be as easy as following the contours of a map or simply drawing new boundaries. But in Japan the category of “local food” has a history as a way of recounting the points of contact between diet, place, and identity that not only is quite recent but also reveals how what designates a local food is more than simply the ingredients in a particular place but also a project of national and even transnational culinary politics. Local foods could be assumed to encapsulate the traditional modes of eating in specific zones, but in Japan the words for local food are even younger designations than those for national cuisine. The earliest references to words signifying Japanese cuisine appear in the last three decades of the nineteenth century. 2 However, words for “local food”—kyoˉdo shoku and kyoˉdo ryoˉri—date to the 1920s. 3 The novelty of local food should not be too surprising, since the conditions the words describe would have been meaningless in an age when nearly all of the foodstuffs eaten were produced and consumed locally, which was largely the case for most of Japan before 1930, when diet and food production remained more similar to the nineteenth century than to the postwar era. Food scholar Ishige Naomichi presents the example of his grandmother’s rural household near Yamagata City as typical of the way people in rural areas ate in the 1930s much as they