Dive Deeper into
the World of Washoku
January 2019

APPLY NOW !!
The Washoku World Challenge is a cooking contest in which Japanese cuisine chefs fromall over the world compete in technical expertise and passion for Japanese food. The
contest, in its 6th year, is organized by the country’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry andFisheries, for non-Japanese chefs.
To widen the door for chefs like you to share your love for Japanese cooking, this time wewill be holding qualifying tournaments in five cities worldwide (Paris, New York, Los
Angeles, Bangkok, and Osaka). The six chefs who pass the qualifiers will be invited to thefinal tournament, to be held in Tokyo on January 28th and 29th, 2019. This is an
excellent opportunity for you to test your talent in washoku. Don’t miss it!

DATE OF FINALSJanuary 28 & 29, 2019
VENUE

CHU-BO! SHIODOMENBF COMODIO Shiodome 2F
2-14-1 Higashi-Shinbashi, Minato-ku,TokyoQUALIFYING TOURNAMENT
It will be held in six cities worldwide (Paris, New York, Los
Angeles, Bangkok and Osaka)* Check the schedule on the back page.

GOLDSILVER20172017

Why You Should Take the Challenge
If you advance to the qualifying tournament,
you will:- Be able to participate in Japanese cooking seminars byleading Japanese cuisine chefs.

SILVER2017- Have the chance to apply for the Certification ofCooking Skills for Japanese Cuisine in Foreign Countries(Bronze)If you advance to the final tournament,
you will:- Be invited to the final tournament in Japan, with travel
expenses paid for- Be able to participate in Japanese cooking training
seminars in JapanSCHEDULE
Final tournament in Tokyo: January 28th and 29th, 2019

The basics of Japanese cuisine“Five Flavors, Five Colors, Five Ways”
A fundamental concept of Japanese cuisine is “Five Flavors, Five Colors, Five Ways(of cooking).” The five flavors are: sweetness, sourness, saltiness, bitterness, andumami. The five colors are: red, blue/green, yellow, white, and black. The five ways ofcooking are: cutting, simmering, grilling, steaming, and deep-frying. By combining
these, Japanese cuisine brings out the full, mouthwatering potential of each ingredient.

Contest Theme:
UMAMI
UMAMI is the source of the savorinessof Japanese cuisine.The umami taste isusually a product of some combinationof inosinic acid, amino acids such as
glutamic acid, and nucleic acids such as
guanylic acid.

This Year’s Theme:
IRODORI

Regional qualifying tournaments:
Application Screening
deadline for entry

Notice of Results

Qualifying Tournaments

Europe15th Aug

30th Aug

Paris :13rd Sep

USA

23rd Aug

7th Sep

New York: 21st Sep
Los Angeles: 24th Sep

19th Oct

5th Nov

Bangkok: 20th Nov

5th Nov

21st Nov

Osaka: 6th Dec

ASIA* Travel and hotel expenses for qualifying tournaments are to be paid for by the contestant.
* Travel and hotel expenses for the final tournament will be covered by the contest organizingcommittee.
* There is no participation fee.

Please check the official web for more detail
A MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD JUDGE“IRODORI (coloration),” is a key factor
that affects our experience of the food,delighting us before we even take a biteand creating expectations for the taste. It
is made up of five colors - red,blue/green, yellow, white, and black.
When we are served a dish created and arranged on a plate with coloration in mind,
we feel the pleasure of eating.

HOW TO APPLYELIGIBILITY

Washoku - 5 Years after Intangible Cultural
Heritage Designation
When washoku made the Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2013, there wereapproximately 55,000 Japanese restaurants overseas. By 2017, the number doubled to118,000. Many of these do not have Japanese chefs, creating high demand for talented
chefs of other nationalities that are skilled in making Japanese cuisine. I strongly
encourage you to enter the Washoku World Challenge, an official cooking contest
organized by the Japanese government, and aim to win.
I hope that you will then take the initiative to mentor others
and lead the field of Japanese cuisine in your country.

- Chef must be of non-Japanese nationality with experience in cooking Japanesecuisine AND over 2 years of experience as a chef (current place of residence can be
any country, including Japan).
- Chef must be able to participate in one of the five qualifying tournaments.
- Past participants and tournament winners are eligible to apply again.

SUBMISSION (RECIPES) REQUIREMENTS- Recipes must be originals created by the applicant, the restaurant managed by theapplicant, or the restaurant where the applicant is employed, and must not havereceived an award in any contest.

TO WRITE THE ORIGINAL RECIPES《Categories》
1. One nimonowan (with five ingredients) reflecting the UMAMI and IRODORI themes
2. One assortment of five Japanese appetizers which reflects the UMAMI andIRODORI themes* Contestants that pass the application screening will be asked to make the nimonowan at thequalifying tournament (for five people, in 90 minutes).

《Judging》
1. Judges will evaluate based on a recipe and one photo for “1. Nimonowan,” andone photo (no recipe) for “2. Assortment of Appetizers.”
2. For this Application Document Screening stage, “1. Nimonowan” will be worth
70 points maximum, and “2. Assortment of Appetizers” 20 points maximum, for a
full score of 90 points.

Yoshihiro Murata
Owner & Chef of Kikunoi
Chairman of Japanese Culinary Academy

ADVICE FROM THE DEPUTY HEAD JUDGEBalance is the Key to IRODORIWhy IRODORI? Because it can be the difference between a good chef and an
exceptional one. Professional chefs carefully arrange food on the plate so that it is easy
for customers to eat, well-balanced in proportion to the plate, and pleasing to the eye.
In Japanese cuisine, food should take up around 60% of the plate. In addition, thechef should work with five colors as a base, with red and black as accent colors andkeeping in mind the color of the plate, to enhance the tasty look of the dish.
In order to express both UMAMI and IRODORI, you should make the most of thenatural color of each ingredient. White ingredients should look as white as possible,green/blue more vivid, and yellow, red, and black as freshas they can be. Appreciate nature’s colors, and you will
create the impression of deliciousness.

Masahiro Nakata
Director of Taiwa Gakuen Education Inc.
President of Kyoto Culinary Art College* In order to ensure fair judging, please avoid having the name of the restaurant or applicant
appear in the photos.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Entry

Submit1 recipe&
2 photos

Application
docs
screening

Qualifying
Tournaments
5 cities

Winners of
Qualifying
Tournaments
submit assignments
forFinal
Tournamentin Tokyo

Application and inquiries from here;

http://washoku-worldchallenge.jp