Complete Japanese Cuisine series, Press Release September 2, 2024

The Japanese Culinary Academy’s

Complete Japanese Cuisine
Graphic, Detailed, and Scientific Explanations for Professionals
The Healthy Cuisine
Since 2013, with the inscription of washoku, the traditional dietary cultures of Japan, on theUNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list, professional chiefs around the world
began to take note of the methods and techniques of Japanese cuisine. Dishes featuringumami, the taste produced by dashi broth uniquely developed in Japan, provide a “healthycuisine” that is lower in calories than foods that derive flavor from oils and fats. As theenvironment surrounding Japanese cuisine has grown increasingly sophisticated around theworld, the Complete Japanese Cuisine series, available in English and Japanese, was launchedto provide detailed and accurate explanations of the practices and the science that make it
distinctive.
Editorial Policy: Fully Illustrated and Practical
In contrast to the longstanding tradition of passing down the lore and techniques of Japanesecuisine through oral transmission and apprentice-style training—without clear step-by-step
explanation—this series adopts the policy of presenting the procedures and techniques ofJapanese cuisine in well-illustrated and step-by-step fashion supported by explanations of thescience behind them.
Specifically, the series is intended to provide professional chefs in and outside of Japan
with clearly presented procedures and scientific understanding of the techniques of Japanesecuisine. It is hoped that this material will enable them to put those techniques into practice intheir own cuisine.
About the Japanese Culinary Academy
The Japanese Culinary Academy, a non-profit organization, is a specialized group including
chefs, researchers of taste and Japanese culture, educators from institutions of higher learning,representatives of food-related industries, and other professionals who are engaged in thepromotion and transmission of Japanese cuisine. The project to publish the “The Complete
Japanese Cuisine” series is a collaboration among chefs and experts in various fields, andaims to provide professional chefs with the information they need for the scientific andtheoretical understanding of highly specialized techniques.
The organization is operated through the cooperation of researchers in various fields andrelated industries, with Murata Yoshihiro (third-generation owner of Kikunoi and recipient ofthe designation Person of Cultural Merit) serving as honorary president and Kurisu Masahiro(third-generation owner of Tankuma Kita-mise) as president. Since its establishment in 2004,
the organization has worked vigorously to establish, disseminate, and transmit Japan’s cultureof food, playing a central role in obtaining the listing of washoku as part of UNESCO’sIntangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, the revision of Japan’s Basic Act on Culture and theArts in 2017, and the listing of Kyoto cuisine as an Intangible Cultural Property of Japan.

1 / 4Complete Japanese Cuisine series, Press Release September 2, 2024

The Japanese Culinary Academy’s

Complete Japanese Cuisine
Appealing, Understandable, and Science-based

The content of the Complete Japanese Cuisine series is compiled expressly to be translated
into English for a wide readership. The texts, which include basic information about Japanand Japanese culture along with photographs, are prepared in such a way as to make themappealing and understandable to readers who may not be familiar with Japan or Japanesecuisine.

Introducing the First Five Volumes
Introduction to Japanese Cuisine: Nature,
History and Culture
The first volume in the series has fivechapters covering the topics of: Nature andClimate, History and Development, ArtisticAwareness (Rinpa, Yugen, Wabi and Sabi,Fukiyose), The Essentials (Dashi, Umami,
the Five Techniques), and Dishes for
Seasonal Festivities. Along with theinformation provided in the texts, recipes, and captions, a wealth ofphotographs presents vivid visual detail.
For example, in the chapter on “Nature and Climate,” topicalsections introduce the traditions and role of rice culture, theblessings of water, the rich culture of fermented seasonings and foods supported by the warm,
humid climate, the Japanese archipelago’s location between warm and cold ocean currents
carrying a wealth of seafood, and the tremendous variety of ingredients that flourish in its
constantly shifting seasons.
The chapter on “History and Development” outlines the evolution of culinary techniques in
the course of history, noting long-established customs for expressing gratitude for theblessings of nature. The origins of Japanese cuisine are believed to go back to offerings(shinsen) made to the kami deities. Dining on such offerings after they are taken down fromthe shrine is believed to allow human beings to receive energy from the divine. A richtradition of shōjin vegetarian cuisine developed after the introduction of Zen Buddhism.
“The Essentials” chapter gives a run-down of the “five techniques”: kiru (cutting), niru
(cooking in liquid), yaku (grilling), musu (steaming), and ageru (deep-frying). Representative
dishes for each technique are pictured and their recipes provided at the back of the book.
The “Dishes for Seasonal Festivities” chapter presents commentary and leading festive
dishes for each of eleven traditional annual events, amply illustrated with photographs.
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Flavor and Seasonings: Dashi, Umami,and Fermented Foods
The second volume of the series focuses on
the origins and history of dashi and umami,
which are essential elements of Japanesecuisine. It details the history, types, andproduction of kombu, the seaweed
ingredient of dashi, as well as themanufacturing process developed overcenturies for katsuobushi bonito flakes, the fish ingredient. “DashiIngredient Science” explains the role of glutamic and inosinicacids in the creation of the umami taste. This is followed bysections on three leading seasonings used in Japanese cuisine:
shoyu, miso, and sake, featuring Aspergillus oryzae, the “lynchpin of fermentation
production” that is known as the “national fungus” in Japan. The chapter “The Basics ofDashi” details information on the science behind the umami taste and a run-down of thevarious types of dashi ingredients as well as methods of making it. The end of the volume
features numerous recipes for dishes highlighting the flavors of dashi, including its vegetarianversions, and an introduction to fermented seasonings, the uses of miso and molds, as well assake, mirin, vinegar, salt, and sugar. A section on “Aromatic Ingredients” introduces the richarray of vegetables, citrus, and roots that are used to garnish dishes.

Mukoita I Cutting Techniques: Fish
Of the “Five Techniques” introduced involume 1, this volume takes up cutting,
beginning with the basics of “Knives in
the history of Japanese Cuisine,” “Hygienefor Food Eaten Raw,” “Knives in theJapanese Kitchen,” “Posture and Grip,”and ending with “Knife Maintenance.”
The chapter on “Standard Techniques”
covers fish anatomy and the procedure for spiking fish andpresents the steps for carving red sea bream, yellowtail, bonito,butterfish, and salmon. More specialized techniques for lesscommonly encountered ingredients are presented for flounder,
bartail flathead, devil stinger, tilefish, tiger pufferfish, soft-shelled turtle, monkfish, carp, andtuna. The cutting techniques for each kind of fish are shown in carefully framed photographs
accompanied by verbal instructions.

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Mukoita II Cutting Techniques: Seafood,Poultry, and Vegetables
This volume explains in detail how to clean
and dress long fish such as eel, conger eel,and pike conger, as well as small fish suchas horse mackerel, and seafood such as
squid, shrimp, and shellfish. It also covers
the techniques for carving chicken, duck,and quail, which are frequently used inJapanese cooking. It presents the basic cutting techniques forvegetables (sengiri, araregiri, mijingiri, wagiri, hangetsugiri, etc.)
along with instructions on peeling and decorative cutting(katsuramuki, roppomuki, yorininjin, shobu-udo, baika-ninjin, etc.).

Yakiba Grilling Techniques: Shio-yaki,Furishio-yaki, Yuan-yaki, Tare-yaki, andYakitori
Forthcoming 2025.
(Japanese edition currently available.)
The first two chapters explain the standard
grilling methods of heating in Japanesecuisine. What kinds of heat achieve whatresults? What kinds of chemical changes take place in theingredients as a result of preliminary preparation, such as bysprinkling salt or marinating before heating? Supporting the oftenrepeated rule in Japanese cuisine that “preliminary preparation makes all the difference,” thetexts explain the science behind the flavors and techniques, and photos clarify comparisons of
the different approaches.
Two more chapters cover the four “basic grilling techniques” for butterfish, salmon,
barracuda, beltfish, tilefish, whiting, yellowtail, and eel, quail, and sweetfish, and continue toprovide recipes for 42 different grilled dishes and 22 types of yakitori, and instructions fordifferent kinds of skewering and use of electric grills.
Also forthcoming
Nikata: Simmering and Steaming Techniques
Inquiries and orders:
Masashi Tsukiji
Managing Editor
Publishing Office, Japanese Culinary Academy#305 Eiwa Oike Bldg. 436 Sasayacho Higashinotoin-Oike-sagaru
Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto 604-8187, Japanmasashi.tsukiji@jcuisinepublishing.jp
Tel: 090-1464-9035

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