Chasoba

Okay, this might or might not be a diet of the Okinawans but I guess they must eat it since it is so popular in so many Japanese restaurants.

This is Chasoba or green tea flavored soba. It is one of my favorite food of all time. It is meant to be eaten cold and dipped into some Japanese soy sauce (with a dash of wasabi). In fact, one can pick up a packet of this chasoba in supermarkets and cook it just the way you cook spaghetti. Except that you have to run it through ice cold water to make it cold and nice. Lovely!

7 Servings of Vegetables

From what I have read, the Japanese in Okinawa eat up to 7 servings of vegetables a day. How is that for a healthy diet? No wonder the older generation of Okinawans have such long lives. Imagine eating 7 servings of vegetables a day. That would roughly be 3 servings for lunch and 4 servings for dinner.

Carrots, cabbage and beansprouts are some of the staple vegetables. And they do not eat it raw like salads. The vegetables are cooked together with other dishes or put in soups.

There are also some vegetables which are not commonly found or eaten in mainland Japan. An example is the Goya (bitter melon):

What is Miso Soup

Miso soup (味噌汁, miso shiru) is a traditional Japanese soup consisting of a stock called "dashi" into which is mixed softened miso paste. Although the suspension of miso paste into dashi is the only characteristic that actually defines miso soup, many other ingredients are added depending on regional and seasonal recipes, and personal preference.

Further definition is as follows: Miso is soy bean paste, which is an essential condiment in Japanese cooking. Miso is made by fermenting soy beans with salt and koji. Koji are fermented grains such as rice, barley, and soy beans. It takes about 10 months to a year for miso to be ready for use.

About Dashi

Dashi (出汁, だし) is a class of soup and cooking stocks considered fundamental to Japanese cooking. Shizuo Tsuji (1980) wrote that "many substitutes for dashi are possible, but without dashi, dishes are merely a la japonaise and lack the authentic flavor." Dashi forms the base for miso soups, clear broth soups, Japanese noodle broths, and many Japanese simmering liquids.

The most common form of dashi is a simple broth or stock made by boiling kombu (edible kelp) and kezurikatsuo (shavings of katsuobushi) and then straining the resultant liquid. Fresh dashi made from dried kelp and katsuobushi is rare today, even in Japan.^[1] Most people use granulated or liquid instant substitutes.

Other kinds of dashi stock are made by soaking kelp, shiitake, or niboshi in water for many hours or heating them in water nearly to boiling and straining the resultant broth. Kelp stock or kombu dashi is made by soaking kelp, or sea tangle, in water. Shiitake dashi stock is made by soaking dried shiitake mushrooms in water. Niboshi dashi stock is made by soaking small dried sardines (after pinching off their heads and entrails to prevent bitterness) in water.

In 1908, the unusual and strong flavor of kelp dashi was identified by Kikunae Ikeda as umami, the "fifth flavor", attributed to unique taste receptors responding to glutamic acid.

The most common form of dashi is a simple broth or stock made by boiling kombu (edible kelp) and kezurikatsuo (shavings of katsuobushi) and then straining the resultant liquid. Fresh dashi made from dried kelp and katsuobushi is rare today, even in Japan.^[1] Most people use granulated or liquid instant substitutes.

Other kinds of dashi stock are made by soaking kelp, shiitake, or niboshi in water for many hours or heating them in water nearly to boiling and straining the resultant broth. Kelp stock or kombu dashi is made by soaking kelp, or sea tangle, in water. Shiitake dashi stock is made by soaking dried shiitake mushrooms in water. Niboshi dashi stock is made by soaking small dried sardines (after pinching off their heads and entrails to prevent bitterness) in water.

In 1908, the unusual and strong flavor of kelp dashi was identified by Kikunae Ikeda as umami, the "fifth flavor", attributed to unique taste receptors responding to glutamic acid.