Traditional dishes of Japanese cuisine, sushi and sashimi are bites made of raw fish or seafood. Outside Japan, these two typical dishes are emblematic of the country while in Japan, their consumption is only occasional . Sushi and sashimi are often confused, but they are two different specialties. Sushi is recognizable in particular by the presence of vinegared rice. There are hundreds of varieties of sushi in Japan, both in composition and in form. The basic sushi comes in the form of a small quenelle that is very easy to make. First, mix cooked Japanese sushi rice with rice vinegar, salt and sugar. Cut a piece of raw fish, and season it as desired (wasabi, herbs, etc.). Take a ball of rice the size of a ping-pong ball in the palm of your hand, and place the slice of fish, then press gently so that everything sticks together. Sashimi, on the other hand, consists of slices of seasoned raw fish, cut into bite-sized pieces. There is not really a recipe for sashimi, all residing in the cutting of the fish and in the seasoning often composed of mirin (sweet sake), miso, sake, soy sauce or even the famous wasabi.
Literally "grilled bird", yakitori are small skewers, traditionally chicken, the size of a bite and cooked on the grill. Their consumption is widespread throughout Japan, and there are many variations in several regions or cities, but also variations around the world. Considered as aperitif biscuits or snacks in Japan, yakitori are prepared according to two main recipes. In one, the chicken skewer (skin, heart, etc.) is simply grilled with a little salt, and in the other, the skewer is cooked plain, then covered with a tare sauce (thick sauce similar to teriyaki containing mirin, soy sauce and sugar).
Tempura, or tenpura, is an assortment of small doughnuts very popular in Japan. Born in the 17th century, these little donuts have nothing to do with our fried foods, since they use the only low-calorie fried food made of a fluid batter made from flour, eggs and ice water. The low calorie secret lies in the temperatures:the dough must be very cold, and the oil bath must be heated to 180°C. It is the shock caused by this temperature difference that will give all the flavor and all the digestible character to the donuts. You can cook a tempura from whatever you want (fish, shellfish, pork, vegetables, etc.). Served alone or with white radish and soy sauce, tempura is a Japanese culinary specialty not to be missed.
