The Japanese Kitchen: 250 Recipes in a Traditional Spirit [Hardcover]

Beitchman Shimbo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 7, 2000

In the first comprehensive introduction to Japanese cooking for the U.S. market in two decades, Hiroko Shimbo Beitchman gently and authoritatively demystifies for Western cooks this elegant and tasty cuisine.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

While Asian flavors have long been fashionable in the U.S., it is perhaps the hipness of sushi and familiarity of the Tepanyaki style that have been a catalyst for the recent popularity of Japanese cuisine. The author, a veteran cooking-school instructor and food writer, offers a well-rounded introduction to the rich heritage of Japanese cooking (complete with historical, cultural and personal observations from her own childhood). "Nutrition, taste and... a spirit of innovation" are Shimbo's ambitions with this comprehensive and intriguing collection of updated classic and new recipes. Perfect for the Western cook, Shimbo's book explains traditional equipment, techniques and ingredients (although, she says, American cooking implements, and the occasional substituted ingredient, will more than suffice) and how to make such staple elements as tofu. She particularly touts the healthier aspects of Japanese cuisine and offers many simple preparations that support fast-paced lives, including Easy Simmered Chicken and Chestnuts or the quick one-pot meal of Rice, Beef, Burdock Root and Mushrooms made in a rice cooker. Shimbo doesn't disappoint the aficionado, however, with Yakitori grilling, Ponzu Sauce and a far more interesting (and healthy) rendering of ramen than the cellophane-wrapped variety. Based on Japanese home-style cooking, Shimbo's is an indispensable book for the home cook, with recipes such as Chirashizushi and her mother's Green Plum Wine. Nevertheless, Shimbo also shows a fresh modern sensibility by smartly melding Western influences in her own recipes for Clam Chowder (New England meets Edomae style), Lamb StewDwhich she enlivens with misoDand Teriyaki Chicken Roll served on a bed of greens. Illustrations not seen by PW. (Nov.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Japanese food has conquered America's palate almost as completely as Japanese cars have come to dominate the nation's highways. America's teens, especially, have become fascinated with the joys of sushi, and wasabi vies with salsa as a source of tongue-tingling pleasure. Hiroko Shimbo eruditely introduces the American home cook to The Japanese Kitchen and its centuries-old traditions. Beyond her explicit instructions for expertly preparing sushi, Shimbo offers a host of other recipes that don't require a source of pristine raw seafood to succeed. Noodle dishes, soups, and even a version of roast beef in a sake sauce show the range of edibles turned out by today's Japanese cook. Shimbo takes pains to place each recipe carefully within its context, explicating the history and character of each dish and painstakingly inventorying the varieties of rice and noodles used. Mark Knoblauch
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Harvard Common Press (November 7, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558321764
• ISBN-13: 978-1558321762
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #169,663 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #57 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Regional & International > Asian > Japanese

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beyond sushi, March 30, 2001

By 

Susan Porjes "Food writer" (Honolulu, HI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Japanese Kitchen (Non) (Paperback)

Books that delve into Japanese cuisine beyond the popular restaurant dishes like sushi and miso soup are few and far between. And in that sense, this book does not disappoint.

Shimbo's recipes are a joy, introducing over 200 wonderful dishes from the Japanese culinary repertoire to Western readers. Agedashi tofu (crisp tofu cubes in tempura sauce), negima-nabe (tuna and leek hotpot), multiple variations on fresh ramen and yakitori skewered chicken, the unusual gyuniku no misozuke (miso-marinated steak), usuyaki senbei (homemade rice crackers), mitsumame (chilled gelatin in syrup), along with modern Japanified Western standards like ebifurai (fried shrimp in a crisp breading), omu raisu (rice-filled omelet), and kurimu korokke (creamy croquettes) are all here. Each recipe is prefaced with a tale about its origin or the author's childhood memories, and clear instructions make preparation of "exotic, foreign" specialties easy.

Less successful are some of Shimbo's unique concoctions: soybean hummus (why?), eel burgers, "creamed" soup made of carrots, celery, garlic, miso, and soy milk. But these misfires, thankfully, can be easily overlooked.

Another of the book's strengths is the author's deep investigation into ingredients.

Shimbo, a native of Japan who teaches frequently at major cooking schools in the United States and Europe, took years to write this book, visiting artisanal food producers across Japan to gather first-hand information about how products are grown and manufactured. Her research is a goldmine for devotees of Japanese food. I've been cooking Japanese food for 25+ years, and am Japanese Food Host at BellaOnline.com, yet only from this book, for instance, did I learn that the plant from which konnyaku--a gelatinous cake used in hotpots and simmered dishes--is made, is related to taro! The plant's name is usually translated into English as "devil's tongue root," which doesn't give a clue to what it really is. To anyone familiar with taro through Hawaiian food, Chinese food, or even taro potato chips, a taro connection makes a lot of sense, given konnyaku's typical speckled gray appearance. It was like a light bulb going on for me.

Each ingredient is described thoroughly with "what to look for" and "storage" sections explaining how to choose top-quality ingredients and keep them in peak condition. I'm especially impressed by Shimbo's clarifications of the differences among types of miso, noodles, and sake.

But the book has two real weaknesses: its lack of photographs and its basic disorganization.

Although line drawings illustrate a few unusual ingredients and cooking techniques difficult to explain in words, there are no photographs of finished dishes--a glaring omission for a cuisine that places so much emphasis on presentation. Okay, I can live with that, as some of my favorite older Japanese cookbooks are sparsely illustrated.

What bothers me more is the book's organization--or lack thereof. I've owned this book for a month now, and still can't find my way around or quickly locate particular recipes. The first part of the book contains several sections that intersperse descriptions of ingredients with recipes that use them. The second half follows a more standard cookbook order of Appetizers, Soups, Vegetable Dishes, Sushi, Rice and Noodle Dishes, Main Dishes and Desserts. This places a recipe entitled "Classic Creamy Sesame-Vinegar Dressing with Broccoli" (Shimbo's variation of the traditional spinach in sesame seed dressing) in the ingredients section under "G" for goma, the Japanese word for sesame seeds.

Moreover, due to the book's equally peculiar indexing, this recipe cannot be located by looking up "broccoli, "goma," or even "classic," but is indexed as "creamy sesame-vinegar dressing with broccoli" and "sesame-vinegar dressing, creamy, with broccoli." So, even if you know a recipe's exact title, it often is not listed that way in the index. I find myself frustratingly leafing through the book time and time again to find a recipe I know is hiding somewhere.

Still, the pluses in this book greatly outweigh the minuses. This is one of the best Japanese cookbooks available in English today.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Japanese cookbook I've seen., February 13, 2005

By 

Thomas Sparks "Tommysan" (Murray, UT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Japanese Kitchen (Non) (Paperback)

I am an American who lived in Japan for several years. I teach Japanese language at the high school level. I have been cooking some of the Japanese foods that I loved in Tokyo, Odawara, Koenji, Fuchu, and other places, for years. This is the first cookbook I've seen that gives clear instructions on how to prepare these foods and explains the ingrediants so that a gaijin (non-Japanese) can understand and execute. She gives great stories of the foods that add to your understanding. When I get done cooking recipies from this book, my food tastes like the foods I ate in Japan.

I recommed this as the first and primary Japanese cooking book in your kitchen.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Masterpiece of Japanese Home Cooking, August 27, 2004

By 

rodboomboom (Dearborn, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Japanese Kitchen (Non) (Paperback)

This is the pinnacle of Japanese cooking. Here for our kitchen and table comes this expert advice on enjoying entry into this fascinating cuisine.

It is full of tips and advice on ingredients, techniques and preparation of authentic Japanese dishes.

There is task of finding rare ingredients first, from international cuisine section of supermarket or better yet from gourmet store, or mail order source in this book.

Book is void of photos but has fine drawings which aid in prep techniques and ingredients.

Have tried some new eating experiences from this book and have heard raves of diners who enjoyed the likes of: Japanese Stuffed Pancakes (Okonomiyaki); Swordfish in Yuan Style; Chicken Breast Fillets in a Crust of Mung-Bean Noodles.

There is sizeable section on Sushi.