Japan Eats‪!‬ Heritage Radio Network

Our guest is Sawako Okochi who is the co-chef and co-owner of Shalom Japan, which she opened in 2013 with her husband and co-chef, Aaron Israel.

Shalom Japan is unique because Sawa and Aaron combine Japanese and Jewish food cultures on one menu. The unique concept has proven successful as they celebrate the 10th year of Shalom Japan.

They also have just published a beautiful book titled “Love Japan – Recipes From Our Japanese American Kitchen”.

In this episode, we will discuss how Sawa and Aaron met and decided to open a restaurant together, the overlapping and contrasting elements in Japanese and Jewish foods, creative menu items at Shalom Japan, what they want to share with us through the new book, and much, much more!!!

Our guest Takashi Sato is the ８th generation family member of Sanjirushi Jozo in Mie Prefecture and the president of San-J International in the U.S.

Sanjirushi Jozo has been making soy sauce and miso since 1804, and in 1978 the company decided to expand its business to the U.S. Now, 45 years later, San-J is one of the most familiar soy sauce brands in the U.S. and you may have seen its labels at Whole Foods Market, for instance.

Soy sauce is a quintessential ingredient of Japanese food, but many of us don’t know the different types and their unique flavors. San-J specializes in Tamari, which is a rare type.

Also unknown is the fact that the precious tradition of fermented food production has been declining in Japan and Takashi is very much concerned about the situation. That is why he created the Hakko Hub, which aims to revitalize the artisanal fermented food industry.

In this episode, we will discuss the diverse types and flavors of soy sauce, what exactly Tamari soy sauce is, how Takashi’s unique product line can help people with allergies, his efforts to revive the traditional fermentation industry in Japan, and much, much more!!!

Our guest is Marco Moreira who is the chef/owner of 15 EAST @ Tocqueville in New York.

He joined us in Episode #28 and discussed his fascinating background, including how the young Brazilian man came to New York and became a sushi chef, and shared his deep knowledge of Japanese food culture.

Marco has run multiple highly successful restaurants in New York with a wide variety of influences from Japanese, French and Brazilian flavors.

No restaurant was unaffected by COVID but Marco navigated tremendous challenges well and opened a new restaurant called 15 EAST @ Tocqueville after the pandemic.

15 EAST @ Tocqueville is an innovative concept because Japanese food and French are served both authentically and seamlessly under one roof without being gimmicky.

In this episode, we will discuss the unique concept of 15 EAST @ Tocqueville, why Marco decided the contrasting culinary genres belong in one space, his point of view about how Japanese sushi has become part of mainstream American food culture, and much, much more!!!

Our guest is Nori Nakamura who is the owner and winemaker at Noria, a unique winery in California.

When we eat Japanese food, we almost automatically think to pair it with Japanese sake or Japanese beer.

On the other hand, Japanese sake has become so popular globally that you can find it at Michelin-starred, non-Japanese restaurants outside of Japan these days.

Nori decided to break the preconception and now is making beautiful wine that pairs perfectly with Japanese food.

In this episode, we will discuss how Nori, who used to be in the high-end hotel industry in Japan, became a winemaker, his wine-making philosophy, what types of wine go well with Japanese food, the future of Japanese food and wine pairing, and much, much more!!!

Our guest today is Naoko Takei Moore, who is the chef and owner of Toiro. She is an expert in Donabe, or Japanese traditional earthen cookware, and through Toiro, Naoko introduces global food lovers to the world of Donabe.

She is also the co-author of “Donabe: Classic and Modern Japanese Clay Pot Cooking”, published by Ten Speed Press.

Donabe has a long history and has been an important part of Japanese food culture. Naoko is a precious figure to learn from all about Donabe.

In this episode, we will discuss what exactly Donabe is, how superior Donabe is compared to other cookware, how to choose the right Donabe, handy Donabe recipes to try, and much, much more!!!

Our guest is Elizabeth Andoh, who already joined us 11 times and shared her truly deep insight into traditional Japanese food culture.

Elizabeth is a food writer and Japanese cooking instructor based in Tokyo, and she has lived in Japan for over 50 years. She runs the culinary arts program called A Taste of Culture, which offers a great opportunity for non-Japanese people to explore Japanese culture through its food.

She is also the author of 6 cookbooks, including the award-winning “Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Kitchen”, “Kibo: Recipes and Stories from Japan's Tohoku”, and “Kansha: Celebrating Japan's Vegan and Vegetarian Traditions”.

Today’s topic is Yakumi. You may have never heard of this word, but yakumi plays a very important role in Japanese food. Yakumi means herbs and spices but the idea goes far beyond your palate. They not only offer delicious flavors and tastes but also plenty of health benefits.

There are various types of yakumi from uniquely Japanese plants like wasabi, sansho, Japanese myoga ginger and mitsuba leaves to more commonly available ginger, garlic and radishes. And yakumi is very easy to use in your own kitchen.

In this episode, we will discuss what yakumi is, the diverse flavors of yakumi, the health benefits of yakumi, easy recipes for yakumi-rich dishes, good substitutes for Japanese yakumi if you live outside of Japan, and much, much more!!!