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Japanese Women Don't Get Old or Fat: Secrets of My Mother's Tokyo Kitchen
What if there were a land where people lived longer than anywhere else on earth, the obesity rate was the lowest in the developed world, and women in their forties still looked like they were in their twenties? Wouldn't you want to know their extraordinary secret?
Japanese-born Naomi Moriyama reveals the secret to her own high-energy, successful lifestyle-and the key to the enduring health and beauty of Japanese women-in this exciting new book. The Japanese have the pleasure of eating one of the most delicious, nutritious, and naturally satisfying cuisines in the world without denial, without guilt...and, yes, without getting fat or looking old.
As a young girl living in Tokyo, Naomi Moriyama grew up in the food utopia of the world, where fresh, simple, wholesome fare is prized as one of the greatest joys of life. She also spent much time basking in that other great center of Japanese food culture: her mother Chizuko's Tokyo kitchen. Now she brings the traditional secrets of her mother's kitchen to you in a book that embodies the perfect marriage of nature and culinary wisdom-Japanese home-style cooking.
If you think you've eaten Japanese food, you haven't tasted anything yet. Japanese home-style cooking isn't just about sushi and raw fish but good, old-fashioned everyday-Japanese-mom's cooking that's stood the test of time-and waistlines-for decades. Reflected in this unique way of cooking are the age-old traditional values of family and the abiding Japanese love of simplicity, nature, and good health. It's the kind of food that millions of Japanese women like Naomi eat every day to stay healthy, slim, and youthful while pursuing an energetic, successful, on-the-go lifestyle. Even better, it's fast, it's easy, and you can start with something as simple as introducing brown rice to your diet. You'll begin feeling the benefits that keep Japanese women among the youngest-looking in the world after your very next meal!
If you're tired of counting calories, counting carbs, and counting on being disappointed with diets that don't work and don't satisfy, it's time to discover one of the best-kept and most delicious secrets for a healthier, slimmer, and long-living lifestyle. It's time to discover the Japanese fountain of youth....
Japanese-born Naomi Moriyama reveals the secret to her own high-energy, successful lifestyle-and the key to the enduring health and beauty of Japanese women-in this exciting new book. The Japanese have the pleasure of eating one of the most delicious, nutritious, and naturally satisfying cuisines in the world without denial, without guilt...and, yes, without getting fat or looking old.
As a young girl living in Tokyo, Naomi Moriyama grew up in the food utopia of the world, where fresh, simple, wholesome fare is prized as one of the greatest joys of life. She also spent much time basking in that other great center of Japanese food culture: her mother Chizuko's Tokyo kitchen. Now she brings the traditional secrets of her mother's kitchen to you in a book that embodies the perfect marriage of nature and culinary wisdom-Japanese home-style cooking.
If you think you've eaten Japanese food, you haven't tasted anything yet. Japanese home-style cooking isn't just about sushi and raw fish but good, old-fashioned everyday-Japanese-mom's cooking that's stood the test of time-and waistlines-for decades. Reflected in this unique way of cooking are the age-old traditional values of family and the abiding Japanese love of simplicity, nature, and good health. It's the kind of food that millions of Japanese women like Naomi eat every day to stay healthy, slim, and youthful while pursuing an energetic, successful, on-the-go lifestyle. Even better, it's fast, it's easy, and you can start with something as simple as introducing brown rice to your diet. You'll begin feeling the benefits that keep Japanese women among the youngest-looking in the world after your very next meal!
If you're tired of counting calories, counting carbs, and counting on being disappointed with diets that don't work and don't satisfy, it's time to discover one of the best-kept and most delicious secrets for a healthier, slimmer, and long-living lifestyle. It's time to discover the Japanese fountain of youth....
288 pages, Paperback
First published November 8, 2005
160 people are currently reading
1685 people want to read
About the author
Naomi Moriyama
12 books19 followersNaomi Moriyama is a Manhattan mom and author of “Secrets of the World’s Healthiest Children: Why Japanese Children Have the Longest, Healthiest Lives — and How Yours Can, Too” (translated into 8 languages so far), “Japanese Women Don’t Get Old or Fat: Secrets of My Mother’s Tokyo Kitchen” (translated into 21 languages), and “The Japan Diet: 30 Days to a Slimmer You”. Naomi has served as Chief Marketing Consultant for Ralph Lauren Japan, as Director of Marketing at HBO in New York, and as Account Executive at Grey Advertising in Tokyo and New York. She grew up in Tokyo but now lives in New York City with her nine-year-old son and her husband and co-author, William Doyle.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews
January 26, 2008
I've covered half the book. So far i've reestablished that americans are fat. Not entirely caused by fast food as an american staple, but because we dont do that recommended 10,000 steps...Especially in california, our asses drive everywhere. Need to go to the post office? drive there. Need to buy groceries? Drive there. Need to go to your neighbors house? I know your ass is going to drive there if its hot outside. In Japan, people walk or ride a bicycle; even if they have three bags of groceries. On the downside, being thin is a mental issue as well...but i'm pretty sure it's the same here too.
I think the biggest thing i've picked up is they're philosophy on food. Food is art. Food is love. Food isn't just made, its created whether its gourmet or homecooked. Unlike the american culture, eating food is an art. They savor every bite and every taste. OH! and everything has its own small container: a soup bowl, rice bowl, sauce container, chopstick stand. Ergo, everything is portion controlled. And my last favorite is eating with chopsticks. I guess eating with chopsticks takes more concentration, so you're not rushing and i think you get full faster.
i think the last half are mostly recipes.
I think the biggest thing i've picked up is they're philosophy on food. Food is art. Food is love. Food isn't just made, its created whether its gourmet or homecooked. Unlike the american culture, eating food is an art. They savor every bite and every taste. OH! and everything has its own small container: a soup bowl, rice bowl, sauce container, chopstick stand. Ergo, everything is portion controlled. And my last favorite is eating with chopsticks. I guess eating with chopsticks takes more concentration, so you're not rushing and i think you get full faster.
i think the last half are mostly recipes.
July 7, 2012
Japanese women don’t get fat!
Why?
Naomi Moriyama grew up in Japan, and later moved to Chicago and then New York. When she first moved to the U.S., she was surprised and even shocked by the first item she was served in the U.S.
A giant glass of orange juice.
How can anyone drink this, she thought. It’s way too big.
Quickly, however, she Americanized herself, eating larger portions, filling up on quick foods, hamburgers, ice cream and lots of dairy. She gained a lot of weight in a short time, so that when she returned home, the first thing her mother said was “you’re fat.”
According to Moriyama, women in Japan don’t have special “skinny genes.” In fact, when they move to the western diet, they gain lots of weight.
So, what’s the secret? What’s so special about food, or life in Japan?
I’ll give you a few of her ideas in point form:
1) Practice “hara hachi bunme,” that’s a Japanese term for “eat until you are 80 percent full.” This is not news for most of us, but how many of us do it?
2) Control your portion size. Moriyama gives us some good tips on how this can be done. Use many small beautiful bowls, and eat only a small portion of any one item. I’ve been trying this, and I find that it really works. I’m one of those people who, out of habit, eats everything on my plate. If my plate is smaller I eat less. Though I, personally, don’t need to lose weight, eating less really does my digestive system a favour.
3) Eat and chew your food at a leisurely pace. This is a toughie!
4) Eat more fish, fruit and vegetables.
5) Replace bread and potatoes with rice.
Moriyama has many more points, and it is worth reading her book for a fuller discussion of Japansese ways. She also gives many recipes, and even explains a “Samarai” diet, for those interested.
I do have two criticisms to make. First, Moriyama doesn’t seriously deal with the problem of diminishing fish supplies globally. If everyone ate as much fish as the Japanese, there would be little salmon etc. left. I also haven’t found the speciality food items she suggests getting very easy to find. If you live in a rural area, you may have to travel some distance to obtain soba noodles, for instance, or “shisho.”
What Moriyama has convincingly shown, however, is the miracle of eating less, and how it can be done.
Hats off to Japanese portion control. I do believe that it could help most of us who are used to eating too much.
Why?
Naomi Moriyama grew up in Japan, and later moved to Chicago and then New York. When she first moved to the U.S., she was surprised and even shocked by the first item she was served in the U.S.
A giant glass of orange juice.
How can anyone drink this, she thought. It’s way too big.
Quickly, however, she Americanized herself, eating larger portions, filling up on quick foods, hamburgers, ice cream and lots of dairy. She gained a lot of weight in a short time, so that when she returned home, the first thing her mother said was “you’re fat.”
According to Moriyama, women in Japan don’t have special “skinny genes.” In fact, when they move to the western diet, they gain lots of weight.
So, what’s the secret? What’s so special about food, or life in Japan?
I’ll give you a few of her ideas in point form:
1) Practice “hara hachi bunme,” that’s a Japanese term for “eat until you are 80 percent full.” This is not news for most of us, but how many of us do it?
2) Control your portion size. Moriyama gives us some good tips on how this can be done. Use many small beautiful bowls, and eat only a small portion of any one item. I’ve been trying this, and I find that it really works. I’m one of those people who, out of habit, eats everything on my plate. If my plate is smaller I eat less. Though I, personally, don’t need to lose weight, eating less really does my digestive system a favour.
3) Eat and chew your food at a leisurely pace. This is a toughie!
4) Eat more fish, fruit and vegetables.
5) Replace bread and potatoes with rice.
Moriyama has many more points, and it is worth reading her book for a fuller discussion of Japansese ways. She also gives many recipes, and even explains a “Samarai” diet, for those interested.
I do have two criticisms to make. First, Moriyama doesn’t seriously deal with the problem of diminishing fish supplies globally. If everyone ate as much fish as the Japanese, there would be little salmon etc. left. I also haven’t found the speciality food items she suggests getting very easy to find. If you live in a rural area, you may have to travel some distance to obtain soba noodles, for instance, or “shisho.”
What Moriyama has convincingly shown, however, is the miracle of eating less, and how it can be done.
Hats off to Japanese portion control. I do believe that it could help most of us who are used to eating too much.
March 9, 2011
I really enjoyed French Women don't get fat and I love Japanese food, so there was very litte chance I wouldn't love this book. I don't think there are any diet secrets in here, just cook more at home and go out less, eat smaller portions, enjoy you food. It's the usual diet advice. But it is a very nice introduction to Japanese cooking. I love how once you get a few ingredients you can make most of the recipes. I've made some and find the Japanese Country Power Breakfast to be very good and pretty easy to do if you boil the eggs and cook the rice before hand. My family doesn't like cooked spinach so I don't know what I was thinking when I made the spinach and bonito flakes, but they have eaten everything else. The kids particularly like the rice balls.
June 1, 2008
Some great recipes and tips- eat small portions, truly do eat your fruits and vegetables, make fruit your dessert, use a wok to cook veggies at a high heat which will let them keep their color ect.
I disagree with her on some points- just like her I gained 20 lbs- but it was moving to Japan from America- it is not the country that is the problem but what you choose to eat in that country. If you eat nothing but pizza and treats you will get fat. If you are not used to eating mountains of rice at every meal- you will also get fat. Rice is used as a filler food- like eating dinner rolls. I've never been a fan of the dinner rolls myself and now find it important to ask for the smallest portions of rice possible- unless of course a career in sumo is your dream!
I disagree with her on some points- just like her I gained 20 lbs- but it was moving to Japan from America- it is not the country that is the problem but what you choose to eat in that country. If you eat nothing but pizza and treats you will get fat. If you are not used to eating mountains of rice at every meal- you will also get fat. Rice is used as a filler food- like eating dinner rolls. I've never been a fan of the dinner rolls myself and now find it important to ask for the smallest portions of rice possible- unless of course a career in sumo is your dream!
November 12, 2011
Found it at a garage sale, thank baby Jesus since I would have kicked myself in my none-but-I-wish-it-was-JLo behind. We know North Americans are fat, and fast food is available and abundant. We also know that Asians are of a smaller build, and may/may not have held a better diet.
What's funny is that the most chronic of all, disgustingly obsessed with being smaller then anyone else (anywhere!) are my Asian friends/relatives. They get a rice bowl, they cut it in half, they do drink miso because the saltiness makes them feel fuller. Tricks of the trade! So the whole time I was reading this, I kept thinking then why is everyone dieting like it's their full time job? Why was my cousin who came back from exchange sent to fat camp (they wrap you up in Saran wrap, and put you in a room the size of a refrigerator with a small window.)? Why is the first comment out of aunties or her friends mouth is "you lost or gained..."
This book was too smug for me, made it sound too easy. Losing weight never is, and its never given me a calm homelike feeling. Yeah, eating fried potato is bad for your waistline but there is also a reason white rice is on the outs.
p.s. Not everyone anywhere in world diets unhealthily (I am generalizing) some are fit and do it right, and some are born lucky with superhuman metabolisms.
What's funny is that the most chronic of all, disgustingly obsessed with being smaller then anyone else (anywhere!) are my Asian friends/relatives. They get a rice bowl, they cut it in half, they do drink miso because the saltiness makes them feel fuller. Tricks of the trade! So the whole time I was reading this, I kept thinking then why is everyone dieting like it's their full time job? Why was my cousin who came back from exchange sent to fat camp (they wrap you up in Saran wrap, and put you in a room the size of a refrigerator with a small window.)? Why is the first comment out of aunties or her friends mouth is "you lost or gained..."
This book was too smug for me, made it sound too easy. Losing weight never is, and its never given me a calm homelike feeling. Yeah, eating fried potato is bad for your waistline but there is also a reason white rice is on the outs.
p.s. Not everyone anywhere in world diets unhealthily (I am generalizing) some are fit and do it right, and some are born lucky with superhuman metabolisms.
December 10, 2008
This book was charming and delightful and I loved the stories about Naomi's mother Chizuko. I now understand my own mom's obsession with food, freshness and umami. The typical Japanese child is well-fed and develops a very discriminating palate. Growing up, my mom never served rolls or bread with meals, but there was always a variety of vegetables -- no heavy sauces or gravy masking the fresh taste of the food. Sweets for dessert were unheard of and yet I never missed it. We always had fresh fruit in season.
My mom used to take on a different demeanor when cooking her favorite Japanese dishes; more care was taken and there was more enjoyment and savoring of the final product. It is totally unlike the American food experience and I think Naomi Moriyama did a great job describing how and why it's so different.
My mom used to take on a different demeanor when cooking her favorite Japanese dishes; more care was taken and there was more enjoyment and savoring of the final product. It is totally unlike the American food experience and I think Naomi Moriyama did a great job describing how and why it's so different.
September 15, 2014
Naomi Moriyama grew up in Tokyo with a typical Japanese mom provided attractive, nourishing food for her daughter.,.on the strict orders of Naomi's school!
(On the first day of school, a teacher made a speech: "We request that every mother make lunch for your daughter every day. Our main theme at this school is to help our students learn how to be giving and loving. One of the ways your daughter learns this is from your love-packed lunch box.") Can you imagine hearing this kind of a message in an American school???
Moriyama ended up moving to the U.S. to attend college and subsequently met and married her American husband. But she also came to miss and appreciate her mom's Japanese home cooking.
This book is a combination health book and cookbook. Moriyama includes statistics about how Japanese people live longer and have the lowest obesity rates in the world. They are also extremely active (few Japanese people use their cars every day, especially city residents)--instead they use mass transit, walk, or bicycle. I walked more during the three years I lived in Japan than I've ever walked in my life.
Moriyama also shares her own personal experiences--for example, when she arrived in the American Midwest to attend college, she gained a great deal of weight right away. When she moved back to Tokyo for awhile, she lost it all without dieting or exercising. The Japanese lifestyle, combined with fresh ingredients and home cooking, is the secret sauce!
As I was reading Moriyama's stories, I kept thinking of my wonderful stay in an old, traditional Japanese farmhouse on the western coast of Honshu (the most populated island in Japan), where we picked fresh persimmons, mountain potatoes, and mandarin oranges. My friend Debbie and I learned how to make gyoza (potstickers) and sushi, and the family had a brazier-fired kotatsu where they ate dinner each day. (A kotatsu is a wonderful table with a heater underneath it--we had one in our apartment with an electric heater, and the heat was kept under the table with a blanket...I loved that kotatsu as we didn't have central heating!) That weekend was the most traditional Japanese of any time I spent in Japan--it was fantastic. View my blog at http://mariesbookgarden.blogspot.com/... for some photos of that weekend.
Japanese home cooking is so much more than sushi and sashimi...you can find more of it at American Japanese restaurants than when we first returned from Japan. I loved delicacies such as spinach soaked in ground sesame seeds, okonomiyaki (Japanese-style pizza), takoyaki (octopus balls), yaki soba (fried noodles), ramen (noodle soup), gyoza, zaru soba (cold soba noodles with a dipping sauce), oyakodonburi (chicken and egg over rice), clams in sake broth, anything cooked with miso, rice balls with pickled plum seasoning, mochi with red bean paste, broiled mackerel or salmon, nabe (a soup that consists of each person dipping his or her own meat and veggies into a broth), traditional Japanese breakfasts, and edamame (steamed soybeans, now readily available in the U.S.).
Moriyama also enfolds some priceless Japanese history in her pages, including the stories of some kick-ass Japanese women in ancient times: Queen Himiko and Tomoe Gozen. (I need to learn more about these two!)
This book made me miss Japan and Japanese food so much! I love the way Moriyama gives tribute to her mom's own Tokyo kitchen...and I definitely want to incorporate more Japanese cooking into our own kitchen. But the truth is that cooking Japanese does take a great deal more time, and we don't all have Japanese housewives in our families!
I made one of the recipes in the book the other night--Eggplant Sauteed with Miso--and it was oishii (delicious)! This book inspired me to do more Japanese cooking and think more about what I'm eating--is it fresh? Is it processed? Has it been made with love? And I'm longing for Japan!
(On the first day of school, a teacher made a speech: "We request that every mother make lunch for your daughter every day. Our main theme at this school is to help our students learn how to be giving and loving. One of the ways your daughter learns this is from your love-packed lunch box.") Can you imagine hearing this kind of a message in an American school???
Moriyama ended up moving to the U.S. to attend college and subsequently met and married her American husband. But she also came to miss and appreciate her mom's Japanese home cooking.
This book is a combination health book and cookbook. Moriyama includes statistics about how Japanese people live longer and have the lowest obesity rates in the world. They are also extremely active (few Japanese people use their cars every day, especially city residents)--instead they use mass transit, walk, or bicycle. I walked more during the three years I lived in Japan than I've ever walked in my life.
Moriyama also shares her own personal experiences--for example, when she arrived in the American Midwest to attend college, she gained a great deal of weight right away. When she moved back to Tokyo for awhile, she lost it all without dieting or exercising. The Japanese lifestyle, combined with fresh ingredients and home cooking, is the secret sauce!
As I was reading Moriyama's stories, I kept thinking of my wonderful stay in an old, traditional Japanese farmhouse on the western coast of Honshu (the most populated island in Japan), where we picked fresh persimmons, mountain potatoes, and mandarin oranges. My friend Debbie and I learned how to make gyoza (potstickers) and sushi, and the family had a brazier-fired kotatsu where they ate dinner each day. (A kotatsu is a wonderful table with a heater underneath it--we had one in our apartment with an electric heater, and the heat was kept under the table with a blanket...I loved that kotatsu as we didn't have central heating!) That weekend was the most traditional Japanese of any time I spent in Japan--it was fantastic. View my blog at http://mariesbookgarden.blogspot.com/... for some photos of that weekend.
Japanese home cooking is so much more than sushi and sashimi...you can find more of it at American Japanese restaurants than when we first returned from Japan. I loved delicacies such as spinach soaked in ground sesame seeds, okonomiyaki (Japanese-style pizza), takoyaki (octopus balls), yaki soba (fried noodles), ramen (noodle soup), gyoza, zaru soba (cold soba noodles with a dipping sauce), oyakodonburi (chicken and egg over rice), clams in sake broth, anything cooked with miso, rice balls with pickled plum seasoning, mochi with red bean paste, broiled mackerel or salmon, nabe (a soup that consists of each person dipping his or her own meat and veggies into a broth), traditional Japanese breakfasts, and edamame (steamed soybeans, now readily available in the U.S.).
Moriyama also enfolds some priceless Japanese history in her pages, including the stories of some kick-ass Japanese women in ancient times: Queen Himiko and Tomoe Gozen. (I need to learn more about these two!)
This book made me miss Japan and Japanese food so much! I love the way Moriyama gives tribute to her mom's own Tokyo kitchen...and I definitely want to incorporate more Japanese cooking into our own kitchen. But the truth is that cooking Japanese does take a great deal more time, and we don't all have Japanese housewives in our families!
I made one of the recipes in the book the other night--Eggplant Sauteed with Miso--and it was oishii (delicious)! This book inspired me to do more Japanese cooking and think more about what I'm eating--is it fresh? Is it processed? Has it been made with love? And I'm longing for Japan!
July 9, 2011
I don't particularly like the title of this book, but it appeared to be about a Japanese woman in America who returned to Japan to learn to cook from her mother - in the hopes of regaining her health. The book is about the Japanese love of food - but their ability to enjoy the best and freshest ingredients, appease their hunger, remain thin, and live long and happy lives. Moriyama was a bit repetitive in her writing - using the same phrases and anecdotes multiple times throughout the book, but I did appreciate her inclusion of various recipes that can be made fairly easily. One night, she inspired me to cook spicy beans and tofu, along with a ground beef and egg recipe. Both were delicious, and gave me something new and relatively healthy to serve my family. While there was nothing earth-shattering in this book, it was a good reminder that to enjoy food doesn't necessarily mean to be a glutton, and that everything in moderation is a good thing to remember.
March 23, 2011
I liked copying the recipes and vocabulary down. I don't know when these might come in handy.
Good to know the different varieties of green tea, and how to properly brew and serve them. And also the different types of tofu, and how to handle them. The strength of this book is in the little details in how to serve, how to handle or how to choose ingredients.
I wished there were pictures to go along with the recipes, though.
Good to know the different varieties of green tea, and how to properly brew and serve them. And also the different types of tofu, and how to handle them. The strength of this book is in the little details in how to serve, how to handle or how to choose ingredients.
I wished there were pictures to go along with the recipes, though.
August 26, 2013
This book was a huge inspiration to me, inspiring a new passion for food and changing the way I eat dramatically. This was not as some people labeled it, a dangerous diet fad endorced by Victoria Beckham that would turn its followers into celery-obcessed stick insects afraid of going out in a strong wind. Moriyama presents a food culture common to Japan's older generation that is fast becoming as alien to Japan's youth as it is to the west. Delving into her childhood, Moriyama takes us back to her family home, sharing with us their great passion for good, old fashioned, traditional Japanese food centred around rice, vegetables and green tea. In contrast, she takes us to her years as a student in the US, eating stacks of syrup covered pancakes, where she balloned in size, then watched the weight melt away effortless as she moved back home and begins to eat traditionally again. With many traditional and straight forward everyday Japanese dishes to try (not the exciting restaurant-style Japanese cookery of a traditional cookery book) and advice on the basics, like cooking shortgrain rice and brewing different types of green tea, Moriyama introduces her readers to a new, common sense food philosophy and its one I firmly subscribe to! Thank you Moriyama!
May 12, 2017
"Cook yourself. Use fresh ingredients. Don't overeat" - these are good advices, but nothing I haven't know before. I'm a bit disappointed, as I expected to discover something new about japanesee lifestyle and habits. I haven't.
It's a simple and a bit naive story of author growing up in Japan and going to America. And getting fat there. We get also description of basic groceries in her homeland and some recipes. I've tried to cook some of them but I'm not sure if I did well, as there are no pictures in the book.
I would recommend it to those who know nothing about Asian food. Or those who need simple, tiny book to read in a tram. But you won't miss anything if you don't read it.
It's a simple and a bit naive story of author growing up in Japan and going to America. And getting fat there. We get also description of basic groceries in her homeland and some recipes. I've tried to cook some of them but I'm not sure if I did well, as there are no pictures in the book.
I would recommend it to those who know nothing about Asian food. Or those who need simple, tiny book to read in a tram. But you won't miss anything if you don't read it.
February 10, 2010
What an interesting book. I don't know if I'm extra hungry lately or what, but I have been more and more interested in books involving recipes. Especially from cuisine I'm less familiar with. This was a good book, and not nearly as ....diet-oriented as the title may suggest. It touts the traditional Japanese diet as a solution to weight gain and live longer, citing many studies. She is rather even-handed in mentioning criticisms that have been made of elements of the diet: soy, white rice and such.
The story is told by a Japanese woman who lives in America and has returned to her childhood way of eating - Japanese cuisine from her mother's kitchen. She not only cites recipes, but also explains different ways in which a Japanese kitchen differs from a western kitchen, tools and ingredients we don't have and would need for cooking in this way. The recipes are included, and it is endorsed as a lifestyle change, not just a few recipes to enjoy. Enjoyable read, and lots of great recipes.
The story is told by a Japanese woman who lives in America and has returned to her childhood way of eating - Japanese cuisine from her mother's kitchen. She not only cites recipes, but also explains different ways in which a Japanese kitchen differs from a western kitchen, tools and ingredients we don't have and would need for cooking in this way. The recipes are included, and it is endorsed as a lifestyle change, not just a few recipes to enjoy. Enjoyable read, and lots of great recipes.
June 21, 2015
Eh, there were some great bits and some boring bits. While the author is right that the Japanese diet has more balance tan the American one (in general), it seems to me that she has no idea what actual Americans actually eat. She claims to live here, but she's constantly harping on how we Americans are ALWAYS eating pizza and burgers, and that we don't understand what true Japanese cooking is since it is not just sushi and noodles. Well news flash: the American home cooked diet is very different than just pizza.
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July 19, 2016
I listened to this on audio, and enjoyed hearing the author read her own work. Her accent and her proper pronunciation of Japanese terms added to the telling of the book, which was sort of like an extended love letter to Japan and Japanese culture. The diet, as explained, does sound both tasty and healthy. It just sounds like a bit more bother than I'm used to, so I'm not sure I'll follow through on any of the recipes.
The audio is abridged--a newer audio would probably have an additional disc with the recipes and quotations and such available for access on a computer, but this didn't. So I supplemented with the physical book, admiring the recipes that I may or may not try.
A good challenge to eat healthier and live a healthy lifestyle, as the Japanese people have clearly been managing to do for hundreds, if not thousands of years. Also a really interesting little primer on Japanese culture and history. Being a short, easy read doesn't hurt either.
The audio is abridged--a newer audio would probably have an additional disc with the recipes and quotations and such available for access on a computer, but this didn't. So I supplemented with the physical book, admiring the recipes that I may or may not try.
A good challenge to eat healthier and live a healthy lifestyle, as the Japanese people have clearly been managing to do for hundreds, if not thousands of years. Also a really interesting little primer on Japanese culture and history. Being a short, easy read doesn't hurt either.
December 18, 2012
For me, this book was more like a recipe book. I love cooking authentic (not the Take out versions) Japanese and Chinese meals... any kind of international meal really. And being the daughter of a nutritionist that only follows the real facts-like how Canola Oil is really not the best thing in the world, yet people recommend it in Healthy recipe books-I wanted to help people eat delicious food and yet live a healthy life. I find it a shame that people need to eat such bland foods in order to lose weight or stay healthy.
But if you can have food that IS delicious and IS good for you, then isn't it the best of both worlds? I love knowing that the people who make the food I cook enjoy it, sometimes even ask me to cook it again. This book helped me add more recipes to my pile of recipes and the facts helped me think of how to set up my food, and even how to enjoy it.
I recommend this to anyone who wants to eat well and not become isolated to delicious meals.
But if you can have food that IS delicious and IS good for you, then isn't it the best of both worlds? I love knowing that the people who make the food I cook enjoy it, sometimes even ask me to cook it again. This book helped me add more recipes to my pile of recipes and the facts helped me think of how to set up my food, and even how to enjoy it.
I recommend this to anyone who wants to eat well and not become isolated to delicious meals.
April 13, 2014
Not a bad read but there wasn't anything enlightning here that hasn't already been said or isn't common sense. It was more of a reinforcement to eat smaller portions, lots of vegetables, lots of fish, cook lightly, use fresh ingridients, drink tea, and walk whenever possible. I did learn that Japanese seem to eat rice at every meal, including breakfast and even cook rice with green tea, but was I surprised by it? Not really. This was more about the author's experience growing up in a Japanese kitchen, with a few recipes mixed in.
May 3, 2012
I won't say this book was wonderfully written, but it was very informative for someone like me that has no experience with Japanese cooking. At times I found it a little too shallow - there wasn't much depth to it, but I've been eating more Japanese food since and am really paranoid about the American diet lately, so I'm happy I read it and would recommend it to anyone who doesn't have a Japanese friend that they can get recipes or information from.
June 12, 2008
Yeah, right...Japanese women may not get fat!!! unless they live in the U.S. with a McDonalds right around the corner. If I could live like a Japanese woman...I would. I think I would be eating a hundred rice patties a day then! This book made me hungry for really good Japanese food and lots of it! She talks about food pretty much the entire time.
July 9, 2020
The book could have been condensed into a magazine article. I expected more specifics, more scientific evidence, and more recipes.
October 22, 2018
unappetising!
April 28, 2009
Absolutely lovely. A study of the healthful Japanese diet and a guide to creating your own Tokyo kitchen, as well as anecdotal stories from the author's life, liberally sprinkled with some delicious-sounding and simple, approachable recipes. A fun and enlightening read, and definitely hunger-inducing!
September 28, 2010
I like eating, so I liked this book. She made me rethink what food I like. I've never loved fish, and I only make the same 3 vegetable sides over and over. She made me want to branch out. I want some onigiri and lots of sauteed veggies! I'm not going fully Japanese style any time soon, but I'm excited to try a few of those recipes. She's no Barbara Kingsolver, but I enjoyed the new info.
August 30, 2019
Too fishy for me :(
April 17, 2007
The food descriptions in this book made me want to go out and start cooking more Japanese food. So I did! The recipes in this book are easy to prepare, and you can learn a lot about Japanese home cooked food -- not restaurant food, that`s definitely not healthy! (Shocking I know.)
December 24, 2007
This book is too cool - great recipes, techniques, ingredients and the way of Japanese cooking. Healthy and natural, common sense food preparation. Nice resource as well as insights into a new way of making, seeing, and eating food.
March 8, 2014
Love this book! Japanese women live longest and have the lowest obesity rate on earth ... why and how is this possible? read my full review on my blog Guiltless Reading.
February 18, 2010
I love it! This book put me back in the kitchen after being sick and not wanting to cook for a while. The recipes in here are great and the tips Moriyama suggests aren't too difficult to follow. Been cooking out of this book since I got it.
July 30, 2009
Full of herself, but not charming. Recipes were good.
August 23, 2023
Japanese Women Don’t Get Old or Fat, by Naomi Moriyama, is a fun and informational way to learn about Japanese cuisine and a bit of culture. Naomi Moriyama gives not only recipes from her childhood but also the memories accompanied with each recipe, making a cute, fun, and delicious way to learn about a different culture. Naomi gives the reader all the tools they need to eat healthy by explaining what she calls “The Seven Pillars of Japanese food.”
I found this book very appealing for its fun jokes and hilarious stories. One such example is in chapter three where she explains the origins of what she calls her “Fat years,” where she gained 25 pounds on her first trip to America because the food was so different. I feel this book gave really good advice to live healthier, as well as giving scientific evidence based on research from different sources. I had no issues with the book, except that the Japanese was a little hard to understand, and I wish there were more direct translations to certain ingredients to help non-Japanese chefs. All in all, I give this book a Five out of Five, for its wonderful humor and overall care about health and offer this delightful book of dishes to any Japanese enthusiast.
I found this book very appealing for its fun jokes and hilarious stories. One such example is in chapter three where she explains the origins of what she calls her “Fat years,” where she gained 25 pounds on her first trip to America because the food was so different. I feel this book gave really good advice to live healthier, as well as giving scientific evidence based on research from different sources. I had no issues with the book, except that the Japanese was a little hard to understand, and I wish there were more direct translations to certain ingredients to help non-Japanese chefs. All in all, I give this book a Five out of Five, for its wonderful humor and overall care about health and offer this delightful book of dishes to any Japanese enthusiast.
December 24, 2022
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
An easy-to-read book about typical Japanese home-cooked meals which the author claimed to be nutritious for our body. So much so that Japanese women tend to be able to keep being slim and looking younger than their peers in Western countries.
As a fellow Asian and as someone who has become familiar with Japanese cooking, most of the contents in the book are nothing new to me. The book was first published back in 2005 after all. Still, it's refreshing to read the author's anecdotes and some stories about mythical/lengendary/mythical samurai figures and the food they consumed.
The book also provides a lot of simple Japanese everyday meals and plans for breakfast, lunch and dinner which I fully intend to incorporate in my life going forward.
An easy-to-read book about typical Japanese home-cooked meals which the author claimed to be nutritious for our body. So much so that Japanese women tend to be able to keep being slim and looking younger than their peers in Western countries.
As a fellow Asian and as someone who has become familiar with Japanese cooking, most of the contents in the book are nothing new to me. The book was first published back in 2005 after all. Still, it's refreshing to read the author's anecdotes and some stories about mythical/lengendary/mythical samurai figures and the food they consumed.
The book also provides a lot of simple Japanese everyday meals and plans for breakfast, lunch and dinner which I fully intend to incorporate in my life going forward.
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