Food and Fantasy in Early Modern Japan

by Eric C. Rath

How did one dine with a shogun? Or make solid gold soup, sculpt with a fish, or turn seaweed into a symbol of happiness? In this fresh look at Japanese culinary history, Eric C. Rath delves into the writings of medieval and early modern Japanese chefs to answer these and other provocative questions, and to trace the development of Japanese cuisine from 1400 to 1868. Rath shows how medieval "fantasy food" rituals--where food was revered as symbol rather than consumed--were continued by early modern writers. The book offers the first extensive introduction to Japanese cookbooks, recipe collections, and gastronomic writings of the period and traces the origins of dishes like tempura, sushi, and sashimi while documenting Japanese cooking styles and dining customs.

Genres: Nonfiction, Japan, Food, History, Food History

258 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Ad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Professor Rath studies Japanese cookbooks, recipe collections, and gastronomic writings from the period 1400 to 1868 to trace the development of Japanese cuisine. Interesting fact is that some of these writings were not meant as serious recipes to be used for food preparation, but as purely literary exercises in concocting fanciful foods and banquets, a sort of "fantasy food rituals." In a more practical sense, Rath also traces the origins of more familiar dishes as sushi, sashimi and tempura. A fascinating study of Japanese food history.

[Mathilde · Rating 3 out of 5]

skimmed for fic related research lmao

[S. Kallahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some good info in here.