Winters in Japan can get pretty cold. In Japan, people eat foods for different seasons and in the winter there are some foods that are perfect for the brisk winter weather.
The great thing about Japanese foods is that they are meant to be shared. Perfect couples food! While in the west we have similar winter foods like beef stews, soups and maybe a big pot of chili, in Japan the foods are also like stews but are so full of variety and flavor that you will definitely be wanting more. An added plus, they are a lot of fun to share with your special Japanese lady.
One of the most popular winter foods is hands down, “ Nabe ” . Nabe is a Japanese name for a hot pot dish. Just to name a few types of nabe, shabushabu and sukiyaki are perhaps among the most well-known.
Shabushabu is a very popular nabe dish among Japanese and it is finding popularity outside of Japan as well. Shabushabu is eaten by bathing thinly sliced meats into a kelp based dashi soup. There are also vegetables that you dip into the dashi soup as well. It is a lot of fun to eat and share with your loved one because of the way it is prepared. Usually a large pot of broth is set in front of you with the meats (usually beef or pork, sometimes chicken) and the vegetables (shitake or straw mushrooms, nappa cabbage, scallions, carrots, etc.) to the side. You and your lady friend can take turns dipping the items into the broth and there are usually dipping sauces as well to enhance the flavors. The broth itself takes on the wonderful flavors of the meats and vegetables. It is a wonderfully warming meal during winter and washed down with a beeru or sake makes for a great date on a winter night.
Sukiyaki is a traditional nabe dish that is enjoyed during the winter months. The origin of sukiyaki dates back to the late Edo period. Sukiyaki is also known as gyunabe which means beef pot in Japanese. Imagine yourself eating this dish during the cold winter with your Japanese girlfriend knowing that you are eating a dish that was eaten during the samurai era. The main ingredients in sukiyaki are thin slices of beef, and vegetables such as onions, shitake mushrooms and nappa cabbage. The unique taste of the broth for sukiyaki differs from shabushabu. Sukiyaki broth uses sake, shoyu, and sugar to create a unique savory flavor. Also, when eating sukiyaki a small bowl with a raw egg is scrambled and the meats are dipped into this raw egg like a dipping sauce before eating. The combination of the salty-sweet ingredients with the full-bodied flavor of the raw egg is a perfect pairing in taste and textures.
Another hearty winter food is chanko nabe. Chanko nabe is a hot pot delicacy prepared and eaten by sumo wrestlers as part of their training diet. It is high in protein and also has a lot of vegetables that help sumo wrestlers maintain their strength and maximize their recovery after strenuous workouts. The portions used for chanko nabe made for a sumo wrestler can be gargantuan! Two whole chickens can be used for a chanko nabe for one sumo wrestler alone! A dashi soup base is used and seasonings are added to the dashi itself as one prefers. Ingredients like meat, fish and vegetables are stewed together in large quantities. Remember this is a sumo wrestler’s daily meal so there are usually huge amounts of ingredients added to the stew! Of course, you can prepare yours in portions that are more reasonable for you and your Japanese friend.
Lastly, the proper way to finish your nabe dish is to put some rice into the soup. Boil the pot with the remaining broth and add a raw egg to the rice to make some zosui , a Japanese risotto. Some people prefer to add udon noodles instead of rice. Either way is delicious and a great way to end a warming meal shared between the two of you on a cold winter night.
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