Is Japanese food really healthy food for foreigners? After chatting with foreigners who love Japanese food, this question appeared in my mind. A few years before, 和食(わしょく, Japanese cuisine), which was assessed as a world cultural heritage, have attracted worldwide attention. As a Japanese who can be recognized as the world’s health food by the world, I am really happy.
On the other hand, though the Japanese food is recognized as the most healthy food in the world, no one realizes the correct way to eat Japanese food. This is because the foreigners’ way of eating Japanese food is a little weird: dipping soy sauce on both sides of sashimi, pouring the sauce on katsudon (カツ丼, かつどん), mixing rice and the main dish and eat them together, etc.
The reason for such way of eating is probably because people do not know Japanese cuisine and the “food law.” With French cuisine, there is such a ceremonial sequence of etiquette: starter → staple → dessert and take away one dish after eating. However, in Japan, it should be followed by the so-called “Triangle rule” that the order is rice → soup → the main dish. If you eat Japanese food by the order of French cuisine, excessive intake of salt can cause poisoning. Furthermore, as Japanese food needs to be enjoyed for the fresh material itself, pouring too much sauce would obstruct the pleasure of the food.
Eating is also to taste the culture. It is important for foreigners to learn Japanese dining etiquette, which is different from the food culture of their own country.