Professor Lisa LaGeorge

BMS341: Cultural Anthropology

19 November 2014

A Short Introduction for Master’s College Students to Japanese

Food CultureA Field Guide by Nathan Andersen

With Assistance from Fellow Undergraduates and a Professor

Introduction

Chances are that you already have at least some familiarity with Japanese food culture.

Our age of globalization has allowed sushi, sashimi, miso soup, and tempura to be well-

recognized staples of Japanese cuisine here in the United States. Nonetheless, you can safely

assume that there is more to the food culture of Japan than what you have probably witnessed at

a local Asian restaurant. This brief but hopefully reliable field guide will attempt to inspire a

sweeping picture in your mind of what to expect if you were to find yourself in Japan with the

craving for a delicious and satisfying meal. The information that I have gathered and put together

is primarily meant for students of The Master’s College since, not only am I currently a student

at this biblically grounded institution of higher education, but much of my research has come

from interviews with some fellow TMC undergraduates and a professor in TMC’s English

department. Furthermore, the conclusion will consider how basic understanding of Japanese food

culture can help towards more effectively communicating the gospel to that people group. At the

same time, however, anyone who happens to be interested in learning somewhat more about

Japanese food culture should feel free to read on. If you find your mouth watering at some point

during this text, jump into a car and drive to the nearest quality sushi bar that you can find. Oh,

and be sure to bring a friend along with you.

Grocery Shopping

When it comes to shopping for food, the Japanese adhere to a principle of frugality,

rather than abundance. In contrast with the seemingly typical approach among Americans of

loading up a cart with a week’s worth of groceries, families in Japan shop for their food at least

once every day and only purchase enough for their next meal or several meals, refusing to hoard

items and thereby run the risk that anything should spoil and be thrown out. Jo Suzuki, an

adjunct professor of English here at TMC who grew up in his country of origin and has regularly

visited ever since beginning to reside in the United States about four decades ago, fondly recalls

his mother walking to the store daily during his youth and asserts that, even in this generation,

markets remain numerous and spread out so that almost anyone can obtain their groceries within

walking distance (Suzuki). In her account titled Shalom, Japan, Shifra Horn writes that, when

she and her family first went shopping during their five-year stay in Japan, their cart was “piled

high with sacks of onions, potatoes, loaves of bread, three chickens, and all the goods of the

earth”, which drew astonished looks from the native consumers around them; a Japanese

family’s cart would perhaps contain “one tomato, half a cucumber (theirs are very long), a

couple of onions, and four slices of bread. This gastronomic extravagance might be augmented

by a fresh fish or half a lobster and a small bunch of sprouts” (Horn, 97).

Vincent Alvarez, a Mustang whose parents started living in Japan a few years ago and

who has had the privilege of experiencing that culture during summer and Christmas breaks, says

that the value for food conservation is such that stores would much rather apply discounts to

perishable items (such as fish and fruits) an hour before closing time than let them be disposed

of: “They are very mindful of how much food they waste; they try not to waste any food”

(Alvarez). Interestingly, residing on a military base has allowed his family to visit a commissary

once a week in keeping with the American approach to grocery shopping, but they feel the need

to make purchases in smaller amounts during occasional visits to Japanese stores. Horn contends

that frugality is not just a matter of principle or custom but of necessity because it is “virtually

impossible to hoard food in Japan. Houses are small and usually overcrowded, the kitchens are

no larger than a sink and cooker, and the fridges are barely large enough to store ingredients for

one meal” (Horn, 98). It can of course be inferred that the smaller refrigerators are a result of

frugal purchases as much as the frugal purchases are a result of smaller refrigerators.

Besides frugality, freshness may be identified as the other basic ideal in the Japanese

approach to grocery shopping. In his book Zen Culture, Thomas Hoover notes that the

availability and selection of certain food items among the Japanese, whether on the part of

households or restaurants, is determined a great deal by the seasons: “There will be few

surprises on the menu… Only the freshest vegetables – preferably those ripening to their finest

that week – and the most prime sea fare will be permitted” (Hoover, 219). During his article

“Supply-Side Sushi: Commodity, Market, and the Global City”, Theodor C. Bestor illustrates the

prevailing appreciation for seasonality in the process of ensuring freshness with seafood by

citing that popular guides to sushi, whether for Japanese patrons or chefs, “focus on the

repertoire of sushi toppings; they list 70, 80, or 100 distinctive varieties and the seasons of the

year (and the locations at which) they are at their peak of perfection” (Bestor). The hand-in-hand

emphasis on freshness and frugality seems to be reflected in how Noel Sakai, a TMC

undergraduate who was born and raised in the Japanese city of Nagoya and moved to the United

States prior to her sophomore year of high school in order to attend a boarding school in South

Carolina, has shared that packaged items are invariably smaller in Japan than in the United States

and that milk (which comes in liters, instead of gallons) has shorter expiration dates, lasting for

only a week at the most (Sakai).

While being interviewed, Professor Suzuki made the point of mentioning that the central

fish market of Japan is located in Tokyo and known as Tsukiji (Suzuki). In his article titled

“Tsukiji, Tokyo’s Pantry”, Bestor offers an impression of the large-scale activity that has been

going on for about eighty years in what is arguably the world’s most significant seafood market

by writing:

“…about Y2.2 billion worth of seafood changes hands each day. Every trading

day, more than 2,300 tons of fresh fish, frozen fish, live fish, processed fish,

salted fish, fish pate, fish cakes, pickled fish, smoked fish, shellfish, dried fish and

fish eggs change hands, often several times within a very few minutes, before

chefs and fishmongers cart them out the market's gates” (Bestor).

The Japanese approach of purchasing groceries daily seems to contribute all the more to the

hustle and bustle within Tsukiji; homemakers in search of what will become dinner that evening

mainly shop from 3 to 6 PM while folks in the restaurant business “make their decisions earlier,

in time for the lunchtime rush. So the business of the marketplace is simple: Get fresh food into

stores and restaurants before noon” (Bestor). In “Supply-Side Sushi”, Bestor acknowledges the

international dimension of operations in Tsukiji by discussing how tuna from Massachusetts,

octopus from Senegal, eel from Guangzhou, crab from Sakhalin, salmon from British Columbia

and Hokkaido, snapper from Kyushu, and abalone from California are taken for granted as

everyday commodities of trade (Bestor).

Japanese Cuisine

As a formal definition, the Encyclopaedia Britannica Online sums up “sushi” as

“consisting of cooked rice flavored with vinegar and a variety of vegetable, egg, or raw seafood

garnishes and served cold.” The three basic forms of sushi are “oshi-zushi” (which involves an

oblong of rice topped with a dab of wasabi and a slice of raw seafood), “nigiri-zushi” (the same

thing as “oshi-zushi”, except that the ingredients are pressed or squeezed into a mold), and

“maki-zushi” (where a sheet of seaweed is spread with rice, followed by seafood or vegetables,

and then rolled into a cylinder and sliced as individual pieces) (“Sushi”). In addition to being a

phenomenon of Asian cuisine here in the United States, sushi is of course one of the most

popular kinds of food in Japan, as evidenced by how a 2006 national survey showed that eighty-

seven percent of the respondents considered sushi to be one of their most favorite foods

(Inoguchi). For that matter, Shion Uza, a Mustang who was born and raised in the Japanese

prefecture of Okinawa and first came to this country for the sake of attending Master’s, has

candidly and confidently said, “Japan equals sushi” (Uza).

At the same time, readers should be informed that sushi as the Japanese and others know

it in the present day was only invented relatively recently. According to Bestor’s article “How

Sushi Went Global”, the standard form of sushi recognized in Tokyo and around the world with

“a thin slice of fish or shellfish atop a compact oblong block of vinegared rice” came about in the

mid-nineteenth century (Bestor). Furthermore, Noel has made clear that she and the rest of Japan

“don’t eat sushi every day. It’s more like twice a month. A lot of people might think that we eat

sushi all the time but that’s not the truth. It’s only at certain times, like special celebrations”

(Sakai). As extra notes regarding authentic Japanese sushi, Hyebin Lee, a TMC student who is a

son of Korean missionaries and has lived in Japan since 2001, claims that California rolls and

many other kinds of rolls found at sushi bars in the States are American innovations and cannot

be found back home (Lee). Similarly, Vincent has said that “big, fancy, flowery sushi rolls” are

almost never, if at all, seen in Japan: “The sushi over there is very plain-looking, very simple.

They have a very simple, reserved way of serving their food” (Alvarez). Shion has mentioned

that the Japanese do not usually prepare sushi at home but prefer to simply order it at restaurants,

and also that sushi can be requested to come to your front door in a way comparable with pizza

delivery here in America (Uza).

The Encyclopaedia Britannica Online defines sashimi, sushi’s close cousin, as “fresh fish

served raw” (“Sashimi”). Hoover has written about the importance of creative presentation for

sashimi, since that type of food is even more characterized by plainness: “After all, the fish are

raw, and beyond making sure that they are fresh and of high quality, there is little to be done

about the flavor. Therefore the chef must become an artist if the sashimi are to be memorable”

(Hoover, 221). In her article “The History of Japanese Cuisine”, food journalist Lucy Seligman

further affirms sashimi as an ultimate expression of the tendency in Japan toward minimalism:

“The cooking techniques of Japanese cuisine are characterized by simplicity. As much as

possible, food is left in its natural and oftentimes raw state to allow the true favor to emerge. For

example, sashimi requires more cutting expertise than cooking technique” (Seligman). The

World Atlas of Food goes so far as to state that Japan stands out for having the “most elegantly

simple” of the world’s “great cuisines” (Hale), and Hoover writes that, to Americans

unaccustomed to authentic Japanese dishes, what is served tends to be visually pleasing and yet

“oddly deficient in pronounced flavors”, a distinction that the Japanese readily admit “with pride

rather than apology” (Hoover, 218). Horn offers a conversely graphic picture of the extent to

which this people group exercises simplicity with their food by writing about seafood at

restaurants: “The fish, or whatever other creature must give its life for gastronomy, is drawn out

of the aquarium and placed directly on the plate. If you can’t stick the whole thing in your mouth

in one go, you can always cut it up and dress it with soy sauce” (Horn, 87).

According to Okumura Ayao’s article “Japan’s Ramen Romance”, ramen, udon, and soba

are the three kinds of noodles that loom large in Japan; the first are yellowish, the second white

and thick, and the third grayish, often served cold, and notably made from a weed known as

buckwheat, instead of actual wheat. Udon and ramen typically come in the form of a one-dish

meal, having not only noodles as “a starchy staple food”, but also side dishes (various meat or

vegetable toppings) and soup (hot broth made with stewing chicken or pork meat and bones)

combined in a single bowl (Ayao). In his article “The Art of Noodles”, James Udesky shares that

soba noodles “have been a mainstay in Japan for more than four centuries” and that the

“naturally sweet, light taste of soba and its substantial, energy-providing kilocalories and easy

digestibility make it perfect for all seasons” (Udesky). Ayao writes that the fondness of the

Japanese toward ramen manages to outweigh their fondness for soba and udon, and also that both

the instant and gourmet styles of ramen boast tremendous popularity in Japan. In 1999, the Fuji

Research Institute Corporation, a private think tank, asked two thousand men and women in the

greater Tokyo area to identify three Japanese products that they considered to be outstanding

Japanese inventions of the last century; instant ramen proved to be the most frequent pick, being

mentioned by more than a third of the participants. The two runner-ups were karaoke and then

the Walkman headphone stereo (Ayao).

Professor Suzuki has revealed that the most interesting development in Japanese food

culture during the last thirty years or so has been the assimilation of McDonald’s, KFC, and

other highly successful American fast food chains to the point where they are taken for granted

in Japan. As much as one might assume that this phenomenon has chipped away at favor for

traditional cuisine among the Japanese, Suzuki says that, much to the contrary, the people group

has tended to adapt those American chains to their own culture in unique and creative ways, such

as by having the teriyaki burger be a menu option at their McDonald’s locations (Suzuki). In his

book Confucius Lives Next Door, T. R. Reid discusses the firsthand experience that he and his

family have had with the Japanese applying their own twist to American food items:

“Living in Japan, we had our share (some of my children would say more than our

share) of sushi, sukiyaki, sea urchin, and the like. But we also found ourselves

eating – and even enjoying – such modern Asian delicacies as the squid pizza, the

curry doughnut, the bean-paste Danish, the rice burger, the kim-chee burger, the

tempura hot dog, the green tea milkshake, the sashimi submarine, and the ever-

popular BST (that’s bacon, seaweed, and tomato) sandwich” (Reid, 30).

John W. Traphagan and L. K. Brown’s article “Fast Food and Intergenerational Commensality in

Japan: New Styles and Old Patterns” involves ethnographic research which remarkably supports

the argument that fast food restaurants from America play to the value in Japan for sharing food

as a means of achieving a sense of community and of strengthening bonds among family and

friends; fries, chicken nuggets, and the like may repeatedly travel around the table as

“expressions of intimacy and commensality occur, over and over again, during the 30 minutes or

so the people are together in the fast-food establishment” (Traphagan). Seligman writes that

Japan has adapted foreign foods throughout its history, implying that the assimilation of

American chains perhaps should not be so surprising; even long-time Japanese staple items such

as tempura and tonkatsu (fried pork cutlets) have European origins: “These two beloved imports,

though both deep-fried foods, reflect the scope of Japanese inspiration in the kitchen”

(Seligman).

In order to achieve a sense of just how different the actual cuisine in Japan can be from

what is normally served at Asian restaurants in the United States, all of the interviewees were

asked to name the most “exotic” Japanese food items are that they have ever eaten. Hyebin spoke

of having eaten “nato”, which involves purposefully waiting for beans to become rotten and

sticky: “When you try it the first time, it tastes gross, but when you try it for your third or fourth

time, people usually love it, and it’s really healthy, too” (Lee). Yuri Yamamoto, who was born

and raised in the Japanese city of Kyoto and first came to this country as a Master’s

undergraduate, has eaten sea cucumber once: “It was pretty good, but it felt kind of gross… I

don’t want to eat it again” (Yamamoto). Shion heartily delights in raw horse meat (especially

when dipped in soy sauce with garlic mixed in) and pig intestine soup, a traditional food of

Okinawa (Uza). Like Hyebin, Noel brought up nato, although she described the beans as being

fermented and dubbed it “the most stinky dish in Japan, but also known to be the healthiest; I

think it’s good for the blood stream, something like that” (Sakai). Shion revealed that she

absolutely hates nato, due to the smell (Uza), whereas Yuri loves it, having eaten that item

regularly while growing up (Yamamoto).

During his youth, Professor Suzuki especially enjoyed eating whale meat (whether

cooked or raw), which was widely eaten among the Japanese after World War Two as a cheap

source of protein: “If you think about the most tender, lean beef, that’s what it tasted like… If I

see whales at an aquarium, I think ‘Oh, man. That looks so delicious.’” Unfortunately for him,

whale meat has become banned in Japan by animal protection activists: “They have deprived me

of my culinary delight.” Suzuki also cites jellyfish as a Japanese food item that many Americans

would consider exotic; he describes that item as being very chewy and says that he has never

actually cared for it much. As a third example, he has eaten dried blowfish, but because it was

not poisonous, he says that “it really doesn’t count” (Suzuki). Incidentally, Shifra Horn draws

attention to the fugu fish (a blowfish with a highly toxic liver) as an infamous dish and warns

that anyone who consumes it “risks death, since this delicacy kills several people in Japan every

year” (Horn, 88). She also expresses how much the Japanese exercise open-mindedness toward

plant life in their diet: “Walk into the vegetable department of any average food store in Japan,

and find, beside the round lettuces and the huge Japanese radishes, shelves upon shelves of

flowers… Thus, for example, the yellow chrysanthemum is served with sushi, while sweet pea

flowers are delicious with meat” (Horn, 90).

Important Sayings and Restaurant Tips

When asked if there is a “Bon appétit” phrase in Japan, Professor Suzuki and the four

TMC undergraduates apart from Vincent immediately responded with the phrase “Itadakimasu”,

which is apparently comparable to “Bon appétit” since it is spoken by the Japanese right before

meals begin. In addition, Suzuki and the three girls (Noel, Shion, and Yuri) respectively shared

“Gochisosama” and “Gochoshamatesta” as customary closing phrases. The professor simply

translates “Itadakimasu” as “I would like to partake of the food” (Suzuki). Hyebin stated that the

phrase literally means “I’m going to eat this” while actually meaning “I appreciate this food and

I’m going to eat it with gratitude” (Lee). Similarly, Shion deems the literal translation to be “I’m

about to eat this” and the culturally inferred meaning to be “Thank you for the food that you have

prepared” (Uza). The professor translates “Gochisosama” as “Thank you for going through the

trouble of making this food” (Suzuki). According to Noel, “Gochoshamatesta” means “Thank

you for the food you have prepared”, in addition to “I am done eating.” She notably designates

“Itadakimasu” as a habit that can be likened to American families customarily praying before

meals (Sakai), and Suzuki has said that the opening phrase “Itadakimasu” and the closing phrase

“Gochisosama” are a ritual of sorts which the Japanese practice not only in households toward a

host or hostess but at restaurants towards waiters, waitresses, or whoever happens to be handling

the checkout (Suzuki).

When asked if they are aware of any food-related Japanese proverbs, Hyebin and the

three girls spoke about “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” as a common saying in

their home country. This proverb arguably originates from Second Thessalonians, but very few

among the Japanese recognize it as a Bible verse, according to the interviewees. Hyebin also

shared that the idiom “I like this more than the three meals of the day” might be heard if

someone particularly enjoys what they are presently eating (Lee). Shion brought up the saying

“Mochi [rice] on top of the shelf falls”, which figuratively means that one is lucky since there are

not many opportunities for mochi to fall off of a shelf (Uza).

Apart from the important sayings that have been covered, a few other bits of advice that

would be useful for eating at restaurants can be found through National Geographic, such as how

“being five to ten minutes early” is arguably necessary when meeting reservations, due to the

firm value for punctuality in Japan, and also how a tipping system is nonexistent, although “a

note to the manager will suffice” if a patron wishes to express special appreciation (“Japan”).

Noel says that free refills for drinks and takeout boxes for leftovers are not allowed while dining

out and that most of the restaurants have bells at the tables for ringing waiters or waitresses so

that their assistance is not gained by shouting (Sakai). Shion claims that payments for meals

always happen at the cash registers rather than while sitting down at the tables and that the

Japanese use cash as their mode of payment much more often than credit cards or debit cards, the

latter of which were only recently introduced to Japan (Uza). Hyebin says that, contrary to what

some Americans might think, sitting in chairs while eating is much more common in

contemporary Japan than sitting on the floor at tables that are only a foot or so tall (Lee). The

three girls and Hyebin pointed out that there is no formal order of dishes in Japan, with all of the

food usually being placed on the table at one time during a meal.

Recommendations for Visitors

Almost all of the interviewed peers were asked about what they would recommend

ordering at a restaurant to an American visiting Japan for the first time. Hyebin simply suggested

taking advantage of the opportunity to experience “authentic” Japanese sushi, ramen, udon, BBQ

(which he says is essentially same as Korean BBQ, but with a distinctive sauce), and miso soup.

In addition to the food items, he recommended going for Japan’s green tea, noting that the

Japanese never add sugar to their tea and that subtle differences in flavor can be recognized

among the various brands due to different methods for growing their leaves. The World Atlas of

Food adds on that the green tea (known as o-cha) is “classed according to where it is grown and

whether it has been smoked” and that the “appeal, complexity, and promise” of o-cha is such that

it “has evolved its own connoisseurs, who exhibit the same passion and interest as connoisseurs

of wine” (Hale, 252).

Vincent responded that he would specifically like to bring an American friend to a

favorite restaurant of his in Japan named Piago and that, for the sake of ensuring “a full Japanese

experience”, he would recommend ordering the unagi bento from the menu there; the main dish

of that order would be rice with a slab of eel and oyster sauce on top, and the sides would include

soba noodles (cold, of course) to be dipped in warm broth, pickled vegetables for clearing one’s

palette, and miso soup. The way he sees it, any kind of bento will at the very least allow a visitor

to see the beauty of Japanese culinary presentation. Similar to Hyebin, Shion recommended

Japanese BBQ (which they made clear is called yakiniku) and referred to ramen and udon

noodles as easy winners for Americans not yet familiar with the more exotic cuisine of their

country (Uza). Noel suggested Japanese curry (which she says is less spicy and overall milder

than Indian or Middle Eastern curry) and okonomyaki. With regard to the latter, she identified it

as the Japanese equivalent of a pancake, although it is eaten for lunch or dinner instead of

breakfast, saltier than and not at sweet as a pancake, and often stuffed with vegetables, seafood,

meat, or egg. She finds that the way okonomyaki is grilled and flipped in front of patrons at

restaurants gives entertainment value to American visitors while at the same time challenging

them “to try something a little different” (Sakai).

Communication of the Gospel

What are the implications of Japanese food culture for the sake of more effectively

communicating the gospel to this people group? To begin with, the popular saying among the

Japanese of “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” can be used as a springboard for

discussing Scripture since that food-related proverb matches Second Thessalonians 3:10 (The

Holy Bible: English Standard Version, 2 Thess. 3.10). For that matter, the saying seems to hint at

a widespread principle of discipline and diligence in Japan that can be affirmed with other verses

such as “It is the hardworking farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops” (2 Tim. 2.6)

and a whole bunch of statements in Proverbs, including 10:4, 12:24, 12:27, 13:4, and 21:5. A

Christian could perhaps share that all hard work is ultimately meaningless apart from faith in

Jesus Christ and bringing glory to God (cf. 1 Cor. 10.31). Secondly, the Japanese approach to

food reveals considerably about this people group’s virtues; they care a great deal about frugality

(as seen with their grocery shopping habits), simplicity (sushi and sashimi being definitive

culinary expressions of this), togetherness (as seen with how sharing food is valued as a means

of supporting community and strengthening bonds among family and friends), and openness

toward what is new and different (as seen with how they have assimilated American fast food

chains into their culture and eat many food items that may strike outsiders as exotic). Again, all

of these fine principles are merely “a striving after wind” (Ecc. 1.17) if a Japanese man or

woman lacks a saving relationship with the God who has arranged that human beings should be

in need of fellowship with one another and that so many plants and creatures of the natural world

should (if one takes the time to notice) have delightful flavors, the simple and unadulterated

appreciation for which lies at the heart of Japan’s food culture.

Works Cited

Alvarez, Vincent. Personal interview. 12 Nov. 2014.

Ayao, Okumura. “Japan's Ramen Romance.” Japan Quarterly 48.3 (2001): 66-76. ProQuest.

Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

Bestor, Theodore C. “How Sushi Went Global.” Foreign Policy.121 (2000): 54-

63. ProQuest. Web. 17 Nov. 2014

Bestor, Theodore C. “Supply-Side Sushi: Commodity, Market, and the Global City.” American

Anthropologist 103.1 (2001): 76-95.ProQuest. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

Bestor, Theodore C. “Tsukiji, Tokyo's Pantry.” Japan Quarterly 48.1 (2001): 31-

41. ProQuest. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

Hale, Glorya, ed. The World Atlas of Food. New York: Mitchell Beazley, 1974. Print.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Crossway, 2001. Print.

Hoover, Thomas. Zen Culture. New York: Random House, 1977. Print.

Horn, Shifra. Shalom, Japan. New York: Kensington Books, 1996. Print.

Inoguchi, Takashi and Seiji Fujii. “The Quality of Life in Japan.” Social Indicators

Research 92.2 (2009): 227-62. ProQuest. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

“Japan.” National Geographic Travel. National Geographic. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.

Lee, Hyebin. Personal interview. 8 Nov. 2014.

Reid, T. R. Confucius Lives Next Door. New York: Vintage Books, 2000. Print.

Sakai, Noel. Personal interview. 10 Nov. 2014.

“Sashimi.” Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition.

Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.

Seligman, Lucy. “The History of Japanese Cuisine.” Japan Quarterly 41.2 (1994): 165.

ProQuest. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

“Sushi.” Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Academic Edition.

Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.

Suzuki, Jo. Personal interview. 23 Oct. 2014.

Suzuki, Jo. Personal interview. 13 Nov. 2014.

Traphagan, John W., and L. K. Brown. “Fast Food and Intergenerational Commensality in Japan:

New Styles and Old Patterns.” Ethnology 41.2 (2002): 119-34. ProQuest. Web. 17 Nov.

2014.

Udesky, James. “The Art of Noodles.” Japan Quarterly 44.2 (1997): 32-42. ProQuest. Web. 17

Nov. 2014.

Uza, Shion. Personal interview. 10 Nov. 2014.

Yamamoto, Yuri. Personal interview. 10 Nov. 2014.