food book final reflection

I chose “Pineapple Culture” by Gary Y Okihiro.

Now we can see pineapples almost every supermarket and we can eat whenever we want. However, pineapples are not just the fruit. It has made a civilization.

 

First, I was surprised how the pineapples grow. Have you ever imagine pineapples growing on trees? Or growing on the ground? The answer is this.

 

 

 

This picture can be seen as something for joking, but this is the reality. Pineapples grow on the ground. And then we cut them by the bottom. This was the most surprising thing I have learned from this book…

 

After reading this book, I noticed that fruits can make the history of countries. As for pineapples, they have made Hawaiian history and culture which is now inherited. There are pineapple farms in Hawaii and many tourists from all over the world visit there. Mc Donald’s in Hawaii serves pineapples for free as a combo set with hamburgers. Pineapples have a huge connection between Hawaiian societies. Of course not only Hawaii but also other countries or regions including Japan has it. But Hawaii is the most obvious example.

my restaurant experience

I went to Kanazawa Mainmon Zushi（金沢まいもん寿司）.

It is literally a sushi restaurant especially “kaiten-zushi”.

About one week ago, the restaurant was introduced on a famous TV program and the MC praised the restaurant for the cost and its quality. So I decided to go there with my family. I had never been to “kaiten-zushi” with my family before because my parents didn’t like it. So I was a little nervous if they would like the restaurant.

Before I went there, I searched its website and found a page to make a reservation in advance. At that time, we already had to wait for about 180 minutes. So we decided to go there around 8 o’clock.

As I arrived there, there were many people waiting outside of the restaurant though it was a horribly cold night. Of course, it had a large space for waiting inside of the building but that was not enough.

After arrived there and waited for about 20 minutes more (about 195 minutes in total), then my number was called and we were seated.

Unlike other “kaiten-sushi” restaurants I had ever been to, there were many sushi chefs in the center of the floor so that when customers had any request, they could ask chefs directly to make for them. That means, we can eat sushi made by hand, not by machines.

The size of the fish was relatively bigger. The quality was almost the same as normal sushi restaurants. Of course the price was much higher than other “kaiten-sushi”.

There were of course some flaws however, the best point at that restaurant is the atmosphere. All of the workers harked hard and enjoyed working. I think that is really important to make customers’ special time and memory with special someone.

My parents became to like the restaurant so I think we will go there someday…?

the history of curry

It is said that when japan opened our country after Perry visited japan, the first person who mentioned curry in a book was Yukichi Fukuzawa. He wrote curry in his book, Zoteikaeitsugo（増訂華英通語）in 1860 just as one of the English words.

The next one was Hiizu Miyake. He wrote a diary while he was going to Europe in French ship. There he saw Indians were eating curry by their hands. He said, 「飯の上ヘ唐辛子細味に致し、芋のドロドロのような物をかけ、これを手にて掻きまわして手づかみで食す。至って汚なき人物の物なり」

In 1867, curry first appeared in recipe books.

s  Seiyo ryoritsu　（西洋料理通）

              With beef, chicken, rum

s  Seiyo ryorisinann　（西洋料理指南）

With chicken, shrimp, porgy, oyster, red frog

 

Interestingly, curry was known for famous European food.

This is because England and India had a relationship of trade. Gradually then the recipes of Indian foods had spread in England.

Curry was served for soldiers during Russo-Japan war. Curry was useful because they could make enough ay once and it was kept good. That habit has been inherited till today and the navies still eat curry and rice on every Friday.

Soldiers at that time remembered how to cook curry and brought back to their home town, then they taught to their family. Friends and neighbors.

From early 20^th century, it has spread and changed.

s  1902  curry and rice with fukujinzuke

s  1904  curry udon

s  1906  instant curry

s  1909  curry namban soba

s  1910  curry and rice with egg

s  1911  dried curry

s  1918  curry and rice with katsu

1927  “curry pan”

pineapple culture video

have you ever thought that pineapples are one of the most important factor which made the culture of tropical islands? this history goes back to B.C. times but this movie shows us the clear story of  pineapple necessary for making culture.

"Pineapple Culture" by Gary Y. Okihiro

thank you for visiting my blog! This blog is a class about food culture I'm taking at my university. The reason why I chose this book, Pineapple Culture, is I have been interested in Hawai'ian culture and then I found this book.

Do you like pineapples? I think many of you might answer "Yes". Nowadays we can find them whenever we go to a supermarket even though pineapples are tropical friuts. Everyone knows tropical fruits grows under the hot wether. But how many of you know thahow the pineapples are introduced to many countries all over theworld?
Pineapple Culture is a dazzling history of the world's tropical and temperate zones told through the pineapple's illusrative career. The writer thinks the pineapple culture continues to upend conventional ideas about history. The transit of the pineapple brilliantly illuminates the history, geography of empires and the culture of the place.
This book will defenitely change your ideas about pineapple.