As part of the Spirit of Shizen exhibition at Luxembourg’s Natural History Museum that will run through July until 28 August, the food connoisseur and award-winning restaurant owner Hajime Miyamae will be discussing the history and process behind Japanese food culture.
The country has globally renowned food traditions as indicated by its Unesco recognition as part of the list Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It was chosen for values like nutritional balance, respect for nature, link to annual events and local traditions that have spanned for several decades, explains Hajime.
Although Kamakura has been running since 1988 in Luxembourg, the importance Hajime places on traditional food values and taste have been sustained to maintain the originality of Japanese cooking.
“The Spirit of Shizen means respect of nature and natural components and this is something that the exhibition curator, Robert Weis--who has travelled a lot in Japan--understands as it is a bit the Japanese culture and the Shinzen spirit in respect of nature. Japanese cuisine is the same thing,” says Hajime.
The popular Japanese dish tempura, which will be served during the event on 24 July--and usually contains seafood ingredients such as shrimps, fish or salmon, shiitake, carrots, aubergine, red pepper, green beans, other ingredients that can be fried, daikon, ginger and vegetable oil--is made in a way to preserve the nutritional benefits of the ingredients after a distinct method of batter frying, explains Hajime. The batter is made using egg yolk, cold water and flour.
“It contains different useful vitamins and as it is not sautéed or grilled but really cooked from the inside, all the nutrients remain intact for your body,” adds Hajime. The tempura has not always been the way it is known today but stems from several cultural traditions spanning ages.
Although the dish originated from the Portuguese and the method of frying is said to date centuries back to China, the adaptation of the tempura to make it truly Japanese includes the infusion of seafood instead of meat, the use of vegetable oil and emphasis on maintaining the natural state of the food.
“The same goes for sushi. There’s a long history behind this and it’s not Japanese. It’s the Thai preparation style that brought it to us in the 15th century, but that’s a story for another day,” says Hajime, who will be at the food workshop and tasting during the exhibition taking place on Sunday 24 July from 11:30am until 2pm.
The exchanges will follow a visit of the Spirit of Shinzen exhibition that day, and is limited to 25 visitors on a first-come-first-served basis. Tickets will cost €20 per person inclusive of lunch, drinks and the museum’s entrance fee.
A preview of the tempura from the Kamakura kitchen was prepared by the restaurant’s chef for Delano.
