Characteristics of Japanese Food and Its Culture

In 2013, “Washoku” (traditional dietary culture of the Japanese) was registered as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, and Japanese foods attracted a great deal of attention from foreign countries. However, the definition of Japanese foods has not been clarified yet. Although it is difficult to define Japanese food because foods in a country are always changing, characteristics of food and its culture might be maintained to some degree. This paper tries to describe characteristics retained in Japanese food, especially in Japanese daily food, and its culture.