Japan is a society in which it has not been forgotten that courtesy and simple pleasantries require almost no additional effort, and yet make everyone’s day a little more pleasant.
Japanese cuisine has no fear of chewy things. I had something in my soup at lunch today (visible in the center bowl) which I think was slices of mushroom. It was surprisingly chewy–not unpleasantly so, but more resistant to being chewed than anything commonly found in American food that I can think of off the top of my head.
I’ve started posting photos here.
Could be konkyaku? Or maybe abura-age?
I’m jealous. Although I have slight issues with chewiness, I think Japanese cuisine is seriously delicious. I love the variety and purity of the food there. Enjoy!
I’m afraid that I have no idea what it was, although it seemed like mushroom of some sort. I didn’t have any bilingual friends handy so I couldn’t ask. Well, I suppose I could have asked the proprietor, but I doubt I could have come up with a polite way of asking “what exactly IS this in my soup?” given my inability to speak Japanese. 🙂