Japanese Chinese cuisine
Japanese Chinese cuisine or Chūka is a style of Japanese cuisine served by nominally Chinese restaurants popularized in Japan in the late 19th century and more recent times. There is much confusion as both Japanese and Chinese reject that this food is the pure form of their own cuisine, however, it is clear this food is found primarily in Japan, though now it is re-popularized throughout Asia from Japan as "Japanese cuisine". This style of food is again different from modern Chinatown Chinese food in Japan, e.g. Yokohama Chinatown. The Shippoku style of cooking displays heavy influence from Chinese cuisine.
Overview
Chūka is the adjective for Japanese style "Chinese" dishes, or the restaurants in Japan which serve them. Chuka dishes originated in China, but have become modified over the years to suit Japanese taste, often with Japanese or even Western foods. They have changed enough that they are not identified as Chinese dishes by the Chinese themselves, nor as Japanese dishes by the Japanese. Japanese mistakenly consider them "Chinese", though the dish of origin in any Chinese restaurant would never be made in this way. In some cases, Japanese foods have been added, such as in the case of miso-ramen. In other cases, only the noodles are "Chinese", as in the case of hiyashi chūka, which was invented in Sendai in 1937, and uses Western food influences such as sliced cured ham. As meat was not common in Japanese cooking until recently, many meat dishes, particularly pork dishes, are of Chinese origin or influence.Though formerly Chinese cuisine would have been primarily available in Chinatowns such as those in port cities of Kobe, Nagasaki, or Yokohama, and a number of the dishes are considered meibutsu of these cities, Japanese-style Chinese cuisine is now commonly available all over Japan. As Japanese restaurants are often specialized to offer only one sort of dish, cuisine is focused primarily on dishes found within three distinct types of restaurants: Ramen restaurants, Dim sum houses, and standard Chinese-style restaurants.
Ramen
Ramen a dish of noodles in broth, usually with meat and vegetable toppings, is occasionally referred to as Chuka Soba In Japan, ramen is one of the most popular fast-food options. Though every Japanese city has numerous inexpensive ramen restaurants specializing in these noodles, numerous varieties of instant ramen are available. These noodles have changed much since their origin in China. Four main types of ramen are widely available in Japan: shio, shōyu, tonkotsu and miso. While the toppings used in ramen are generalized based on the broth type, this can vary from shop to shop. As complements to the noodles, ramen restaurants also commonly offer Japanese-style fried rice and gyoza.Dim sum in Japan
Dim sum in Japan is often very different from that which has been popularized in Chinatowns in the United States and Canada. In Japan's Chinatown areas, restaurants in which numerous dishes are brought around to diner's tables on carts do exist. But, in general, Dim sum items have only recently begun to gain popularity around Japan. Instead of carrying full menus of authentic, Chinese-oriented items such as stewed chicken's feet or tripe, Japanese dim sum restaurants, now found in larger cities such as Osaka and Tokyo seem to promote a cafe-like atmosphere. At these cafes, tea and snacks often become the focus, instead of full meals. In general, the menus seem to focus on cafe items, such as Shumai sho lon po and the like. These are usually served alongside of pots of oolong or jasmine tea.Chinese restaurants in Japan
Chinese Restaurants, serve a distinct set of popular dishes that are not necessarily typical of authentic Chinese cuisine. They also cater to Japanese tastes. Currently, most towns in Japan have at least one Chinese eatery, as the cuisine is very popular. There are also many packaged sauces available to easily cook favorite Chinese-Japanese dishes right at home. Some of these typical dishes are:Dishes derived from Sichuan cuisine:
- Mābō-dōfu are Stir fried dishes of ground pork mixture with Tofu cubes in a slightly spicy sauce.
- Mābō-nasu are Stir fried dishes of ground pork with Eggplant in a slightly spicy sauce. The dish was popularized in Japan by Chen Kenmin in 1952.
- Ebi no Chili Sauce is a spicy, thick-sauced shrimp dish. As the name suggests, chili sauce is used.
- Hoi Kō Rō is a stir-fry of thinly sliced pork and cabbage in a miso-based sauce.
- Banbanji is a cold dish of steamed chicken which is shredded and covered in a sesame sauce. It is often accompanied by cold vegetables as a salad or appetizer.
- Chin-jao Rōsu is a stir-fry of thinly sliced Beef strips with Japanese green peppers and often bean sprouts in an Oyster sauce.
- Champon is a ramen-like dish, topped with fried pork, seafood, and vegetables
- Subuta is the Japanese take on Sweet and sour pork. It usually has a thicker, amber-colored sauce, unlike the striking orange or red of the Americanized version. Also unlike the American version, it does not typically contain pineapple. Another common dish substitutes the fried pork in this dish with small fried meat-balls, called "niku-dango".
- Chāshū is derived from char siu. However, while the original Cantonese version is roasted after marinating in a sweet sauce that gives it a red colour, the Japanese version is instead stewed in honey and soy sauce.
- Shumai is a type of traditional Chinese dumpling.
- Chūkadon is a Cantonese-style stir fry of vegetables and meat on top of rice.
- Gyōza, as mentioned before, are a very popular dish in Japan. Most often, they are seen in their pan-fried form, but they can be served boiled as dumplings or even deep fried, as well. They are also commonly found in Ramen shops as well as general Chuka restaurants.
- Tenshindon, also known as Tenshinhan, is a dish of crab meat omelette over rice. The dish name derived from the port city of Tianjin in China.
- Kani-tama is very similar to the Americanized Egg foo young, but exclusively using crabmeat as the filling. It is served with a thick, brownish sauce, like its American counterpart.
- Chāhan is sometimes called "yakimeshi," literally meaning Fried rice. It is very different from fried rice found in American Chinese or authentic Chinese restaurants, as it uses Japanese short-grain rice, which generally has a stickier consistency than that used in other countries. Additionally, though there are many different recipes using such diverse ingredients as Welsh onion, ground pork, crab, bamboo shoots, the classic Japanese fried rice does not use soy sauce, remaining white when served. It typically uses egg, green peas, and thinly sliced ham.
- Shoronpo is the Japanese pronunciation of Xiao Long Bao, a steamed juicy pork dumpling, popularized in Shanghai.
- Buta no Kakuni is thick slices of pork bellies stewed in a soy sauce based mixture, often served with Shanghai bok choi and Chinese mustard.
- Kara-age are bite-sized pieces of chicken thigh, dipped in a thick batter and fried. Usually, it is served without sauce. Some restaurants serve this with a salt and pepper mixture on the side for dipping, and some recipes call for a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar and scallions similar to that used on dumplings.
- Yūrinchi is deep-fried chicken or karaage topped with a vinegar and soy sauce-based sweet-and-sour sauce and chopped scallions, often served on a bed of shredded lettuce.
- Harumaki are very similar to those found in Americanized Chinese restaurants, with a thin wrapper and vegetables inside.
- Nikuman or Chukaman is the Japanese name for Chinese baozi, steamed buns filled with cooked ground pork, beef, and/or other ingredients.