![]() Citrus farmers, many of whom have moved from Japan’s big cities to start new slow lives in rural areas, have taken over family orchards or revived abandoned ones and are growing better quality fruit through organic farming practices as well as cultivating exciting new types of edible sweet-sour and tart seasoning citrus. These include ponzu (traditionally a savory-sour watery mix of fermented dashi stock, konbu seaweed, and yuzu juice), yuzu miso and kinome miso (salty-sour pastes that blend miso with either yuzu peel or sansho leaves, called kinome), and yuzu kosho (a spicy-sour paste made by fermenting yuzu peel, salt, and chili pepper together).Ĭitrus’ role in Japan’s cuisine is experiencing an exciting renewal due to the culinary revolution underway in the countryside. For richer foods, more complex flavors, and different types of uses, a variety of umami-laden, blended condiments using two of Japan’s oldest and most unique citrus- yuzu and sansho-were created. Citrus juice has also been traditionally added to soups and stews. (The juice of Japan's sour ume plum and shibu-gaki persimmon are other natural acidic seasonings.) Raw sashimi and cooked fish, nuts, mushrooms, and vegetables were all seasoned with citrus and/or salt. Lastly, different types of acid can add their own notes of flavor.Ĭitrus has traditionally been Japan’s main form of acidic seasoning because the country’s tart native citrus have a relatively mild, soft-tasting acidity that is well-suited to the country’s light foods and style of cooking, in addition to being beautiful, fragrant, natural, and widely available. And while salt increases food’s flavor, acid balances it and also harmonizes flavors in a dish. ![]() Like salt, acid refreshes food, restoring its life and brightening its flavor. After salt, acid is the second most important seasoning in the Japanese pantry. The citric acid of the country’s native tart citrus, in turn, is one of the country’s most important seasonings. The difference today is that citrus farmers have evolved the country's edible citrus to be beautiful, juicy, and highly-refined combinations of rich sweet-sour flavor, making them as much luscious natural desserts as they are healthy portable snacks. This has been true since ancient times when citrus was simply a handy source of fresh, beneficial, and tasty water. Over 90% of the country's sweet-sour citrus is eaten as whole fresh fruit rather than being turned into juice or processed in other ways as is the case in most other countries. Refreshingly delicious, loaded with vitamins and flavonoids, and naturally practical because of its easy-to-peel skin, citrus is the most popular fruit in Japan. In addition to the beauty that citrus trees add to Japan’s landscape, its fruit, called kankitsukei, is a mainstay of the country’s natural, healthy diet and an essential seasoning in its light, clean-tasting cuisine and has been for centuries. ![]() ![]() While the prime growing region is the temperate area of Japan's ancient heartland around the Seto Inland Sea, citrus flourishes as far north as Tokyo due to the country's excellent growing conditions, expert attentions of its orchard farmers, and unusually cold hardy varieties that have evolved in the country over millennia. They can be found on small family farms tiered on ancient stone terraces lining mountainsides and tucked deep within protected mountain valleys, in the courtyard gardens of urban residences and the backyards of suburban homes, and growing wild along the roadside. Citrus trees are located almost everywhere, perfuming the air with their delicately fragrant flowers and decorating the landscape with their colorful round fruit and shiny evergreen leaves. The Japanese archipelago is an island paradise of citrus, and the country is blessed with one of the most diverse, exotic, and extensive ranges of citrus in the world.
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