Tempura

Tempura is a Japanese dish of seafood or vegetables that have been battered and deep fried. 

Origins
The recipe for tempura was introduced to Japan by Portuguese Jesuit missionaries particularly active in the city of Nagasaki also founded by the Portuguese, during the sixteenth century (1549) Portuguese Jesuit.
Etymology: from Portuguese tempero (“seasoning”), a form of temperar, from Latin temperare (“to mix, to temper”).

Peixinhos da horta, the Portuguese ancestor of Japanese tempura

Black bass ten-don in Lake Ashi, Japan

Japan
In Japan, restaurants specializing in tempura are called tenpura-ya and range from inexpensive fast food chains to very expensive five-star restaurants.

panko = coarse, dry breadcrumbs used in Japanese cuisine

Baked pork with a panko crust

Japan: McDonald's Giving Away 18-Karat Gold Chicken McNugget

The company devised a Twitter campaign that asks people to identify a "mysterious nugget thief." The first person to solve a series of clues will win a golden nugget worth roughly $1,500.

Tokyo noodle shop becomes first ramen eatery to earn a Michelin star

Tokyo’s Tsuta (Japanese Soba Noodles 蔦) becomes first ramen eatery to earn a Michelin star

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A Tokyo noodle shop with only nine seats has joined an elite group of global restaurants.

Tsuta, located in Tokyo’s Toshima ward, has become the first ramen restaurant to win a star in the renowned Michelin Guide. Unlike French diners and sushi eateries also awarded stars, ramen is typically an affordable food for the masses. Tsuta’s noodles, which feature broth created from a mix of pork, chicken, fish, and vegetables, sell for about $8.

A spokeswoman at Michelin Guide, which announced the awarding of the star Tuesday, said it wouldn’t explain the reasons for including Tsuta, but said the shop scored high on each criteria used to judge restaurants.

“I feel like ramen has been recognized by the world,” Yuki Onishi, a representative of Tsuta, told Kyodo News on Tuesday.

Tsuta was among 153 restaurants in Tokyo that won a single star. Thirteen Tokyo establishments, including the famous sushi restaurant Sukiyabashi Jiro, were awarded the highest rating of three stars, up from 12 last year. That leaves Tokyo again at the top of the global rankings. Paris trails with nine three-star restaurants.

Japan : Burger King invents black cheese for its black burger

Japan is a nation known for its love of culinary oddities, and starting Sept. 19, Burger King  plans to indulge that love with black cheese.

That’s right, Burger King Japan has announced the latest iteration of its “Kuro” burger (“kuro” meaning “black” in Japanese), first introduced last year. The buns are black, the sauce is black, and this year, the cheese will be black as well.

According to the gaming site Kotaku.com, the buns and the new cheese addition get their coloring from bamboo charcoal, while the accompanying onion and garlic sauce is prepared with squid ink, and the hamburger patties are made with black pepper, just for good measure.

There are two versions of the burger. The Kuro Pearl has a black pattie, cheese and sauce, while the more substantial Kuro Diamond, also has lettuce, tomato and onion.

The creation is available in two forms: The simple Kuro Pearl will sell for 480 yen ($4.49), while the fancier Kuro Diamond — which includes regular-colored tomatoes and lettuce — will run you 690 yen.

McDonald’s Japan : tofu nuggets

McDonald’s Japan started serving its new chicken-less nuggets featuring tofu, fish and vegetables. The Tofu Shinjo Nuggets are served with ginger sauce and priced at ¥249 ($2.44) for four pieces.

Less than a week after announcing it would halt sales of all chicken products imported from China following a scandal at chicken-nugget supplier Shanghai Husi Food Co., Japan’ largest restaurant chain by revenue said it would start serving Tofu Shinjo Nuggets. They are made mainly from tofu and vegetables.

“The new nuggets do not include any chicken” but are made from ingredients that include onions, soybeans, carrots and minced fish, a spokeswoman at McDonald’s Japan said. The nuggets, to be manufactured in domestic factories, will be available beginning Wednesday for ¥249 ($2.44) for four pieces.

This is first nugget product to feature tofu as the main ingredient, the spokeswoman said, adding that McDonald’s Japan had planned to introduce the product before the scandal in China came to light. Shinjo is a kind of Japanese food made of fish paste, starch and other ingredients.

The new tofu nuggets will be served with a ginger-flavored sauce. “Because it isn’t meat, it tastes a bit different. It’s a bit softer,” the spokeswoman said. “Calorie-wise, it is a bit lower than chicken as well.” Tofu Shinjo Nuggets will be available until late September.

Following Chinese media reports earlier this month that Shanghai Husi Food was using expired meat in its products, McDonalds Japan said it would cut ties with the supplier.

“I would like to extend my sincere apology to our valued customers,” said Sarah Casanova, chief executive of McDonald’s Japan, at a news conference Tuesday. She said the company was committed to safety and described the issue as “restricted to one supplier in one city.”