Culinary surprises in Japan

I couldn't believe how many assumptions and preconceptions I had about Japan given that I'd never been there before. Some of my assumptions were correct such as "don't get on the tube in rush hour in Tokyo" (it was so so packed my feet were lifting off the ground from the crush!) but some were completely wrong, I didn't think that the Japanese ate much dairy for instance. These were some of the surprises I had in the food world:

Toast and Jam:

I totally did not expect to have toast and jam for breakfast in Japan. The bread was really light and fluffy. I've looked into it since I've been back and I think the bread was Shokupan which is a milk bread. According to the "Chopsticks Chronicles" the reason the bread is so fluffy is because of the Yudan method: boiling water is added to the bread flour which allows the starch to take in more water and increases its sweetness. You then add the Yudan to the bread dough. I'd love to try making this and have found a couple of sites with recipes that look worth investigating. Chopstick chronicles or Dreams of Dashi

Standing/Tachinomi Bars

Apparently the literal translation of Tachinomi is drinking whilst standing". Nick and I spent a fun afternoon on a photography workshop around the streets of Tokyo. We then hung out with the photographer for a few beers and he took us to one of his favourite standing bars. He was a Brit who'd lived in Tokyo for 20 years so it was really interesting chatting with him.

This standing bar was under the arches of a metro station, people drop by on their way home from work, buy a can of chilled beer from the vending machine, stand at the tables (there aren't any chairs) enjoy a quick beer then head on home. Perfect!

Patisseries

This was a very happy discovery. I had some of the most delicate, exquisite patisserie in Japan. I knew of Hidemi Sugino and his mousse cakes, but I didn't realise that there were so many skilled patisserie chefs in Japan. Honestly, I have only found one patisserie shop in London to the same standard. Light strawberry sponges, rare cheese and honey cakes, chestnut Mont Blanc's....sigh....I was in heaven!!

Gion Saki in Kyoto and Shinjuku Takashimaya in Tokyo

There was a much longer list of things that surprised me such as the strong coffee culture in Tokyo (I had the best cappuccino I've ever had at Beams), sweet potatoes with purple skins, shiso leaves (this is a herb from the mint family with quite a unique flavour, some people say it tastes like mint with a hint of citrus or even liquorice). Paul Hollywood filmed a 3 part series where he explores Japan and it's food. The narration is pretty annoying but overall I really enjoyed it, in every episode you see him surprised by what he finds too.

Paul Hollywood Eats Japan