Washoku demonstration by Chef Fujii
On February 22, Mr. Ichiro Fujii, the Japanese Ambassador’s chef had a cooking demonstration at La Cité Collégiale in Ottawa. About 20 students from Culinary Art Course joined in this class. The Ambassador’s wife, Mrs. Monji also attended and answered students’ questions.
Prior to the demonstration, there were video screening related to Japanese food culture and a short presentation on Washoku (Japanese cuisine).
Chef Fujii prepared Miso-soup, Dashimaki-tamago (Japanese-style omelet), Niku-jaga (Simmered beef and potato) and grilled fish. It was based on Ichiju-sansai (One soup and three dishes), a basic Japanese-style food setting. Students were diligently observing the different cooking style and skills from the fashion they are accustomed to. They were very interested in the Japanese way of cooking to bring the best qualities out of the ingredients.
Students were eager to ask questions about cooking with Japanese ingredients such as miso and dashi, and Japanese food culture. We hope now that UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage has added Washoku to its list, it will become more widespread through future Canadian chefs.
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