Japanese diet is insane

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am Japanese and LOVE to be treated to traditional cuisine.

BUT.

This is not how the majority of Japanese eat today. Everywhere in industrialized nations, people are tending towards the US model of fatty and sugary convenience foods, because they have busy lives and don't have the time to cook lengthy meals.

Do you know how long it takes to make a traditional Japanese meal? Or a traditional meal in many other countries? It takes hours. All the vegetables have to be peeled, prepared, slow-cooked just so, the broth is flavored and takes its own time to make, the fish is traditionally charcoaled-grilled (need to prepare the charcoal so it heats at the right temp), etc...

Such cuisines around the world harken back to when kitchens lacked all modern conveniences and women and girls stayed home and where near enough to the house that something could simmer all day. Women went to the market every day for fresh vegetables. Indeed, my grandmother would go every day, so she could make and eat fresh food daily. No eating wilted produce 5 days after the weekend grocery shopping!

We all try to eat as healthy as we can in the short time we want to dedicate to cooking, but it can't be the Ryokan spread all the time.

Thank you for this reality check!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I travel a lot for work. The first thing that I realized was how trash American breakfasts were. We're practically the only country that doesn't start its day with veggies, and no, a tablespoon of onions, tomatoes, and spinach in an omelet doesn't count. Also, savory porridge is super common in most other countries. I started making my own version here and love it for breakfast.

So I guess your travels have never taken you to western europe, among other places?

Every day the idiots on here get more and more self assured, it's unbelievable...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My breakfast is oatmeal cooked in milk, banana or apple chopped, 2 tsp of hemp hearts, 1 fistful of walnuts, 1 tsp roasted and ground flaxseed, 1 tsp ground chia, 1 tsp bilberry powder, handful of blueberries, 1 tbsn raisins.

Also - one glass of green juice - celery, beet, carrots, apple, kale, spinach, ginger, cilantro, cucumber, lemon.

Lots of oxalates here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I travel a lot for work. The first thing that I realized was how trash American breakfasts were. We're practically the only country that doesn't start its day with veggies, and no, a tablespoon of onions, tomatoes, and spinach in an omelet doesn't count. Also, savory porridge is super common in most other countries. I started making my own version here and love it for breakfast.

I think my favorite breakfast is in Israel--Israeli salad with a hard-boiled egg, hummus, and pita. Yum!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I travel a lot for work. The first thing that I realized was how trash American breakfasts were. We're practically the only country that doesn't start its day with veggies, and no, a tablespoon of onions, tomatoes, and spinach in an omelet doesn't count. Also, savory porridge is super common in most other countries. I started making my own version here and love it for breakfast.

So I guess your travels have never taken you to western europe, among other places?

Every day the idiots on here get more and more self assured, it's unbelievable...

+1
I think this person would pass out if they could see what the italians or french have for "breakfast"

[Anonymous]

I lived in Japan and the first two weeks were so hard. It felt like being on a diet. No carbs, nothing filling. After a while you got used to it. Pretty much all the westerners I met lost weight while living in Japan

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I travel a lot for work. The first thing that I realized was how trash American breakfasts were. We're practically the only country that doesn't start its day with veggies, and no, a tablespoon of onions, tomatoes, and spinach in an omelet doesn't count. Also, savory porridge is super common in most other countries. I started making my own version here and love it for breakfast.

So I guess your travels have never taken you to western europe, among other places?

Every day the idiots on here get more and more self assured, it's unbelievable...

+1
I think this person would pass out if they could see what the italians or french have for "breakfast"

Cigarettes and coffee? Lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rice makes many people’s blood sugar spike much higher than many other carbohydrates.

If you refrigerate it and reheat it the glycemic index is less

Watch out doing that. Left over rice can become toxic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I travel a lot for work. The first thing that I realized was how trash American breakfasts were. We're practically the only country that doesn't start its day with veggies, and no, a tablespoon of onions, tomatoes, and spinach in an omelet doesn't count. Also, savory porridge is super common in most other countries. I started making my own version here and love it for breakfast.

So I guess your travels have never taken you to western europe, among other places?

Every day the idiots on here get more and more self assured, it's unbelievable...

+1
I think this person would pass out if they could see what the italians or french have for "breakfast"

Cigarettes and coffee? Lol

LOL. And sugary carbs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I lived in Japan with a host family in high school, and I found Japanese breakfasts the most difficult meal to accustom myself to. My host sisters ate fermented soy beans, which smelled to high heaven! I really tried, but my host mother took pity on me and would make me an egg, with some fruit and vegetables on the side. A little bit Western, a little bit Japanese...

My dad spent 2 years as an exchange student. One host mom fed him whale fat cooked like bacon. I don’t know how heart healthy that is!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rice makes many people’s blood sugar spike much higher than many other carbohydrates.

If you refrigerate it and reheat it the glycemic index is less

Watch out doing that. Left over rice can become toxic.

NP. Been refrigerating rice my whole life. I even leave it out sometimes if I forget. Still alive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I lived in Japan with a host family in high school, and I found Japanese breakfasts the most difficult meal to accustom myself to. My host sisters ate fermented soy beans, which smelled to high heaven! I really tried, but my host mother took pity on me and would make me an egg, with some fruit and vegetables on the side. A little bit Western, a little bit Japanese...

My dad spent 2 years as an exchange student. One host mom fed him whale fat cooked like bacon. I don’t know how heart healthy that is!

Shhhh you're going to spoil the "everyone in Japan is a magical wise samurai and everyone in America is a fat troglodyte" fairytale!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I travel a lot for work. The first thing that I realized was how trash American breakfasts were. We're practically the only country that doesn't start its day with veggies, and no, a tablespoon of onions, tomatoes, and spinach in an omelet doesn't count. Also, savory porridge is super common in most other countries. I started making my own version here and love it for breakfast.

So I guess your travels have never taken you to western europe, among other places?

Every day the idiots on here get more and more self assured, it's unbelievable...

+1
I think this person would pass out if they could see what the italians or french have for "breakfast"

My French mother has coffee, a cigarette, and then a kiwi with plain yogurt.
Then another coffee and another cigarette.
She's painfully thin and hardly eats anything.

The "continental" breakfast of pastries, or toast with butter and jam, isn't eaten by many people I know. Lots of French kids eat cereal, but often it's quite junky.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I lived in Japan with a host family in high school, and I found Japanese breakfasts the most difficult meal to accustom myself to. My host sisters ate fermented soy beans, which smelled to high heaven! I really tried, but my host mother took pity on me and would make me an egg, with some fruit and vegetables on the side. A little bit Western, a little bit Japanese...

My dad spent 2 years as an exchange student. One host mom fed him whale fat cooked like bacon. I don’t know how heart healthy that is!

Japanese poster again. Reminds me of the time my grandfather took me to a whale restaurant. Ugh. It was so fatty. So fatty. He thought it was a delicacy, and he was treating me with his limited pension funds, so I choked it down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No question the Japanese diet is healthier, but the traditional Japanese breakfast is mostly for tourists at this point. I lived in Japan years ago. When I stayed at a Ryokan the Japanese guests were all having the western breakfast!

Also the western breakfast you describe is a special occasion breakfast for most people. I eat yogurt, fruit or oatmeal most days.

+1 Ryokans are not representative any more than a hotel buffet is representative of a normal American breakfast. The more traditional Japanese equivalent to fruit and yogurt would be white rice with salted fried salmon. Tasty and filling but not the most perfectly healthy choice in the world.

Seriously, it's always strange when people go to another country and assume the tourist places they visit are representative of current life style. When I first came to the US I thought everyone lived like the show Dallas and had huge mansions and ate large breakfasts with family every day.