Sakura Sakura Japanize Dream

[Prince Aboubakar]

Onthat February day, I had arrived with literally thousands of Japanese families who were celebrating the sakura which bordered the Kawazu River for over 2 km. A beautiful sight, indeed. I had been traveling around Japan with several other photographers who were eager to capture the scene. As they rushed off to shoot I limped slowly behind them due to a knee injury caused by a trip & fall incident in Tokyo 10 days earlier. Because of my injury, I knew that my shooting method would not include trotting along the river, so I selected a suitable tree and then perched on a nearby bench to observe and plot my course of action. Since I absolutely did not want to produce an iconic photograph of the sakura, my options appeared to be quite limited.

On my second night in Japan, I braved the cold of Matsumoto (in Nagano prefecture) and landed up at Itoya Izakaya, thanks to the HappyCow App. The cosy traditional wooden bar turned out to be the home of 60+ year old Itoya San, who spoke a bit of English and had handwritten several cards explaining what vegan Japanese dishes she could offer. Over an immensely satisfying meal of oshoyu-no-mi (black soybeans with rice mould), jaza chizimi (potatoes with wild leeks), soba gaki (kneaded buckwheat with soya sauce) and warm homemade sake, we chatted about Japan, the mountains and her love for cooking.

When I asked why she offers vegan options unlike most other restaurants in Matsumoto, she said that during the Edo period, before Japan succumbed to western influence, their traditional diet was largely plant-based and meat-free! It was only in the late 1800s that people started consuming beef, horse meat and all kinds of marine animals in huge quantities. Both Buddhism and Shintoism, practiced for centuries in Japan, promote compassionate eating.

In Japan, I learnt that it is a misconception that sushi means fish. It simply means rice with vinegar, topped with various ingredients, one of which happens to be fish. I loved standing sushi bars (you literally stand around the table eating sushi) and revolving sushi restaurants, and each of them had vegan sushi with ingredients like cucumber, pickled radish, wild mountain vegetables, natto (fermented soybean) and seaweed. Turns out though, that even though avocado grows in Japan, avocado sushi is a California creation.

Inarizushi is a kind of sushi made of sweetish deep-fried tofu, filled with Japanese sticky rice and sometimes other ingredients like sesame or sakura. Often available in supermarkets, and almost always vegan. Just check to be sure, one version contains shrimp.

Update: A member of the Vegan Japan Facebook group wrote to all the big supermarkets to ask if their inarizushi was vegan. All of them said it contained fish powder ? Unless made on order from scratch, avoid it.

Made from grains and soybeans fermented with salt and koji (a fungus), miso is a big part of traditional Japanese cuisine, especially as a soup. It took me a while to get used to the fermented flavor; while I found the flavor in some soups too strong for my liking, I had some delicious ones, especially in local homes in Osaka and near Kyoto. The broth of miso soups typically contains fish, but I found many people willing to make a version from scratch using vegetables only.

Japanese rice balls, wrapped in a nori sheet, typically with a tiny filling inside, like red beans, a pickled plum (that one is called an umeboshi). This Japanese vegan food dish was a favorite picnic snack for one of my Japanese hosts, and readily available in supermarkets.

To tell you the truth, even though I had a few challenging experiences in Japan during my search for vegan food, most of my food memories from the country are incredibly positive. I still yearn for the creative bento boxes, the aesthetically presented meals, the delicate flavors and the energetic, creative feeling born out of a mostly raw vegan Japanese diet.

Wish I had read this a month ago! I really struggled in Japan. You might want to tell your readers that Japanese curry is not vegetarian or vegan unless it says so. It is almost always made with pork broth. Thanks for the post!

Some of my most cherished memories include a life-changing month on the wild and remote Robinson Crusoe Island in Chile, travelling overland from the Persian Gulf via Iran to Armenia, living with a Mayan community in Guatemala, volunteering at a coral reef restoration project in Cuba, living at a nunnery in Ladakh, and shedding my inhibitions and clothes at onsens across Japan.

Every year in Japan, Starbucks releases limited edition cherry blossom themed drinks and merchandise. Everything is so dreamy and pink! This year (2023), they released a sakura frappuccino and a sakura soy latte, which was the inspiration for this recipe!

Since I am NOT in Japan currently, I had to do a little research into making my own cherry blossom latte. I used the instant sakura strawberry latte packets from Starbucks Japan as a starting base. The ingredients listed on those packets show that the cherry blossom flavor in that drink comes entirely from an extract.

Now that I had determined cherry blossom extract to be the best choice for flavoring cherry blossom food, I needed to find a place to buy it. Unfortunately, my local Japanese market did not have anything for me. So, predictably, I turned to Amazon.

Aside from the cherry blossom syrup, the rest of this sakura strawberry latte recipe does not require any hard to find ingredients. This drink is essentially a strawberry milk with cherry blossom syrup mixed in.

Hi! I'm Kristen. I am a Chinese-Japanese American mom living in the PNW. I am passionate about recording family recipes and sharing about my culture. Feel free to take a look around and come find me on social media!

I started my sakura-hunting week off at Meiji Jingu Gaien. It was my first time here and I decided to go on a whim after it popped up on Google Maps as a sakura hot spot (a special feature in spring). The area is famous for its ginkgo avenues which turn bright yellow in November, but I never realised there were cherry trees here, too. There were several somei yoshino trees (the main sakura), but also the weeping sakura, apricot blossoms and magnolias were very pretty.

For lunch, I joined a group of colleagues at Hinokicho Park behind Tokyo MidTown, a luxury shopping complex. I absolutely love hanami picnics because everyone always seems so happy and relaxed. Kids run around, couples lay around, friends kanpai together. The trees in the park were already past peak, showing signs of the end of the season.

Wow absolutely beautiful! This sight is pretty high on my list of things to see. The japanese culture is something i have yet to experience, this post has provided some great inspiration! Thanks for sharing ?

Thank you for giving us close-ups of the cherry blossoms. I always see large landscape pictures, which are also wonderful, but your close-ups area lovely, then boating beneath them, wow! The Tokyo Tower is impressive!

Wow!!! simply amazing photos. Your photos are so stunning and the place is also very beautiful with full blossoms. I have heard so much about this blossom and seen so many great photos that I can not just wait to go there personally.

Sakura is the Japanese name for the cherry blossom tree and its flowers. It is a beloved symbol in Japanese culture. Celebrated during the annual Hanami festival it represents the beauty and ephemeral nature of life. The cherry blossom is also a popular motif in Japanese art and has been depicted in many forms, including paintings, prints, and textiles. Additionally, the word "Sakura" is a popular given name for girls in Japan.

The cherry blossom tree season, known as 'Sakura' in Japanese, is a highly anticipated and celebrated time in Japan. The Sakura tree season usually starts in late March and lasts for about two weeks, during which the entire country transforms into a pink paradise with the blooming of cherry blossom trees. If you are planning to visit Japan in spring, these are the dates they foresee the cherry blossoms blooming.

The cherry blossom is native to Japan, and the oldest sakura tree in the country is believed to be over 1,500 years old. It is thought that the practice of cultivating cherry blossom trees began in the eighth century, during the Nara period.

2. Cultural significance:

Cherry blossoms have played an important role in Japanese culture for centuries. In ancient times, they were associated with Shinto deities and were thought to bring good fortune and ward off evil spirits. Later, during the Heian period (794-1185), cherry blossoms became a popular motif in poetry, literature, and art.

3. Hanami:

The tradition of hanami, or cherry blossom viewing, dates back to the Nara period and has been a popular pastime in Japan for centuries. During hanami, people gather under the blooming cherry trees to enjoy food, drink, and the beauty of the blossoms. Hanami is seen as a way to appreciate the fleeting nature of beauty and to celebrate the arrival of spring.

4. Modern day:

Today, sakura remains an important part of Japanese culture, and the annual blooming of cherry blossoms is eagerly anticipated by people all over the country. The blossoms are celebrated with festivals, parades, and other events, and are a symbol of the beauty and resilience of nature. Cherry blossoms have also become popular around the world, and many countries have their own cherry blossom festivals and celebrations. The most famous festival is the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Tokyo, which attracts millions of visitors each year.

The history of the cherry blossom tree in Japan is closely tied to the country's culture, traditions, and natural beauty. It continues to be an important part of Japanese identity and national pride.

3a8082e126