England does not really have ‘national food anymore’. The Sunday roast and BLT has been sometimes replaced by the Balti curry or the Mexican burrito! So as long as you use natural ingredients, cooking international cuisine is a great way to move away from cheap ready-meals and eat tasty food made at home. Let’s dip our chopsticks into the world of Japanese cuisine.
Vegan JapanEasy offers bold and salty sweet and rich umami recipes of Japanese food, that is simple to make.
Never eat rice after 24 hours (food poisoning hazard). Before cooking, read up on food safety for people & pets.
The author taps into this rich culture of cooking to offer recipes like:
- Vegetable tempura
- Onigiri
- Mushroom gyoza
- Cauliflower katsu curry
- French onion ramen
- Soy sauce butterscotch brownies
Also read Vegan Recipes from Japan. More than a cookbook this takes notes from Zen philosophy to offer simple recipes that are prepared with the seasons, using just a few ingredients.
Using local produce and other Japanese staples like miso, soy sauce, sake and dashi, find simple recipes with entertaining stories, from the land of the rising sun. Vegetables are prepared according to the seasons from the garden or market (with few ingredients). The book’s recipes combine local produce and rice with Japanese ingredients to open up a new perspective.
If you’re visiting, read The Vegan Guide to Tokyo (2023).
Vegan Japan offers fresh recipes with charming pastel illustrations by Japanese-French chef Julia Boucachard, giving western dishes playful Japanese spins. From savoury street foods to comforting noodles and soups, this is a tribute to her heritage, from global mains to sweet bite-size desserts.
Key Japanese ingredients are pretty easy to find in England:
- Tofoo (made in Yorkshire) is organic.
- Miso is another popular ingredient. It’s one of the few foods rich in all the tastes for ‘good umami’ and also good for your tummy! It’s unpasteurised so not for children, pregnancy, nursing or affected immune conditions.
- Seaweed makes ‘things taste of the sea’. Popular seaweeds are nori, wakame and kombu (buy from sustainable companies – it’s not sustainable nor safe to harvest yourself and dogs should be kept away from seaweed, as the fronds can dry in the stomach and swell). Also avoid seaweed for thyroid/iodine issues.
- Soy sauce is easy to find (so is its posher big sister tamari). Look in health shops for vegan fish sauce.
How to Make Your Own Vegan Sushi
Forget issues with mercury and by-catch and make your own instead. Easy Vegan Sushi (The Veg Space) offers four shapes and varieties, using staple ingredients of rice, rice vinegar, ginger and nori sheets. Then just assemble with veggie fillings (cucumber, broccoli, carrots, peppers).
Vegan Sushi (ElaVegan) is a slightly more elaborate recipe, which you can use with your favourite veggies, and even fill with your favourite dairy-free cream cheese.
Moving Mountains sell fishless fillets, which you can use to make vegan sushi (mix with cucumber, pepper, spring onion and vegan mayo, then layer with cooked rice).
Look in stores for Konscious, store-bought sushi made from whole grains, vegetables, legumes and fruits (in four flavours, plus plant-based salmon and poke bowls). Made by chefs, these meals are flash-frozen and ready to thaw at home. Recycle packaging at supermarket bag bins, if your kerbside does not collect.
This brand was founded by a young chef who cycled across Canada in his youth, and settled in an area known for environmentalism. After creating one of the USA’s first vegan hot dog brands, he’s now turned his skills to making vegan fish!