A very detailed step-by-step introduction to all the basics of Japanese cooking. It is entirely done in English and Japanese. As I read a digital copy, the pictures and text were a bit too small to read, but I assume the paper version would be much better. This would definitely be worth it for anybody who wantsto dive in deep into Japanese cooking.

While the beginning is overwhelming the reader with a lot of details, for example multiple ways to cut carrots, once it got to the recipes I liked it better. Going to try the beef and potato recipe and the different fried chicken recipes to start with. For the most part the ingredients are ones I can find in the stores, but a few are not. Perhaps if there were options it would help. The book is designed with a lot of pictures, both Japanese and English, and is designed to help people learn how to cook Japanese an for others to learn English. Overall a good starter book on Japanese cooking. Would recommend.

I'm always interested in cookery books, so had to read this one when it came up on Netgalley.

The book is split into 5 chapters (no of recipes):
- Basis of Japanese Food
- Main Dishes (14)
- Western & Chinese dishes (13)
- Side Dishes (11)
- Rice, Soup & Pickles (20)

The Basis of Japanese Food covers essential cooking utensils, different cutting methods for vegetables, chopstick etiquette and much more. The colour photography is excellent in providing an overview of the basis of Japanese foods.. There is also a calendar of seasonal events with the food prepared and eaten.

The recipes each come with a step by step guides and photography on how to create the dish, how many it serves and time required. Included with some recipes are tips to avoid failure and tips for cooking.

For each description or recipe the page includes it both in Japanese and English, however it makes the page now feel overcrowded. There is a measurement chart which provides the cup sizes for the US, UK, Australia and Canada. For some of the ingredients it looks like you would need to go to a specialist shop.

Overall it is an great book, with plenty of photography of each stage and the final dishes, though perhaps a little to advanced for me, though I'd love to try the Braised Pork Belly plus the Mixed fried Rice.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for a honest review.

I was really interested I learning some new Japanese dishes and the synopsis sounded interesting but unfortunately it is not a Kindle book and I am unable to download it.

Written “for people interested in Japanese cuisine and for Japanese people who want to study English” (quoted from author’s preface).

As a billingual edition, the English text leaves me aghast! It is absolutely mangled and unreadable. I can’t recommend to English speakers, the written word leaves readers with more questions than answers.

Did not finish.

1 star

I'm definitely a fan of Japanese food so I was really excited to get my hands on this cookbook. It has everything you need to learn the basics of Japanese cooking. The preamble at the beginning was albeit long but very informative. Some of the pictures of the recipes look like restaurant-level food. The main meal demands a lot of protein and meal and I found the side dishes most interesting.

This is a jaw-droppingly comprehensive manual on preparing Japanese food. It is written in both Japanese and English to assist Japanese people learning English. I would hazard that it is primarily written for a Japanese audience, but could also be used by English speakers with access to the required specialist ingredients.

There is an extensive introductory section covering everything from utensils to etiquette, with knife skills and sharpening in between.

Then the recipes. The author states that the emphasis is on everyday Japanese meals. There is also a segment with Chinese and Western foods. Each recipe is accompanied by a step by step photographic guide.

My store cupboard is well-stocked with Asian ingredients, but I baulked at attempting the recipes. Most of the recipes I looked at called for several Japanese ingredients. It would require, I think, considerable commitment for a non-Japanese to track down a supplier and buy in the required ingredients to attempt many if not most of the dishes. A few recipes called for specialist kit.

It's a beautiful book and would suit a lover of all things Japanese. The only criticism I have is that the bilingual approach results in rather busy pages. I have reluctantly deducted a star because of the degree of commitment required by a non-Japanese reader to source ingredients to use the book as intended by the author.

I've resolved to start with the recipe for Japanese-style laminated omelettes, because I'm curious and have the ingredients. Though I lack a rectangular Japanese omelette pan and bamboo mat for shaping, so my presentation will differ!

This book has everything you need/want to know about Japanese cooking. The author explains everything with rich details and photos of every step and it's written in English and Japanese. You will learn the basis of Japanese food, some main dishes, western and Chinese dishes, some side dishes, rice and soups and you will also learn about essential cooking utensils, the basic usage of cooking knifes (one of my favorite parts, so useful!), lots of tips and you will also learn about tea! Awesome book! I went to Japan last year and I'm fascinated by their cuisine and I'm so glad I found this book!

I got an advance reader's copy of this book complimentary from NetGallery in exchange of my honest review.

This book is the perfect present for any Japanese food fanatic.

First, I really appreciated the fact that this book is bilingual and every single block of text is in both English and Japanese. Even if I'm not trying to learn Japanese, this makes the recipes feel more authentic, which is what you always look for in a region-specific cookbook.

In addition, I must say I had never seen a cookbook with instructions this specific, which is ideal for a total beginner. The opening pages contain descriptions of authentic kitchen utensils, usage and maintenance of knives, cutting methods, instructions on proper serving of food, methods of preparing vegetables and fish, and more. Even in the recipe pages, each step is accompanied by a relevant photograph - and that is something I had never seen before. It's great!

At the same time, if you are vegan or vegetarian, there are very few recipes that you can make here. The author could either offer more vegetarian recipes or perhaps write a section on how to replace meat and fish with Japanese ingredients.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I’m big fan of the japonese food, and this book is really amazing, and delicious, omg I can’t wait for cook all this food

Wow this is a beautiful and colossal book of Japanese cooking!! It goes FAR beyond just recipes to completely teach the reader all about Japanese cooking culture, techniques, ingredients, and so much more!

The inside of the book is SO much prettier than the cover! It is relaxing and peaceful to page through every appealing page, and every page makes you want to make what is on it!

There is so much information in this book.... it seems like three books in one! Definitely worth the price!

We have a huge interest in Japan in our family, as we have lived in Asia and my daughter speaks Japanese, and she is a huge fan of everything Japanese. She agreed that this book is very realistic as well as easy-to-use!

I received a free copy as a reviewer for NetGalley.

This is a great resource for learning to cook Japanese recipes. Extensive introductory information about tools, methods, ingredients helps prepare the home cook to try something new. I love that recipes are in Japanese and English. This is a great way to study Japanese! Two fold purpose books are the best! I can brush up on my Japanese and learn to cook my favorite Japanese recipes. I love the format. It’s easy to follow. There are tons of pictures!! A cookbook definitely needs tons of pictures. This one gets an A+ where that’s concerned. I wish there were more recipes for each category. But I guess that leaves room for multiple volumes.
I received a copy of this book from netgalley. This has in no way influenced my review. All thoughts are my own.

Love Japan and am fascinated by the food/drink culture so to me this was a little gem. I loved the face that it felt authentic and broken down step by step using photos. Very much need an copy to add to my cook book collection.

This cookbook was incredibly different from the cook/baking books that I normally read. Other than sushi, I'm not terribly familiar with Japanese cuisine, and I had hoped to gain some more info from this book -- which I did. It was a bit difficult for me to read through, as it's both in Japanese and English (the author wrote it for both 'people who are interested in Japanese cuisine and for Japanese people who want to study English' which is wonderful) and visually I found it a little overwhelming. I still found it fascinating -- from the knives used, to the ingredients, and the recipes. It was unfamiliar but exciting to see different ingredients that I'd like to try -- however many require a special trip outside of your normal grocery store. I have future plans for making a few dishes and can only hope they'll be enjoyed by family and friends.

Written in both Japanese and English, with full instructions of each process for all recipes and with great colour photos. This book is well presented, the recipes are interesting, look easy enough to try and photographed beautifully. I did find the two languages a little crowded on the one page, but soon got used to it.
The beginning of the book shows all the preparation of vegetables, utensils needed, use of knives and lots more. A really practical with great recipes.

Shinsei Publishing and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Japanese Cooking Recipes. I chose to review this cookbook and my opinion is freely given.

I was honestly impressed with Japanese Cooking Recipes by Fumiko Kawakami. The mission of this cookbook was to bring Japanese food to English speakers and to allow Japanese speakers to learn English while using the book. This bilingual approach to a cookbook is definitely unique and gives a level of authenticity to the recipes themselves.

As to the format of the cookbook itself, I only have one negative to get out of the way before I give the many positive aspects. With both languages and step by step instructions for the recipes, the pages themselves are very cluttered and hard to read. I wish there had been more open space between the different translations, making it easier to follow the recipes. That being said, the author does a great job of visually explaining the steps in the recipes. With many pictures showing the steps, as well as the finished dish, readers who are new to Japanese cooking will feel confident in trying a new cuisine. The cookbook begins with a tutorial into Japanese cooking, from the knives to use to different ingredients. This book will serve as a reference guide, as well as a great cookbook.

The recipe sections are well laid out, with many authentic dishes for readers to try. Main Dishes include such offerings as Chicken Stew in a Pot and Braised Pork Belly. The section with Western and Chinese Dishes has such options as Ginger Pork and Mixed Fried Rice. Side Dishes are varied, from Sweet Soy Glazed Burdock Root to Mixed Vegetables Marinated With Tofu. The final section, Rice & Soup & Pickles, has great dishes like Beef Bowl, Rice Ball, and Pickled Japanese Plum.

Overall, Japanese Cooking Recipes is an exciting cookbook with great instructions. Those unfamiliar with the cuisine will get a clear picture as to the philosophy of Japanese cooking. I would definitely recommend this cookbook to others, for the reasons listed above.

See note to publisher. I was not able to successfully download this title. I gave it a five star rating based on the reviews I've read, but I wanted to find out for myself if those reviews held up and suddenly having a huge amount of time on my hands, this would be the perfect opportunity to try these recipes for my Japanese husband!

Japanese Cooking Recipes is an interesting and detailed look at Japanese culture and food traditions.
The recipes all have step by step instructions in English and Japanese with close up images.
It is, however, not easy to make those recipes at home if you live in Europe or North America. While it says you don't need all the fancy equipment, you do need a lot, and starting out would be an investment.
More importantly though, each recipe contains at least two or three ingredients I couldn't find in supermarkets around me, so unless you have a Japanese shop nearby, you will struggle.
Maybe this is rather to look and learn for us, and a cookbook for those living in Japan and wanting to learn traditional recipes.

The thing I appreciate most about this cookbook is the step by step picture guide to cooking these Japanese foods. I like that this is basically an introduction to the art of Japanese cooking and it tells you about methods, commonly used ingredients, and commonly used cookware. It did feel a little overwhelming visually as far as the set up. It felt like an overload at times. I wish there was a little less text on the pages that have recipes in steps in pitcures. I also wish there were more recipes included. Overall, I thought it was a good introduction to Japanese food. Since I am not familiar with cooking in the Japanese tradition, these were very helpful tips and recipes.

Stuck at home during the Covid19 lockdown Japanese Cooking Recipes has provided a lovely does of armchair cultural travel with its wide range of recipes, a wealth of cultural information and reference material about Japanese cuisine.

The layout, with numbered step by step photos, and text in both Japanese and English makes each recipe look like a menu, adding to the fun of reading when stuck at home and unable to visit a restaurant. Some of the photos are a little surprising - not the sort you’d see often in Western cookery books - with blood and guts shown on the chopping board.

The recipes require lots of authentic Japanese ingredients, not necessarily easily available outside large cities in normal non-pandemic times, so I haven’t been able to test any of the recipes, though there were lots I thought sounded delicious, and many techniques I wanted to try out, not least kneading noodles by stamping on the dough with my feet!
Overall this was an intriguing and enjoyable culinary tour and worthy of a place on a cook’s bookshelf for both reference and inspiration.