Food Artisans of Japan
An intimate deep dive into Japan’s diversely rich food landscape with 120 recipes from 7 compelling Japanese chefs and 24 stories of food artisans, told through the eyes of award-winning author Nancy Singleton Hachisu.
Nancy SingletonHachisu shares an in-depth knowledge and understanding of Japanese locales, the foods, and the artisans who work there. Each chef was chosen because he goes beyond courting media exposure or Michelin stars. Each chef’s food is soulful. And each chef speaks deeply to Hachisu for genuine connection to local ingredients, unwavering desire to give back to the community, and common dedication to craft.
The book includes anywhere from 7 to 45 recipes from each chef, ranging from traditional Japanese to French- or Italian-influenced Japanese dishes created from regional ingredients. Each recipe is a collaboration between the chef and Hachisu, and therefore can be
cooked successfully in either a home kitchen or restaurant. And bits and pieces of any chef recipe can be turned into a simple home cooked dish, or the recipe itself can serve as a blueprint for approaching the dish with seasonally available ingredients from your own locale.
The stunning art and design of Food Artisans of Japan feels both serene and mature. It is beautiful. but not excessively glitzy or over-designed. The book has a certain soberness that feels respectful, but not at all dull. This fresh, honest work delves into the vast ocean of Japanese culinary and artistic traditions, celebrating the chefs and artisans from around Japan…straight from the heart.
Reviews
The dishes Nancy has gathered here have a common, unifying aesthetic and deep respect for their ingredients.
“These are recipes intimately tied to place and season and provenance, thoughtfully crafted by chefs who live and breathe the sustainable ethos of Slow Food. In today’s world the livelihood of these artisans is threatened…Nancy has found them, honored them, and lifted them up. I can think of nothing more important.”
—Alice Waters
Beautiful and wise and fascinating—both the recipes
“and the tales of Japanese artisans are absolutely inspiring.”
— Diana Henry
A book that could only be written by Nancy with her
“insight and relationships cultivated over many years. We are lucky to have this amazing resource of a culture rich with food history.”
— Rodney Dunn
Nancy is an amazing documenter of beautiful
“dishes from chefs that are not in the global spotlight. This book will tell a story for years about what the real food scene in Japan looked like.”
— Jeremiah Stone
Nancy Singleton Hachisu has firmly defined herself
“as the leading voice in bringing the beautifully nuanced, deeply soulful tapestry of Japanese food culture to readers in the west. Anyone interested in the ever-vanishing community of traditional, micro-regional artisan producers of Japan will find this a compelling read..”
— Travis Lett
Gallery
"Every project starts with a kernel of an idea, which grows and take shape as the material is gathered, processed and absorbed. In the end, it was the chefs who inspired me to write this book and to showcase their food."
--Nancy Singleton Hachisu