About the Text

by Joshua L. Badgley

In this section, we will talk about the text of Ryōri Monogatari, looking at how it is ordered, delving into the language of the original, and providing what context we can to the food of the period. Through these means, we will attempt to give the reader a better understanding of the context surrounding the work itself, and how to utilize it to better understand the food culture of Japan in the early Edo period and earlier.

Ryōri Monogatari was published in Kan’ei 20 (1643) by an unnamed author. This was over four decades into the Edo Period, a generally peaceful era since the Tokugawa Bakufu had cemented their hegemony in 1615. Despite what is commonly written about the Edo period, the country still had trade with outside countries, though it was strictly regulated. Nonetheless, this work contains references to nanban, or European, and Korean dishes, though made using locally available ingredients, not dissimilar to how Chinese food changed when it came over to the US.

Extant versions of the work are woodblock prints of handwritten text, and even modern Japanese authors appear to have different interpretations of what is written, at times. As such, I've done my best and utilized multiple sources to derive the current translation, including inspecting a facsimile copy of the original held at the Tokyo Metropolitan Library.

Organization

The work contains twenty chapters in total. the first 7 are all lists of main ingredients and what they are used in, while the final 13 contain recipes divided up by preparation. Below is a rough table showing the different chapters by title, and a brief description of what they are about. It is interesting to note that there was a Table of Contents in the original text, but it simply provided a list of the various chapters, with no other information of use to the reader. For the most part, the table of contents conforms to the chapter titles, but there are some minor discrepancies between the names of the chapters in the front of the book and the names given at the head of each chapter.

In each chapter, the information is organized as lists, with the heading title at the top followed by the list or instructions afterwards. Punctuation is sparse, and it is often just a list of terms, particularly in the earlier chapters. For convenience, I’ve numbered the entries in each chapter to try to make it easier to reference specific information or recipes when needed.

Translation Notes

In translating, I tried to stay as close as possible to the original, which may leave some rather odd sentences in English. In truth, the original is a mix of single word lists punctuated with the occasional phrase. In addition, while some terms are clear and explicit, others are more fluid. For the most part, where terms appear to remain consistent, especially where there is a specific recipe later in the text, I’ve done my best to leave the original rather than supplying an English translation. In some cases, however, such as “grilled” or “boiled” it is clear from the text that these are simply instructions for a general method of preparation. “Grilled” usually means “yaku” (焼く), which indicates cooking with direct application of fire, as opposed to “iru” (煎る), which is more about cooking with indirect heat (usually translated as “roast”, depending on context).

In addition, where there is a modern Japanese equivalent word I’ve used that where it makes sense. For instance, “kashi” (typically indicating a type of candy, sweet, or snack) is often spelled “kuwashi” in the original, but I’ve opted to use the more modern spelling. Likewise, old orthography such as “yakite” I will often change to the modern “yaite”.

As for translating ingredient names, I’ve done my best to find the English translation, and even the scientific name where possible. However, given natural changes in language, regional naming and differences, and the distinct lack of images in the original manuscript, it is possible that a modern name does not match up exactly to what was being referenced, but in most cases they should be similar enough. Likewise, modern vegetables may not be exactly the same as their pre-modern equivalents, depending on changes in taste and what is grown.

Finally, there are slight differences in the various transcriptions that I was working off of. In most cases the differences were slight, but it did influence whether I translated some items as subheadings or as separate entries altogether.

Historical Context

Ryōri Monogatari was written in 1643, the opening of the Tokugawa shogunate, which was founded in 1603 by Tokugawa Ieyasu. For the previous 120 years, the country had been engulfed in civil wars, with various provincial lords vying amongst themselves for power. This Age of Warring States (Sengoku Jidai) saw the first major contact with Europeans through the Portuguese, who landed in 1542, and later saw the invasion of Korea (also known as the Imjin War). They brought with them new ideas, and access to a new world of food, which continues to day in the form of things like tempura and kasutera (castella).

When the country was finally unified—first under Toyotomi Hideyoshi and then under Tokugawa Ieyasu—a peace was established that would last for the next 250 years. The Tokugawa period saw an increased emphasis on scholarship, and many books on the history of Japan were written in this time. In addition, travel journals were becoming popular, indicating various specialties and delicacies in each village and town one might pass during the Sankin Kōtai, or mandatory travel to the capital, along with pilgrimage to the shrine at Ise.

Ryōri Monogatari arises in this atmosphere. In his own words, the author describes his intention to write down the things that he has seen and heard, creating a written tradition from the oral teachings of people around the country. It is unclear whether this was the first work of its kind—what is known is that it is the oldest one that has survived through the ages intact. Previously, works on food were usually included in other, larger treatises. A person might describe a feast in their journal, or a prescribed method for preparing a given banquet might be codified in the laws of the courts. Pictorial evidence is likewise one of our great sources for information on the food of Japan. These are all snapshots, however, and not representative of the full spectrum of Japanese cooking.

Although written 40 years into the Edo period, this work nonetheless gives us invaluable information on the state of food and cooking in Japan up to that point. The author states that these are mostly from oral traditions, with the implication that these are recipes that have been handed down from one cook to the next. In some instances, such as tamago sōmen (egg threads) and namban ryōri (cooking of the Southern Barbarians), we see clear influence from the Portuguese, who had arrived in 1542, though their influence waned in the Edo Period, being replaced by the Dutch in a much more heavily regulated manner. Other recipes are for food mentioned in some of the earliest written accounts of Japanese cooking. Considering the time frame, we can assume that many of these recipes are the same or similar to the recipes you would have seen at least 50 years earlier, in the late Momoyama period.

Contents

Despite the extensive nature of Ryōri Monogatari, it is not all inclusive, and in some ways it may be easier to discuss what it is missing, rather than what is there. To begin with, the lists of ingredients only covers main ingredients, and does not address the myriad ancillary ingredients, seasonings, etc. Furthermore, basic foodstuffs, such as rice, raw fruit, plain tea, or even plain sake are not described except as ingredients for other dishes. We also know that some preparations are missing--for example, tempura and kasutera, mentioned above, are both Portuguese dishes that were imported with the Portuguese in the 16th century.

In addition, proportions are also missing from most recipes, except for things like mochi, where the specific proportions are especially important. However, there is very little information on such things as seasoning-in fact, it usually just says to season "to taste". It likewise says nothing about consistency, and very little about flavor, expecting the reader to know this for themselves. On top of that, the author mentions in several places that "there are oral traditions", without mentioning what those oral traditions are.

Preparations themselves often go unmentioned as well. With just the ingredients being given, it was understood that the reader would know what was being described. As is common in the Japanese language, anyway, that which was considered "obvious" is usually omitted. For example, in dojō jiru the main ingredient (dojō, or loach) isn't actually mentioned anywhere in the recipe itself.

There are many other preparations that may be obscure to an English reader, but would make sense in Japanese. The concept of a "simmer", for instance, appears to be slightly different between English and Japanese. Likewise, the term "oroshi", which can mean to grate, as with daikon, or it can mean to filet, as with fish. There are different words for different types of additional ingredients and seasonings as well. All this will be discussed in the text and the accompanying appendices, though questions are welcome.

This text is a treasure trove for those interested in historical cuisine, and I hope that this translation will truly bring it to light for the English-speaking audience.