Favorite Japanese Dishes: Quick & Easy    by Yukiko Moriyama Order:  USA  Can Kodansha International, 2004 (1987) Hardcover, Softcover     Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth Like Japanese cooking but don't know how to go about preparing it on your own? Not familiar with the ingredients? Or with the necessary utensils? Have I got the answer. Favorite Japanese Dishes is the cookbook for you. Beautiful photographs accompany each recipe, as well as all you need to know about the correct utensils and ingredients used. Everything is spelled out for you, step by step. I'm sure even a beginning, hesitant cook would have no trouble producing the mouthwatering dishes presented in this cookbook. The cover photo alone is enough to make you ache to own the cookbook. Don't skip the introduction, which contains information about Japan, Japanese cuisine, and table ettiquette. It never hurts to know as much as you can about what you're working with. 'Shabu-shabu', 'Sukiyaki', 'Tempura', 'Teppan-yaki', and 'Teriyaki', favorite dishes in Japan, are all explained in the most wonderful detail, with photos following the procedure to turn out each particular dish. The final pictures in each section (showing the proper arrangement for serving) are mouthwatering. Shabu-shabu is a dish 'consisting of paper thin slices of meat cooked in a stock with vegetables'. This dish belongs to the 'nabemono' category of one-pot cooking. Sukiyaki, a type of barbecue, is slightly richer than Shabu-Shabu in that the meat is grilled first and then finished in a sukiyaki cooking sauce with vegetables. For Tempura, a wide variety of seafood and vegetables are enrobed in a simple batter and individually fried. A teppan-yaki restaurant is a Japanese steak house, where the meal is cooked right in front of the patron on a hot, stainless steel grill. For Teriyaki, meat or fish is marinated in a soy-based sauce and then cooked on a skillet or grill. The marinade contains both grated ginger and garlic, which tenderizes the meat. I recommend Favorite Japanese Dishes as a great way to put a new cuisine on your agenda. Try these recipes and startle your family and guests with your new expertise. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more NonFiction books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews