Washoku Event at Tokai University European Center (TUEC)

On September 23rd,  a ”washoku” event was held at TUEC in collaboration with the Embassy of Japan in Denmark. The purpose of the event was to promote Japanese cuisine and provide a networking opportunity for culinary professionals and other industry representatives.
 
The event was attended by over 40 guests, including participants from culinary schools, school lunch businesses providing Japanese food in Denmark, wholesalers, retailers, culinary businesses and Japan-related businesses.
 
Ambassador Hideki Uyama and TUEC’s Head of Administration, Jakob Skyt Jensen, opened the event with welcome speeches, introducing the event and the program of the day. Professor Emeritus Ole G. Mouritsen, President of the Danish Gastronomical Academy and Japanese Cuisine Goodwill Ambassador, then gave a lecture about Japan’s unique fifth taste, umami. Following the lecture, the personal chef of Ambassador Uyama, Mr. Atsushi Suzuki, demonstrated how to make three basic components of Japanese cuisine: dashi, miso and onigiri. All guests were provided with freshly made samples for tasting and five select guests had the opportunity to try their hand at onigiri-making.

To round off the event, a tea ceremony was held by the tea group, Byakudan-no-kai, at TUEC’s Japanese tea house.
 
In collaboration with local businesses, booths with Japanese food products were also exhibited, promoting a variety of Japanese products.

TUEC was very pleased to be able to promote Japanese food culture in collaboration with the Embassy of Japan. The interest for Japanese cuisine has increased significantly in Denmark over the last decade, with Danes of all ages enjoying Japanese food on a regular basis. Sale and selection of Japanese food products in Danish supermarkets and online shops have also increased considerably. In addition, Japanese food culture has a lot to offer with regard to maintaining a healthy, balanced diet and shifting towards use of more sustainable ingredients, and we therefore hope that participants were inspired by the event.