Japanese Dishes for Wine Lovers

A new book that explains how to pair wine with modern Japanese food.

Much has been written about the pairing of food and wine but almost nothing that focuses on Japanese food. It could be because Japanese food is not commonly associated with wine but actually many of its flavors may be perfectly paired with red and white, dry and even sweet wines. Reflecting the increasing popularity of Japanese food in the West and the new interest in wine as an accompaniment to food in Japan, Japanese Dishes for Wine Lovers seeks to explain some simple ways to enjoy this non-traditional combination.

Pairing wine goes beyond matching red wine with meat and white wine with chicken. The right match depends on personal tastes and adherence to some general guidelines intended to enhance the aromas of both the wine and the food and to prevent a clashing of flavors. In Japanese Dishes for Wine Lovers, leading wine expert John Whelehan explains the elements of typical Japanese flavorings-soy sauce, ginger, sake, mirin, and sesame-as well as some of the more delicate flavors like raw fish and exotic mushrooms, and describes the best wine selections for each. He also gives descriptive recommendations for the best wines to savor with the 58 contemporary Japanese dishes created and presented in this book by best-selling cookbook author Machiko Chiba.

The dishes in this book are simple to make and represent the new wave of cookery in Japan today. Amond the 58 mouthwatering recipes are White Fish Simmered in Spicy Miso, Thin-Sliced Octopus with Citron-Flavored Sesame, Tuna Tataki with Wasabi, Beef with White Sesame and Sweet Sake, Grated Mountain Yam and Carrot, Daikon Radish Gyoza Dumplings, and Tiny Dried Fish and Pine Kernel Onigiri Rice Balls.

Beautifully illustrated and packed with innovative recipes, Japanese Dishes for Wine Lovers fills a much needed place in our understanding of how to enjoy wine with today's dynamic Japanese inspired menus.

MACHIKO CHIBA opened her own cooking school for Japanese, Western, and Chinese cooking in Sendai, Japan, in 1988. She has won many awards for cooking in Japan, and is a well-known cookbook author. She is currently a Japanese food consultant for Balducci's and teaches Japanese cooking at the Nippon Club Culture Center in New York City.

JOHN WHELEHAN holds the Level 4 Diploma from WSET (Wine and Spirit Education Trust), the highest qualification before the ultimate title Master of Wine. He has over twenty years' experience in his field and has had a regular column on wine in the Mainichi daily newspaper. He is currently a wine taster and marketing manager with Pieroth Japan.