Famous Japanese Movies

There are lots of good Japanese movies that you could watch to improve your Japanese. I highly recommend some of the animated movies as the Japanese used is aimed at young children so therefore a lot easier to understand. Check out Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro and Princess Mononoke (Japan`s number one movie until Titanic) all by Hayao Miyazaki, who is Japan`s most famous director. Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea released recently is also a great movie and well worth watching. These movies are also great to watch if you want to see a good movie or are interested in Japanese movies or culture. They are also readily available in Emglish.
The Secrets Of Speaking Japanese Fluently

Famous Japanese Books and Novels

There are many great Japanese books and novels that are really interesting and give you a great insight into Japan and Japanese culture in general. Japan`s most famous author is Natsume Soseki. His books are read and have been read by Japanese with most people reading them during their school age. Soseki`s most famous novels are Botchan and I am a Cat. They are readily available in English and are great novels in their own right. I read them when I lived in Japan and studied Japanese and they gave me a good insight into Japanese culture and Japan. Other famous and popular Japanese stories include Momotaro "Peach Boy" and Kintaro "Golden Boy".

The Secrets Of Speaking Japanese Fluently

Otaku

Otaku is a Japanese term used to describe people with obsessive interests usually related to anime, manga or video games.

In modern Japanese slang, the term refers to a fan of any particular theme, topic or hobby. Common otaku include anime otaku (fan of anime), cosplay otaku and manga otaku (fans of comic books), pasokon otaku (computer geek), gemu otaku (video games), ota (fans of Japanese idols). The term can basically be used and applied to anything obsessive such as music, cooking, martial arts, etc.

Japanese Breakfast

At the heart of most meals are three basic bowls: rice, soup and a main dish. A traditional breakfast will contain a bowl of steamed rice, miso soup and grilled fish. They will be accompanied by side dishes of rolled omelet (tamagoyaki), pickles (tsukemono), natto and salad. The typical traditional breakfast beverage is green tea. Japanese rice is made with white short grain Japanese rice, which has a consistency that differs from long-grain rice. The essential quality is its stickiness or glutinousness. This is usually sold in Western supermarkets as either short-grain rice or sushi rice. Western style breakfasts are also very popular now in Japan and these usually consist of toast, bacon or sausage, boiled or fried eggs and hash browns or chips. Breakfast cereals are also increasing in popularity.

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Easy To Follow Steps To Create Over 108 Top Japanese Recipes!

Easy Japanese Cooking Recipe Yakitori Chicken

This month`s Easy Japanese Cooking recipe is Japanese Yakitori Chicken

Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 10 mins








Ingredients

• 1kg chicken thigh fillets, cut into 3cm pieces
• 8 green onions, cut into 3cm lengths
• ¾ cup dark soy sauce
• 6 tablespoons cooking saki
• 3 tablespoons mirin
• 2 tablespoons caster sugar
• bamboo skewers
• steamed rice, to serve

Method

1. Soak skewers in cold water for 15 minutes. Drain.
2. Combine soy sauce, saki, mirin and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 5 minutes or until sauce has reduced and thickened slightly. Allow to cool completely.
3. Thread chicken and onions onto skewers. Place onto a plate. Brush with sauce.
4. Preheat grill on medium-high heat until hot. Grill skewers, basting with sauce, for 6 to 8 minutes or until cooked through. Serve with rice.

Easy To Follow Steps To Create Over 108 Top Japanese Recipes!

Japanese Sushi

Sushi is a Japanese dish consisting of cooked vinegared rice which is commonly topped with other ingredients, such as fish or other seafood, or put into rolls. Sliced raw fish by itself is called sashimi, as distinct from sushi. Fresh sushi or sashimi should have a clean, delicate, light taste and should have no fishy smell.

I recommend starting with something easy like makizushi and then working up to things like maguro (tuna), sake (salmon) and ebi (shrimp). I enjoy my sushi with a little wasabi and soy sauce and like to have some pickled ginger to cleanse the palate after each sushi.

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet Nominated for 2010 Booker Prize

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet is the latest novel from David Mitchell. The story focuses around the central character of Jacob De Zoet. Young Jacob is a penniless Dutch clergyman`s son sent to Nagasaki in the final year of the 18th century. A member of the Dutch East India Company, he is supposed to make his fortune in six years so he can return to marry his beloved Anna back in Holland. The Dutch trade with the reclusive Edo-era Japanese on an island and are rarely allowed on the mainland. The practice of Christianity is banned; they are forbidden from learning Japanese and there are spies everywhere among servants and interpreters. Jacob is charged with uncovering corruption among the traders and soon falls out of favour with his boss and his peers. Nothing goes to plan. He falls for another woman, a Japanese midwife, who is sent to a mysterious shrine in the mountains.

This is a marvellously wrought novel, full of fully formed characters and the kind of detail that allows you to sink deep into its imaginary world. I was sorry when I fnished.

The novel has just been announced as one of the contenders for this years 2010 Man Booker Prize.