The Japanese have a “7-Eleven” mentality to grocery shopping.
Americans? A Costco mentality.
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Costco is EXTREMELY popular in Japan, though. People will drive hours to go there and make a day trip out of it. The island where I lived for 13 years, Shikoku, the 4th largest of Japan’s 4 main islands, doesn’t have a Costco, but many people will drive over the world’s longest single span suspension bridge to go to the closest Costco in Kobe on Honshu.
One interesting thing that has happened in places where are there are no Costcos is that Costco resale stores have opened and even some supermarkets sells Kirkland and warehouse-sized packages of brand name products.
When they started to open up, I read lots of comments about those stores where people were wondering if reselling of Costco goods was legal or not. That made me laugh as such warehouse stores were originally opened to supply mom & pop stores to begin with!
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Thank you! Do you get “fresh” shrimp at the market? What do you make of “fresh” dried seaweed and yams? Those seem like things that keep well.
I find this true in cities in Asia, and most definitely true in Hong Kong. Each local neighborhood has a street that is filled with various grocery and food vendors - small shops that often specialize in certain items. And then there are local wet markets where the butchers and meats and seafood are often sold. This makes it easier for home makers or workers to stop by and buy fresh food for dinner that night.
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Fresh, and never frozen, shrimp taste better than frozen ones. The frozen ones are still good but there is a textural and taste difference
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You’re welcome. You can get fresh shrimp at a supermarket or a local fishmonger if there is one. Unfortunately there aren’t many left outside of the big cities.
Dried seaweed is often used to make stock or to add to miso soup. Yams are often grated to be put in okonomiyaki or as a topping on soba noodles or a raw tuna rice bowl.
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As I’ve told others here, such market streets/shopping arcades are on the decline. Oddly enough the ones in touristy areas are booming because of the glut of foreign tourists since the yen has become so weak. However, the vendors in those arcades have had to change much of their merchandising to items geared towards tourists rather than local residents.
I meant are the shrimp fresh as in never frozen, and how much does it matter how long you store yams and seaweed?
I understand that that is often true, but my understanding is in the US , outside of a few places (like the Gulf Coast), most have been frozen. I was wondering if they are usually never frozen most places in Japan.
Do you get fresh never frozen shrimp where you are? I can find them described that way online, but I don’t think I want raw shrimp shipped to me, even overnight.
Ah, I see. I think whether the shrimp are fresh never frozen or not depends on where they are bought (near a fishing port or not) as well as the season.
Dried seaweed is sold in various quantities from tiny to huge. Wakame is usually sold in smaller quantities and is most commonly used in miso soup while kombu (kelp) is most commonly used in making stock and often comes in huge pieces. Those 2 types don’t usually get affected by storage. However, nori (laver) sheets, like those used in sushi rolls don’t keep well at all as they absorb moisture and discolor (black becoming purple). Hence most nori used for sushi is sold in smaller quantities. The one exception would be the little pieces of nori that are about 2 fingers wide, Those are used for snacking or on small rice balls.
AFAIK, yams are only sold fresh. They aren’t like any yams sold in the US which tend to be sweet potatoes. The closest thing in the US would be taro like the type used to make poi in Hawaii.
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Thank you! That is so good to know about dried seaweed.
And are shrimp “farmed” there?
Also, “true” yams are also widely eaten in many African and Caribbean cultures, but I usually buy them for storage, and didn’t realize freshness mattered. In fact, when growing “ground provisions”, I was thinking they needed to be “cured” for storage.
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You’re welcome!
I looked shrimp farming in Japan up and it seems it does exist, especially in the southern islands near Okinawa for tiger shrimp.
Regarding yams, Tokushima is well known for sweet potatoes which again, while not true yams, are often “cured” for months to increase sweetness.
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And that, right there, is an immense privilege to have that many working class/poor Americans, regardless of their health aspirations, simply do not. Try living in a food desert working 2-3 jobs and a family to feed on a dime.
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Utah
The mountain yam is typically what is being discussed as “yam” in Japan. They can be stored after harvest in a cool, dry place for up to a month.
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Oh! Thanks!
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I hope it is helpful!
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I was about to mouth off about Japan being the exact opposite of the US. US employers/insurance companies penalize tobacco users to the tune of $200-$300 per month but overweight employees are off the hook because it’s a touchy subject in this country. For some reason I’ve always thought of the Japanese as heavy smokers. Movies and TV perhaps? But apparently smoking in Japan is pretty complicated.
The Japanese gov’t owns 59% of the stock of Japan Tobacco, the major manufacturer and seller of cigarettes in Japan…and at one time owned 100% of it. That alone complicates everything related to smoking in that country.
But I know VERY FEW smokers there these days. I see and experience a LOT more cigarette smoke here in Las Vegas, but then again that’s always been the case here.
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But it is every time shocking (and very annoying) when we are back in Europe how many more people there are smoking compared to the US - and it seems to be across Europe and not specific to one of the countries
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