Rice has been important to Japan ever since it was brought to the great islands, approximately 2,300 years ago. Since then Japan has come to rely on this crop. It has permeated their culture in almost every way a grain can. As Japan does not rely on outside sources for rice (almost all of the consumed rice is grown in Japan) it has become a great symbol of Japanese independence. It is also considered a necessary staple (at least 1/4 of the caloric intake of the Japanese people is rice), important in many religious rights, and was even used as currency for a time. The Japanese word for rice is gohan. This word is also the word for meal, and the word for breakfast, asagohan literally translated means "morning rice".
Note:
The recipes we have chosen to explore may be found by clicking on the links in the column on the left of this page. If you are new to rice or would like more information on cooking rice in general, according to Japanese tradition see the link on the bottom of the column on the left "Basic Rice"
