ANCIENT CEREMONY: Mari Okada, wife of Japanese Ambassador Mitsuhiko Okada, prepares matcha tea during the Japanese tea ceremony at their residence, Maxwell Phillip Street, St Clair. Photo: STEPHEN DOOBAY
Steeped in Japanese tradition, which dates back more than 500 years, the Japanese Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago, Mitsuhiko Okada, and his wife, Mari, recently invited members of the media and specially invited guests to their residence at Maxwell Phillip Street, St Clair, for a Cha-Kaiseki, a Japanese light meal and tea ceremony.
For guests it was treat, since some of them had never had traditional Japanese cuisine outside of sushi and sashimi.
Cha-Kaiseki is Japanese cuisine that is served before a tea ceremony. It includes rice, soup and boiled dishes along with sake (Japanese rice wine). It stems from the food that is consumed by Zen monks because it is low in calories.
The ancient tea ceremony, which is also referred to as Chanoyu, Sado or simply Ocha in Japanese, is a choreographic ritual of preparing and serving Japanese green tea, called Matcha, together with traditional Japanese sweets to balance the strong or bitter taste of the tea.
In Trinidad and Tobago, the habit of drinking tea is a more relaxed custom but in Japan, the whole process is not about drinking tea itself. The focus is really on the aesthetics, and emotions conveyed by the server or host.
According to Japanese history, Sen no Rikyu (1522-1591), the most famous tea master, perfected the ritual, in which simplicity was pursued in movements and settings. However, each step of the preparation has fixed movements, and utensils have to be placed in a specific way. In Japanese culture, drinking and serving tea is an art done with a lot of spiritual depth, deep silence and serenity.
STEEPED IN TRADITION: Japanese Ambassador Mitsuhiko Okada drinks a bowl of matcha tea during a special Japanese ceremony called Cha-Kaiseki.
Washoku is a main part of Japanese culture. It is a social practice based on an essential spirit of the Japanese, “respect for nature”. It contributes to healthy life and strengthens familial and community ties.
Ingredients used in Washoku are diverse, fresh and available in various seasons. Washoku requires minimum cooking and processing. In this regard, Japanese people see this as a way to adopt healthier eating habits, prevention of obesity and increased life expectancy. With this in mind, the menu consisted of Sumashi-jiru (clear soup), Hamachi-teriyaki (grilled yellowtail), Zensai-moriawase (assorted appetisers), Agedashi-dofu (fried tofu), Chakin-zushi (sushi wrapped with egg crepe) and Dorayaki (sweet-bean paste pancake).
The Japanese tea ceremony was done “Ryurei” style, a style of tea ceremony using chairs to sit on. According to Ambassador Okada, the entire tea ceremony takes approximately four hours. To prepare for such a sacred ritual, it could take anywhere from four days to one week, he said.
If you have never been to a Japanese tea ceremony, it is important to note that every person has a special task or function, according to their sitting order or ranking. The first guest, or guest of honour, is called Shokyaku, the second guest is a Jikyaku, and the others are called simply Kyaku. Also the last guest has a special name, which is Tsume.
For example, the Shokyaku who is the principal guest is the main person to communicate with the Teishu (host).
The curator of the National Museum and Art Gallery, Trinidad, Lorraine Johnson, noted that this was her first time having traditional Japanese cuisine outside of sushi.
She was intrigued with the historical significance of the Japanese tea ceremony and enjoyed the subtle flavours in the cuisine.
She said, “I really enjoyed the grilled yellow tail and the sweet-bean paste pancake. The portion sizes were wonderful and I also enjoyed the sauce which accompanied each dish. I believe each type of food has its place. Japanese food is a great meal on the go that is light and healthy. Before this experience, I would have been intimidated to go to Japan and experience the culture and cuisine by myself, but now I will put going to Japan on my bucket list.”
Kapok Hotel director Diana Cohen-Chan says she is no stranger to Japanese cuisine and thoroughly enjoys it whenever she can.
She said, “Today's event was very different. I think there was a lot of traditional food items served, which takes a lot more preparation than the typical Japanese cuisine we get here locally. This meal was more of a luncheon with several courses and takes much longer. The dishes were very pure. I had no favourite; all were subtle and had their own flavours, and I think it is something we can all eat much more of because it is healthier than some of our Trini dishes.
“The most memorable part of the event for me was the presentation. Japanese people have beautiful creativity in everything that they do. Though it is understated, it is very significant even in tea. Simplicity is always hard to achieve and all the food items presented were subtle and still had their own unique flavours,” she said.
Japanese sweets: Dorayaki (sweet-bean paste pancake), Sakura-mochi (cherry blossom sticky rice cake), Minaduki-kan (sweet-bean jelly), Nerikiri (white sweet bean and soft pounded rice) and Ukishima (floating island - sweet bean-based steamed cake). Photos: STEPHEN DOOBAY
The aim of the Japanese tea ceremony is to create a relaxed communication between the host and his guests. Japanese believe the bonds of friendship between the host and guests are strengthened during the ceremony when the host himself makes and serves the tea.
It is also based in part on the etiquette of serving tea as well as the intimate connections to architecture, nature, Zen Buddhism, and all other elements that coexist in harmonious relationship with the ceremony.
The utensils used in a Japanese tea ceremony are called dogu. A wide range of dogu is necessary for even the most basic tea ceremony.
Ambassador Okada praised the deepening cultural and economic ties between Japan and Trinidad and Tobago.
He said, “I see things are moving in a positive direction and an increased interest by Trinidad about Japan and Japanese culture. With the JET programme, we have seen a number of people from the Caribbean come to Japan. Last year we had approximately 20 young people from Trinidad in Japan. This year, we have seen an increased number of applicants from Trinidad wanting to be part of JET programme.
This is a testament of how much interest Trinidadians have to learn more about Japan and our culture. I believe with more communication and our friendship, this can be very meaningful.”
The ambassador, wanting to share some of Japanese culture, taught guests a common Japanese greeting, konichiwa, which means hello, and irrashaimase, which means welcome.
Is it difficult to learn Japanese?
“To be quite frank, Japanese and English are very far apart, linguistically. We don't use the alphabet so grammatically and vocabulary is very different so, no, it is not easy to learn. However, I must say in this time and thanks to YouTube, and other forms of technology you can learn to speak Japanese easier. If you have a quest for learning, then you would learn it,” he said.