Cultural Tips : Rice Harvesting

Rice is the staple food in Japan. In September, rice ripens and is harvested across Japan. Then the freshly-harvested rice is made available on the market. When cooked, new rice is soft, glistens, and has a faintly sweet taste. People look forward to tasting it each autumn.

Rice is used in many dishes: sushi, "onigiri" (rice balls wrapped in dried seaweed), "ten-don" (a bowl of rice topped with "tempura"), and curry with rice, to name a few. It is also used as an ingredient in "miso" (fermented soybean paste), rice vinegar, and sake.

For Japanese people, rice is the most significant food and for farmers rice harvesting is one of the most important events of the year.