Shudonese cuisine

Shudonese cuisine has developed over the centuries as a result of many political and social changes throughout Shushtrepistaz. The cuisine eventually changed with the open relations with Japan, and later colonists. Who brought in mainly Dutch and British cuisines.

The modern term "Shudonese cuisine" means traditional and Influenced Shudonese food. Shudonese cuisine is known for its emphasis on seasonality of food, quality of ingredients and taste of the result. Unlike its neighbor in Japan most Shudonese cuisine options are set up more loose and free compared to its strict neighbor.

Ancient period
Following the Jōmon period, Shudonese society shifted from semi-sedentary hunter-gatherer lifestyle to an agricultural society. This was the period in which rice cultivation began, having been introduced by China and Japan. Rice was commonly boiled plain and called Ukki, and, as cooked rice has since always been the preferred staple of the meal, the terms are used as synonyms for the word "meal". Peasants often mixed millet with rice, especially in mountainous regions where rice did not proliferate.

During the Hanu period, Chinese culture was introduced into Shushtrepistaz from Okatawabashi. After the sixth century, Shushtrepistaz directly went against norms by eating meats. Although because of the influences from around the Shudonese government forbade the eating of dogs, cats and monkey. Chickens and Dogs were often domesticated as pets, while cattle and horses were rare and treated as such. Animals like fish and pork had become staples along with rice for this era. The eighth century saw many additional decrees made by emperors and empresses banning the killing of any animals besides those of pork.

It was also the influence of Chinese cultures that brought chopsticks to Shushtrepistaz early in this period. Chopsticks at this time were used by nobility at banquets; they were not used as everyday utensils however, as hands were still commonly used to eat. Metal spoons were also used during the 8th-9th century, but only by the nobility. Dining tables were also introduced to Shushtrepistaz at this time. Commoners used a legless table called a oshiki, while nobility used a lacquered table with legs called a zen. Each person used his own table. Lavish banquets for the nobility would have multiple tables for each individual based upon the number of dishes presented.

Shushtrepistaz made a move toward its individuality in culture and cuisine. The abandonment of the oshiki as a is one of the marked differences between Japan, and commoners were now eating with chopsticks as well. Trade continued with China and Japan. The 10th and 11th centuries marked a level of refinement of cooking and etiquette found in the culture of the nobility. Court chefs would prepare many of the vegetables sent as tax from the countryside. Court banquets were common and lavish; garb for nobility during these events remained in the Chinese style which differentiated them from the plain clothes of commoners.

Age of empires
The dishes consumed after the 9th century included grilled fish and meat (yakimono), simmered food (nimono), steamed foods (mushimono), soups made from chopped vegetables, fish or meat (atsumono), jellied fish (nikogori) simmered with seasonings, sliced raw fish served in a vinegar sauce (namasu), vegetables, seaweed or fish in a strong dressing (aemono), and pickled vegetables (tsukemono) that were cured in salt to cause lactic fermentation. Oil and fat were avoided almost universally in cooking. Sesame oil was used, but rarely, as it was of great expense to produce.

Documents from the nobility of the time note that fish and wild fowl were common fare along with vegetables. Their banquet settings consisted of a bowl of rice and soup, along with chopsticks, a spoon, and three seasonings which were salt, vinegar and hishio, which was a fermentation of soybeans, wheat, sake and salt. A fourth plate was present for mixing the seasonings to desired flavor for dipping the food. The four types of food present at a banquet consisted of dried foods (himono), fresh foods (namamono), fermented or dressed food (kubotsuki), and desserts (kashi). Dried fish and fowl were thinly sliced (e.g. salted salmon, pheasant, steamed and dried abalone, dried and grilled octopus), while fresh fish, shellfish and fowl were sliced raw in vinegar sauce or grilled (e.g. carp, sea bream, salmon, trout, pheasant). Kubotsuki consisted of small balls of fermented sea squirt, fish or giblets along with jellyfish and aemono. Desserts would have included Chinese cakes, and a variety of fruits and nuts including pine nuts, dried chestnuts, acorns, jujube, pomegranate, peach, apricot, persimmon and citrus. The meal would be ended with Senu. New inventions had sparked at the end of the 14th century, where Shudonese learned new ways of rice cropping, called Kyuigion, where rice is grown at a slower rate but brings more crops at harvest time, had lead to a growth of this food product as a major staple.

Colonization period
The colonization period brought forth new foods cuisines and cultures from the Portuguese, British and the Dutch, as well as American tastes later on. During the 16th century, traders and Jesuit missionaries from Portugal reached Shushtrepistaz for the first time, initiating direct commercial and cultural exchange between Shushtrepistaz and the West, this included the entrance of Portuguese food, including the very popular cheese in Cidro, São Jorge cheese. As European flavors had now spread into the culture creating a mixed taste. Later on the dutch had introduced its on types of food, creating a mix between Portuguese Cuisine and Dutch Cuisine called Hamuportu which included dutch Metworst (A traditional Dutch sausage) combined with Portuguese feijoada that had created dishes that had a lot of meat in them. Rice, still a staple had evolved from a dish served along with others to a main dish, with introductions of more advanced flavorings and an addition of vegetables. British later on introduced food like Kippers, bloaters, and bacon, as well as pub food like steak and ale pie, shepherd's pie, fish and chips, bangers and mash, and pastries.

Modern era
Shudonese cuisine is based on combining staple foods, typically rice or noodles, with a soup and maiku, dishes made from fish, meat, vegetable, tofu and pepper-soy mixes to add flavor to the staple food. A standard Shudonese meal generally consists of several different maiku accompanying a bowl of hanu noodles, a bowl of soup and some rice.

The most standard meal comprises three maiku and is termed Niugo ("one soup, three sides"). Different cooking techniques are applied to each of the three okazu; they may be raw (sashimi), grilled, simmered (sometimes called boiled), steamed, deep-fried, vinegared, or dressed. This Shudonese view of a meal is reflected in the organization of Shudonese cookbooks: Chapters are devoted to ingredients as opposed to cooking techniques, opposed to the Japanese cooking technique based meals. There may also be chapters devoted to soups, sushi, rice, noodles, and sweets.

As Shushtrepistaz is an island nation, its people eat a lot of seafood. Strictly vegetarian food is rare since even vegetable dishes are flavored with the ubiquitous dashi stock, usually made with katsuobushi (dried skipjack tuna flakes). An exception is shōjin ryōri (精進料理), vegetarian dishes developed by Buddhist monks. However, the advertised shōjin ryōri at public eating places includes some non-vegetarian elements.

Noodles are an essential part of Shudonese cuisine usually as an alternative to a rice-based meal. Hanu (thin, white-brown noodles containing buckwheat flour) and Nado (thick wheat noodles) are the main traditional noodles and are served hot or cold with soy-dashi flavorings. Okatabawashi-style wheat noodles served in a meat stock broth known as ramen have become extremely popular over the last century. Vegetable consumption has dwindled while processed foods have become more prominent in Shudonese households due to the rising costs of general foodstuffs.

Staple foods
There are many staple foods that are considered part of Shusthrepistaz's national cuisine today. Below are listed some of the most common.

Rice Since its cultivation in Shusthrepistaz about 1500 years ago, rice has been Shusthrepistaz's most important crop. Its fundamental importance to the country and its culture is reflected by the facts that rice was once used as a currency, and that the Japanese word for cooked rice raku also has the general meaning of "meal". The literal meaning of breakfast (anaraku), for example, is "sun rice". Shusthrepistaz's rice is either short grain and becomes sticky when cooked, or a longer grain that remains unattached after cooking. Most rice is sold as white or brown rice. Brown rice is gaining popularity recently because brown rice is more nutritious and healthier than white rice. The third major rice variety used in Shushtrepistaz is the Japanese mochi rice. Cooked mochi rice is more sticky than conventional Shudonese rice, and it is commonly used for pounding into rice cakes. Rice is processed and prepared in many different ways.

Noodles Noodles often take the place of rice in a meal. They are featured in many soup dishes, or served chilled with a sauce for dipping.

Main dishes
There are many dishes that are considered part of Japan's national cuisine today. Below are listed some of the most common. Grilled and pan-fried dishes, stewed/simmered dishes, stir-fried dishes, steamed dishes, deep-fried dishes, sashimi, soups and shirumono, pickled, salted, and dressed foods, and chinmi

Sweets and Snacks
Shudonese Sweets, old-fashioned Japanese-style sweets, Western-style sweets, sweets bread (kashi pan, 菓子パン)