Japan’s traditional cuisine, celebrated for its centuries-old cooking techniques and seasonal ingredients, has been added to the United Nation’s cultural heritage list.

    The decision to protect Japan’s traditional cuisine, known as “washoku,” was made against a backdrop of rising concerns that fast food and Western dishes are increasingly eclipsing the nation’s culinary heritage.

    Japan will become only the second nation after France to have its national cuisine designated heritage status, a decision made by officials at a UNESCO meeting in Azerbaijan.

    While Japan has long been famed for its sushi, one of its most successful culinary exports, the nation has an expansive repertoire of traditional dishes beyond the raw fish snack.

    With its emphasis on harmony and the passing of the seasons, the art of washoku has been compared to writing haiku poems and normally consists of separate bowls of white rice, miso soup and pickles alongside main dishes.

    Other characteristics that have traditionally defined washoku include minimal meat, plenty of seafood and often the use of a fish stock base known as dashi.

    Masanori Aoyagi, the commissioner of Japan’s Cultural Affairs Agency, explained to the UNESCO committee, that washoku is also regarded as important as it creates a feeling of social cohesion.

    Culinary purists in Japan have long expressed concern about the impact of the rise of Western diets in favor of washoku, a famously healthy diet with its copious fish, rice and seasonal vegetables.

    Washoku’s designation as an Intangible Cultural Asset was confirmed exactly 1,000 days after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami triggered the ongoing Fukushima nuclear crisis, shattering global confidence in the safety of the nation’s previously respected food industry.

日本料理入选联合国文化遗产 

    以其历史悠久的烹饪技巧和季节性食材而闻名的日本传统料理已经被列入联合国文化遗产名录。

    日本传统料理也称“和食”，决定保护它的背景是人们对快餐和西餐的地位逐渐凌驾于传统菜肴之上日益担忧。

    在阿塞拜疆召开的联合国教科文组织会议决定，日本将成为继法国之后的第二个让本国菜式得到文化遗产称号的国家。

    寿司是日本最成功的出口菜肴之一。虽然日本长期以来因寿司闻名，但实际上除了这些生鱼片小点心，日本还拥有品种繁多的传统料理保留项目。

    和食的艺术重视和谐与季节变更，它常与俳句相提并论。

    和食通常包括盛在不同碗中的米饭，味增汤，泡菜以及主菜。传统和食的其他特征还包括尽可能少的肉类，大量海鲜，并且经常用鱼汤做汤底，也称为“dashi”。

    日本文化厅委员正德青柳向联合国教科文委员会解释说，和食的重要还在于它能够创造社会凝聚力。日本的烹饪纯粹主义者一直以来对西餐兴起对和食产生冲击深感担忧。和食含有丰富的鱼类，米饭和时蔬，是著名的健康饮食。

    和食成为非物质文化遗产正好在2011年地震与海啸发生的1000天之后，当时引发的福岛核危机依然在持续。核危机摧毁了全球对日本从前备受推崇的食品产业的信心。

 Words to Learn 相关词汇

   【超越】

    chāoyuè

    eclipse

    make less outstanding or important by comparison; surpass

    【摧毁】

    cuīhuǐ

    shatter

    impair or destroy