Japanese cuisine is very popular all over the world.
Sushi, tempura, ramen, sukiyaki, yakitori... These Japanese words now belong to the dictionary of many languages.
From 2009 to 2019, I served Japanese food to guests from all over the world as a chef in ambassadors' residences in Vancouver, Beijing, and Paris. In Paris, where I recently worked, I felt that the current trend in the culinary world is the quest for umami. For me, umami is the raw taste of ingredients. Why is there such an interest today? If I had to explain the origin in one word, I would say it is instinct. And instinct drives us to fulfil a basic desire, so local cuisine, passed down from generation to generation and enjoyed by people of all ages and generations, feeds the belly and the mind. Love cannot be explained, nor can attachment to flavours. The body and mind simply seek out this umami because they are attracted to it, that is the true nature of umami.