How to survive (or not) a Japanese Family Gathering
My Japanese in-laws are incredible people who love family get-togethers and endless amounts of food. Not knowing this the first time I met them, I made a near fatal mistake at dinner. Nana's extended family is from a northern prefecture of Japan,known for sake, farm land, agriculture among many other things. It's not the bustling metropolis that Tokyo or Osaka can be, it's much more quiet and rural. Let's be honest, there is not that much to do in Iwate other than eating and drinking. At the first family gathering I attended, I was offered a glass of sake and a platter of assorted fried food, edamame and other snacks were put on the table. Feeling nervous, I drank the small glass of sake rather quickly, not knowing the polite response of the host is to refill the glass quickly, as a guest should never pour their own sake and the host should never allow a guest to have an empty glass. not wanting to be rude, I continued to drink more sake, and thus our ritual continued, both parties trying to be respectful, but with dangerous consequences about to play out. This was mistake number one.
Mistake number two. I did not want to drink on an empty stomach so I ate several of the appetizers and a lot of the edamame. I figured that this was all they were serving, having never had a family meal in Japan, so I didn't want to leave hungry! Big mistake. This is the equivalent of filling up on bar peanuts or fried wonton skins at a chinese restaurant before dinner. The apps were really just a formality, once the dinner began there were what felt like seven or eight more courses coming out. OMG. And of course, not wanting to be rude I ate as much of what was offered, not to mention that it was all amazing too! We are talking fresh sashimi, stewed meats, fresh vegetable dishes from the family vegetable garden, etc. Endless food. And then freshly made cakes for dessert. I can't fully explain how good everything was, and how unprepared I was for the quantity of food offerings. So there I am in the middle of the Japanese countryside, very full and very drunk, and doing my best to struggle through conversations with my pigeon Japanese. I don't remember a lot about those conversations, but I do remember a lot of laughing. As I recall this memory, I can also feel the throbbing of my head from the hangover that ensued the next day. Brutal.
My ignorance aside, this sums up the generous spirit of my relatives from Iwate, they love family and they love entertaining. I now come prepared when I attend family get-togethers, and I know if I don't want to drink too much, it's best to leave the glass half full, so the host doesn't feel obligated to refill it! I also always try to leave room in my stomach because there might be another course coming!
Speaking of endless food, have you thought about having a sushi platter at your next get gathering for the holidays? It's festive and delicious, and adds nice variety to the table! Just be sure to order it ahead of time!
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Hope this is a great week for you, and you get to relax with some fresh sushi and udon in your belly.
Josh & Nana
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