Art Creation Theory 25 "Tea and Kaiseki"
Cha-kaiseki: The secret of hospitality to enjoy tea more deliciously
Have you ever heard the term "cha-kaiseki"? In modern times, it is often confused with the "kaiseki cuisine" served at high-end restaurants, but originally it referred to a light and simple meal served as part of the tea ceremony, a formal event in the tea ceremony. The reason it is considered a "light meal" is because it is served as a "preparation" to make thick and thin tea taste even better. For this reason, there is no need for extravagant decorations or a lavish number of dishes; the key is small amounts of carefully prepared food.
That being said, being invited to a tea ceremony and enjoying a kaiseki meal in a tea room may seem a little intimidating for many people. But at its root is a pure spirit of hospitality: "We want our guests to feel as comfortable as possible and to enjoy the tea in front of them to their heart's content."
In this article, we will introduce the history and origins of Chakaiseki, how it differs from Kaiseki cuisine, and the typical flow of the meal, while also explaining how to enjoy Chakaiseki in a way that can be incorporated into modern households. With just a little consideration, your everyday tea and meal may be transformed into a more enriching experience.
1. The History and Origin of Chakaiseki: The Story of Zen Monks and "Warm Stones"
● The origin of the word "kaiseki"
The word "kaiseki" is said to have originated from "onjaku," a warm stone used by Zen monks to stave off cold and hunger. For Zen monks, a warm stone would be wrapped in cloth and placed in the chest to warm the body and stomach slightly - this was one way to get through the day.
The introduction of this idea into the world of tea is related to the "wabi tea" movement that took place from the Muromachi to the Azuchi-Momoyama periods. The tea ceremony is deeply connected to Zen thought, and "wabi tea" is characterized by its emphasis on a simple, tranquil style that is stripped down to the bare essentials. This led to the idea that "if you are too hungry when drinking tea, it will stimulate your stomach and you won't be able to taste the tea. At the very least, fill your stomach with a light meal just enough to warm you, and enjoy the tea at its best."
● Light meals served at tea ceremonies
It is against this background that the food served at the formal tea ceremony (especially the noon tea ceremony) came to be called "kaiseki" or even "cha-kaiseki." It has the connotation of a minimal meal to stave off hunger or the short time it takes for the tea to boil.
Historically, it is said that the tea ceremony was largely established during the time of Sen no Rikyu and others. Based on one soup and three side dishes, tea ceremony was packed with careful considerations to enhance the tea experience, such as adding a little sake and serving additional side dishes during the meal. It was further refined during the Edo period, and has remained so to this day, with the ultimate appeal of tea ceremony kaiseki being "the utmost hospitality in the utmost simplicity."
2. Are "Kaiseki" and "Kaiseki" completely different?
● The homophone "kaiseki"
In the world of modern Japanese cuisine, there are two dishes that have the same pronunciation: "Kaiseki" and "Kaiseki." The kanji characters are similar and the pronunciation is the same, so they are often confused. However, the two dishes have very different characteristics.
Chakaiseki (the original "kaiseki")
A light meal served at tea ceremonies to enhance the flavor of thick and thin tea.
Although alcohol is served, the main focus of the food is to enhance the tea.
Rice and soup are served first, and the meal ends with a bucket of soup and pickles.
Kaiseki cuisine
"Kyo-o cuisine" is served at traditional Japanese restaurants, traditional Japanese restaurants, hotel banquets, etc.
The purpose is to enjoy the food and drinks to the fullest, and emphasis is placed on the appearance of the table being gorgeous and luxurious.
Rice and soup are served at the end of each course.
● Both are about "hospitality" but the purpose is different
Chakaiseki is the "ultimate hospitality through tea," while kaiseki cuisine focuses on "luxurious hospitality at a drinking party." Although both share the central theme of "the spirit of hospitality," the composition, timing, and content of the dishes differ greatly due to the difference in purpose.
Also, whereas chakaiseki is "just a small amount to warm your stomach," kaiseki cuisine is characterized by a wide variety of dishes to "enjoy to the fullest." Just knowing this difference will make it much easier to choose a menu at a Japanese restaurant.
3. The basic flow of tea ceremony: A midday tea ceremony as an example
Chakaiseki is typically served at formal tea ceremony events called "noon tea ceremonies." The details vary depending on the school and the host, but we will briefly introduce the general outline of the ceremony.
3-1. Get ready with donations
First, the invited guests are shown to a waiting room called "Yoritsuki." Here, they leave their coats and luggage, and take a short break while enjoying a "welcome drink" such as hot water. This is the signal to start, and it is here that they prepare to enter the tea room.
3-2. Taking a seat
The host guides the guests into the tea room and they can appreciate the hanging scrolls, flowers, tea ceremony utensils, etc. In the case of tea ceremony, the first thing to do is the "sumitemae" ceremony, in which charcoal is put into the hearth, and after preparations are made to boil the water, the guests are then served a light meal.
3-3. Rice, soup, and appetizer
Now the tea ceremony begins. A rice bowl (left), soup bowl (right), and side dish are placed on a legless tray called an "oshiki" and presented to the guest. The side dish is often filled with small dishes such as sashimi and pickled vegetables that can be eaten as is without soy sauce.
- In Chakaiseki, the rice (rice bowl) is served in small amounts of freshly cooked rice. Sometimes you can have a few refills and enjoy the changes in flavor that occur as the rice cooks for different amounts of time.
- The soup (soup bowl) is generally made with miso, but with a little ingenuity, such as changing the ratio of white and red miso depending on the season, you can create a sense of the season.
- The sashimi served with the meal is generally eaten without soy sauce, and is often savored slowly with the sake that is served later.
3-4. Offering of sake
When the guests have finished drinking the soup, the host brings the sake cup and sake cup to them. The guests then place their chopsticks on the dish and enjoy their sake little by little. In chakaiseki, sake is poured two or three times as needed, allowing for a relaxed and lively conversation while munching on appetizers.
3-5. Nimonowan (Boiled food bowl) and Yakimono (Ceramics)
These dishes are the second and third dishes in the "ichijusansai" meal.
- Nimonowan (boiled food bowl)
It is made with clear or miso sauce and uses ingredients such as fish, shrimp, yuba (tofu skin), and wheat gluten, allowing you to enjoy the aroma and color that only a bowl of soup can offer.
- Grilled food <br>Salt-grilled fish and yuan-yaki are the most common dishes, and guests use chopsticks to pick up food from a large plate or bowl and share it with each other. The sight of guests passing around food from a large plate is also a symbol of "kindness towards each other."
3-6. Azukibachi (a bowl of rice) and Shiizakana (a dish of rice)
In modern times, one more dish is often added to the one soup and three side dishes, such as a stew or a salad. This is sometimes called a "strong side dish" because it "forces (forces) you to have one more dish" in contrast to the original idea of the "minimum necessary meal" of Chakaiseki.
3-7. Clear soup (chopstick washing) and hassun
Next comes a very light soup (such as lightly seasoned clear soup) and a side dish called "hassun." For hassun, it is customary to serve seafood and land produce on a single square tray, and to have "Chidori no sakazuki" (a traditional Japanese drink in which the host also joins in and the guests drink together), enhancing the sense of intimacy of the occasion, making this a pivotal moment in tea ceremony kaiseki.
3-8. Yutou (water bucket) and pickles
To finish off the tea ceremony, any rice remaining in the rice and soup bowls is rinsed with hot water and pickles (such as pickled radish) are added to refresh the mouth. This is a remnant of the dining etiquette of Zen temples, and also has the meaning of purifying the tableware.
3-9. Confectionery (sweets)
Finally, Japanese sweets such as nerikiri (a type of rice cake with dried ingredients) called omogashi (main sweets) and higashi (dried sweets) are served. In a traditional tea ceremony, thick tea and thin tea are served next, but this is the end of the kaiseki course. From here on, you can enjoy the original taste of the tea to the fullest.
4. Enjoy Cha-kaiseki at home - Easily practice the spirit of "omotenashi" (hospitality)
When we hear "Chakaiseki," we tend to think it sounds difficult and impossible to do unless we're in a special Japanese-style parlor. However, in reality, the essence of this is "simple, bare-bones hospitality" based on the spirit of Zen and wabicha tea. If you don't get too hung up on the formalities, with a little ingenuity, you can enjoy it at home too.
Here are three suggestions for enjoying the atmosphere of tea ceremony at home.
4-1. Space arrangement
It's okay if you don't have a tea room!
Simply putting a tablecloth on the table can create a different mood than usual. You can also decorate the room with a single seasonal flower or place your favorite painting or photograph. With just a little ingenuity, a corner of the entrance or dining table can instantly become a "hospitality space." You can also burn incense or aroma to fill the air with fragrance. Even if you don't have a Japanese-style room, you can still fully enjoy the spirit of tea ceremony.
4-2. Cook rice in a pot whenever possible
The ideal way to cook tea is to serve small amounts of freshly cooked rice. Of course, you can use an electric rice cooker, but if possible, try cooking it over gas using a thick pot or clay pot.
Cooking rice in a pot can sometimes result in fragrant burnt rice, and you might enjoy the "burnt rice in hot water" served in a tub at the end of the tea ceremony. It's also interesting to taste the changes in aroma and texture caused by the difference in steaming time while chatting with your guests.
4-3. Sweets and tea
For those who think that making matcha is too difficult, don't worry. Just by carefully brewing green tea (sencha) or gyokuro in a teapot, you can elevate your tea time.
- Choosing sweets that you can talk about a little, such as Japanese sweets from a famous shop or a Japanese-Western fusion sweet that is popular locally, will help get the conversation flowing.
- Try using a little more tea leaves and a little less water temperature, and try different brewing methods. Small differences can make a big difference in the taste.
5. Recipe ideas for enjoying tea ceremony: Simple is best
Here are some easy recipes for tea ceremony kaiseki that you can try at home. Although these are merely a style, the key is to use light flavors and a simple presentation. Rather than focusing on luxury, it's important to enjoy the flavor of the ingredients themselves.
● Rice: Gas-cooked rice
- Ingredients (for 2 servings)
2 cups of rice, 2 cups of water - How to make it
- Wash the rice and soak it in water for 30 to 60 minutes.
- Put rice and water in a heavy-bottom pot or earthenware pot, cover, and place on high heat.
- Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, then turn off heat and let steam for about 15 minutes.
- If you have time, it's a good idea to open the lid just a little to enjoy the aroma of freshly cooked rice.
● Soup: Miso soup with zucchini and coarsely ground black pepper
- Ingredients (serves 4)
1 zucchini, 600ml water, 1 dashi packet, 2-3 tablespoons of miso (a mix of red and white), a little coarsely ground black pepper - How to make it
- Bring the water with the dashi pack to a boil and then simmer on low heat for about 5 minutes.
- Slice the zucchini into rounds and parboil lightly in a separate pot, then place in bowls.
- Dissolve the miso in the soup stock, bring to a boil, and pour into bowls.
- Finish by sprinkling black pepper on top to add flavor.
● Mukazuke: Simple sashimi presentation
- Buy your favorite sashimi from the sashimi counter, cut it into thick slices yourself, and arrange it as simply as possible to create a dish closer to tea ceremony kaiseki style.
- If you sprinkle a light amount of salt or citrus fruit on the dish so that it can be eaten as is, without having to prepare soy sauce or wasabi separately, it will look like a "dish that can be enjoyed as is."
● Grilled dish: Salt-grilled autumn salmon
- Ingredients (serves 4)
4 slices of fresh salmon, salt to taste (not necessary if using lightly salted salmon) - How to make it
- Sprinkle salt on the salmon and let sit for 1-2 minutes to let the salt soak in.
- Place a baking sheet in a frying pan and bake slowly over low heat (about 20 minutes).
- When the skin is crispy it's done.
● Yuoke: Scorched rice boiled in hot water
- Simply pour hot water over the burnt rice from the pot and garnish with pickles (such as pickled radish). Adding a pinch of salt will enhance the flavor.
6. The essence of tea ceremony: "caring for the other person" and "small ingenuity"
Tracing the history of tea ceremony, we can see that it was originally heavily influenced by the simple training at Zen temples and the spirituality of "wabicha". All of this is supported by the fundamental hospitality of "thinking of the other person and wanting them to spend as comfortable a time as possible".
- Rather than being unnecessarily flashy or voluminous, we aim to make each dish enjoyable while making the most of the natural flavor of the ingredients and being gentle on the stomach .
- Through the handling of dishes and the sipping of rice in a tub of water, guests and hosts can communicate with each other .
- By wiping the utensils clean and returning them, one expresses gratitude for returning something that one has used to the owner in a clean state .
These actions, performed one by one, create the atmosphere of tea ceremony.
Summary: Tea ceremony transforms the everyday into something special
At first glance, tea ceremony and kaiseki cuisine seems to be highly formal and requires a lot of complicated etiquette, but in reality, it is all about being "simple, minimal, and caring for the other person." Sitting formally is difficult, there is no Japanese-style room, there is no specialized equipment -- such hurdles are surprisingly easy to overcome. Even in the living space of a table and chairs, you can fully feel the spirit of tea ceremony and kaiseki by simply "paying attention to what you can."
- With just a little ingenuity, you can carefully serve the rice and soup in small amounts.
- Decorate the room with a single seasonal flower and have your guests say, "This flower is beautiful."
- By adding a little story to the sweets or tea, you can spread the word by saying, "Actually, this is a limited edition item from a store famous for XX."
This kind of thoughtfulness is what we call "Cha-kaiseki" for those of us living in the modern age. Even if you just incorporate it into your usual home party, the dinner table will take on a different atmosphere and conversation will naturally flow.
If you have the opportunity, we highly recommend that you participate in a formal tea ceremony. Enjoying a tea ceremony in a teahouse is an experience that allows you to experience history and tradition with all five senses. Through this experience, you will surely be captivated by the spirit of hospitality, the delicacy of Japanese cuisine, and above all, the deep flavor of tea.
Tea ceremony and kaiseki are not something far away. Please try to enjoy the "enriching time" that comes from a little ingenuity and effort in your daily life. Being considerate of the other person and the season will surely transform an ordinary tea time into something special.