In Japanese Home Cooking, the techniques and ingredients of Japanese cuisine are explained clearly, thanks in great part to the many step-by-step photos. It omits nothing, from cooking rice to dressing a Japanese table.

The book is the ideal guide for cooks new to Japanese cuisine, as well as those with experience. Features include:

• Japan's approach to food
• Step-by-step photographs for all recipes that require more than the most basic skills
• Final dish presentation
• Technique and important detail, such as slicing fish and vegetables in the traditional Japanese manner
• Dashi stock base, symbol of Japanese cooking
• Notes on the history of Japanese regional cooking and the influence of foreigners
• The Japanese table.

Japanese Home Cooking has six sections with more than 90 recipes plus variations for everyday dishes and for gourmet cuisine for special occasions.

Examples of the recipes are:

• Starters: Cucumber and wakame Sunomono; Prawns with pickled egg and kimi-zu
• Bowls and Soups: Red miso soup with clams asa ri; Clear soup dumpling and crab wakame
• Vegetables and Tofu: Pumpkin in chicken broth soboro; Seaweed hijiki; Sweet daikon with miso
• Fried and Grilled: Teriyaki salmon; Breaded shrimp tonkatsu; Tamago-yaki omelette
• Rice and Noodles: Rice with five favors; Asa-zuke of cabbage, cucumber, carrots and Brussels sprouts; Yakisoba fried noodles
• Sweets: Soy milk creme caramel; Hortensia cake; Ukishima (floating island).

For hard-to-find ingredients, the book includes a resource section and tips on generally available substitutions.