Namasu facts for kids
Namasu is a traditional Japanese dish. It's made from thinly sliced, uncooked vegetables and sometimes seafood. These ingredients are marinated in rice vinegar for a few hours. This process gives them a slightly pickled taste.
What is Namasu?
Namasu is a fresh and tangy Japanese salad. The name Namasu comes from two Japanese words. Nama means "uncooked" or "raw." Su means "vinegar." So, Namasu literally means "raw food in vinegar."
This dish often uses ingredients like daikon radish and carrots. They are cut into very thin strips. Then, they soak in a dressing made mostly of rice vinegar. This makes them a bit soft and gives them a bright, sour flavor.
Namasu-kiri
Sometimes, you might hear Namasu called Namasu-kiri. The word kiri means "sliced" in Japanese. This just emphasizes that the ingredients are thinly sliced.
History of Namasu
Namasu is a very old dish. It was brought to Japan from China a long, long time ago. This happened during the Nara period. The Nara period was a time in Japanese history from the year 710 to 794. So, people have been enjoying Namasu in Japan for over 1,200 years!
Namasu vs. Sunomono
You might also hear about Sunomono. Sunomono dishes are very similar to Namasu. Both use vinegar to dress or marinate food.
The main difference is how the vinegar is used.
- Namasu usually means food that has been marinated in vinegar. This means the food soaks in the vinegar for some time.
- Sunomono refers to food that has been dressed with vinegar. This means the vinegar is poured over the food, often right before eating.
Both dishes are light, refreshing, and have a delicious tangy taste from the vinegar.
See also
In Spanish: Namasu para niños
