Israeli ambassador hosts iconic Japanese culinary show

An iconic Japanese culinary show was broadcasted live from the residence of the Israeli Ambassador to Tokyo Gilad Cohen in January.

The show “Recipes for the world” is produced by Japan’s public broadcaster NHK and features local female chef Hamauchi Chinami and veteran TV host Goto Shigeyoshi. The two were joined by Efrat Machikawa, Israeli cultural attache in Japan.

Chinami and Machikawa used typical Israeli fresh ingredients such as avocado, cucumbers and peppers to reinterpret a classic Japanese dish, chirashi-sushi salad, combining the vegetables with rice and local mushrooms.

The show was an opportunity to present Israel to a broad Japanese audience through the means of food.

During the show, Machikawa talked about her family in Israel and about some traits of  Israeli culture, such hospitality, warmth and inclination to be family-oriented.

Hamauchi, Goto and Machikawa also talked about how vegetarian food is becoming more prevalent in both societies.

The show also covered topics such as the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and Japan, the upcoming 75th anniversary since the establishment of the State of Israel and Israeli innovation, with a focus on food-tech and agri-tech.

The viewers could ask questions in real-time through social media, and the videos of the show and of the recipes prepared were distributed through both the Israeli embassy’s channels and the network’s channels.