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Across Japan pork can be found in a wide range of dishes at all kinds of restaurants, you might be surprised at just how many ways you can enjoy pork!

If you think of alcohol and Japan, then the first thing that springs to mind is sake – but there are other alcoholic drinks too, one of which comes from the island of Okinawa! Awamori is an alcoholic drink which is also known as shimazakae, or island sake.

According to Showa Sangyo, a major flour manufacturer/supplier in Japan, it was in the Edo Era (1603 – 1868) when tempura became of part of Japanese cuisine publicly.

Somen, or somin in Okinawan dialect, comes in different varieties, but an Okinawan favorite is to have the noodles stir-fried in somin champuru.

Okinawan brown sugar, made from sugarcane grown in fields blessed with strong southern-island sunlight and minerals delivered by the ocean spray, is very rich in flavor.

Much like the holiday season in the States, December is the most cheerful time in Japan thanks to endless year-end parties, called bonenkai (literally, forget-the-year party).