ABSTRACT
Tsukemono is a Japanese term for ‘pickled or steeped things’ and mostly applies to vegetables. It covers a wide range of one or more conservation techniques, involving ingredients such as salt, sugar, vinegar, alcohol, and herbs, in combination with methods including dehydration, marinating in salt and acidic liquids, fermentation, and curing. Preparing tsukemono involves different salts, sugar, vinegar, alcohol, enzymatic and bacterial fermentation, as well as various pickling beds of miso, soy sauce, and sake lees. Tsukemono are normally prepared without any cooking and are eaten cold, and they are generally easy to make at home. Tsukemono play a special role in relationship to cooked rice. In Japan, rice is usually prepared without salt and has a rather bland taste. Tsukemono can be made from virtually any kind of vegetable, as well as fruit, seaweeds, fish, shellfish, and even flowers.
