Oishinbo：The Joy of Rice: A la Carte

AquestfortheultimatemenuRtoL(JapaneseStyle)."TheJoyofRice"InthisvolumeofOishinbo,YamaokaandcompanylookintothesinglemostessentialfoodinJapanesecuisine:rice.Cultivatedformillennia,astaplemealinitselfandthebasisofcountlessotherdishes,riceisanimportantcomponentnotonlyoftheJapanesekitchenbutalsoofJapaneseculture.WhenYamaokaisaskedbyTMzai'sheadchefforhelpincomingupwithanewricedish,whatstartsoutasasimpleculinaryrequestrapidlygrowsintoadisquisitionintothepast,presentandfutureofJapan'sfoodculture.Aspartofthecelebrationsforits100thanniversary,thepublishersofthe"TMzaiNews"havecommissionedthecreationofthe"UltimateMenu,"amodelmealembodyingthepinnacleofJapanesecuisine.Thisall-importanttaskhasbeenentrustedtojournalistYamaokaShirM,aninveteratecynicwhopossessesnoinitiative--butalsoanincrediblyrefinedpalateandanencyclopedicknowledgeoffood.Eachvolumeof"Oishinbo"followsYamaokaandhiscolleaguesthroughanotheradventureontheirquestfortheUltimateMenu.Now,thehighlightsfromthehundred-plusvolumeserieshavebeenselectedandcompiledinto"AlaCarte"editions:bite-sizedchunksofstoryarrangedbysubjectthatadduptoafull-coursemangameal