By Lorene Oikawa, Past President
NAJC has exciting news. Starting in the fall, the new school year will include the history of the incarceration/internment of Japanese Canadians as mandatory core curriculum for grade 10 students in British Columbia. We know this has been a priority for the community for a long time. We identified this priority during the BC Redress talks with the BC government and again last year. We hope that this will inspire other jurisdictions to take action. See the NAJC news post here.
On the west coast, we are revelling in cherry blossoms. The warmer weather has resulted in sightings of cherry blossoms across the southwest of British Columbia.
NAJC Young Leaders and Japanese New Immigrant Committees are planning major strategic sessions. Midwest Regional Meeting of member organization will take place at the end of the month in Thunder Bay. And the NAJC Japan Tour for Japanese Canadians will run from May 10 to 19.
More events and festivals are being organized or with participation by our member organizations. Let us know about Japanese Canadian events and festivals in your area so we can promote them. Email [email protected].
May is Asian Heritage Month and Mother’s Day so it’s perfect timing to delve into the Japanese Canadian culture of food that our mothers, grandmothers, and aunties and other family made for us.
The family dishes we fondly remember are not the same as ones we see in restaurants. Japanese dishes and ingredients are so popular it’s not a surprise to see some in grocery stores and non-Japanese restaurants.
In my family, my sansei (third generation Japanese Canadian) mother, Mae (Doi) Oikawa would make turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes for Christmas dinner and a variety of dishes throughout the year. Japanese food was made for special occasions, New Year’s Day, January 1, and Girls’ Day and Boys’ Day. I wrote about New Year’s food at the beginning of this year https://najc.ca/highlights-2025-jan/
Girls’ Day on March 3rd was a special day for me because my obaachan (grandmother) would make steamed manju [bun, confection] coloured pink and white. The light bun was filled with anko, sweet red bean paste. She also made my favourite mochi, pounded sweet rice, also filled with anko, and in pink and white. She would make me Sakura [cherry blossom] futomaki. Slices of sushi looked like cherry blossom trees. She used pink fish powder to create the pink blossoms. One of my favourite treats was kamaboko (fish cake) which she made from scratch. I remember her grinding the fish in a Suribachi – a bowl with small ridges carved in the inner surface of the bowl. Unfortunately, the recipes for the dishes made by obaachan and my mother were never written down. I’ve been on a search to recreate dishes. A couple of years ago, I used the kamaboko recipe in the cookbook, From the Sea and Shore, Steveston’s Favourite Japanese Canadian Recipes. It brought back so many warm memories.
I spoke to Mas Fukawa, who wrote the foreword to the cookbook. She also has a fondness for seafood. She gave me permission to share her memories. “The food on the table was dictated by the seasons. Being a fishing family, there was an abundance of bounties from the sea. In spring there were herring, smelt, and spring salmon. During Easter holidays, we went to the Gulf Islands to pick nori or seaweed. Summer followed with sockeye and vegetables grown n our garden. Fall brought shrimp, oysters, and salted salmon. Winter added a delicacy – abalone – harvested from Shinde Bay, named for my father who found a bed on the coast in the Skeena area. Wild plants supplemented our diet. Fuki or butterbur can still be found near the ditches in Steveston. Alcohol consisted of home-made dandelion wine and beer. Picking strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries filled our bellies and gave us pocket money or added to the family income. The obento or lunch my mother prepared for us was delicious!”
When I asked Mary Kitagawa what is a favourite dish prepared by her mother, she couldn’t pick just one.
Mary said, “My mother was a very creative cook. Every food that was served to us was so delicious that I cannot choose one outstanding one. She cooked both western and Japanese food equally well. I remember when we were incarcerated and depended on harvesting weeds like dandelions for food, mother would prepare what we considered a feast. We never felt poor nor denied.”
Terumi Kuwada shared that udon is a Kuwada family favourite. Terumi said, “I will always treasure the times when my mother made udon for our family. Every Sunday for many years, my mother would make udon noodles on a traditional udon machine. My sister Naomi and I would help turn the handle to make the dough the right thickness, then we would cut the dough into the noodle strips. It was a tough job, but well worth it when it was all done. My mother would make the broth out of pork butt bone which was so delicious. She would add some vegetables and always green onions cut up fine as a topping. For many years, the Manitoba Buddhist Temple and JCAM (Japanese Cultural Association of Manitoba) have udon luncheons, when so many members, me included, come out to enjoy this delicious meal.”
Sally Ito has memories of her great aunt. “My Nisei great Aunty Kay — or Kiyoe Nakamura — used to make chow mein for me when I was a child. I associated this dish strongly with her. She taught my mother Akiko (a post-war immigrant to Canada) how to make it, but it was really her Japanese Canadian dish, which I later discovered in Japanese Canadian cookbooks to be called Cumberland chow mein. It was typically made with Farkay brand chow mein fried noodles and contained chicken, celery, mushrooms, carrots and bean sprouts fried with a garlic-ginger-shoyu mix of seasonings. With the leftovers, we sometimes made chow mein sandwiches using slices of white bread (remember, this was in the 70’s!) and I really loved those sandwiches. Years later, I discovered a chow mein recipe in the Japanese Canadian cookbook Just Add Shoyu that came as close to as what I remembered my Aunty Kay making when I was a girl, so I started making it again for my kids. My son — a Gosei — loved this dish and then when he grew older, followed it to make it for his friends. So, I’m glad to see this JC comfort food pass down through the generations. (One thing, I did add later to my version was to top the dish with strips of beni-shoga – a type of tsukemono, Japanese pickle, pickled strips of ginger that are pink from red perilla – and my son and husband liked to put hot sauce like Tapatio or Tabasco on it.)
Our family traditions and culture are embedded in our food. It’s also a tribute to our ancestors. They brought their methods and some food from Japan and incorporated their traditions with some of the new bounty they discovered in Canada. The first Oikawa who came in the 1800s was amazed at the salmon that filled the Fraser River and how the fishers threw out the dog (chum) salmon and ikura (salmon roe). He made sake, possibly the first major production, to trade with fishers and then later sell. Let’s continue to share our stories, our recipes, and celebrate our families. Happy Asian Heritage Month! Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers, past & present, and those who have taken on the role of mother. Your strength and determination paved the way for us and future generations. We will remember you. Happy Mother’s Day!
If you have a favourite Japanese Canadian recipe and/or story, please email me at [email protected]
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For those who want to read or continue reading the story of Tomekichi Homma by Geoff Meggs, you’ll find the story on the NAJC website here: najc.ca/tomekichi-homma-canadian-by-geoff-meggs/
