By Mia Hanuska
Welcome to the Traveling Cart! I’m Mia Hanuska, and I’ll be your guide on this world tour. Each issue, the cart travels to a new country and explores its history and culture through a customized 3-course meal of traditional dishes cooked by yours truly. This issue, the cart has ventured to the beautiful island of Okinawa, Japan.
A Condensed History of Okinawa
うちな, or Okinawa Island, formerly known as the Ryukyu Kingdom, is located southwest of mainland Japan and is the smallest island of Japan’s five main islands. North of Okinawa, the Amami Islands provided crucial access to Japan’s main island, and when agricultural development began on the Amami Islands in the 12th century, it slowly spread to Okinawa. At the same time, rulers emerged in Okinawa and created stone fortresses, or Gosuku, leading historians to dub this era as the Gosuku Period.
200 years later, the main island of Okinawa had split into three powers—the Hokuzan forces, the Chuzan forces, and the Nanzan forces—and each established their own rulers. These powers lasted a mere 100 years, as in 1429, the Chuzan leader conquered the island and established his own government, known as the Ryukyu Kingdom. The Ryukyu Kingdom continued the powers’ existing tributary relationship with China’s Ming Dynasty, and with the kingdom’s central location, it became an intermediary trade hub and accumulated extensive wealth.
Through the following centuries, countless Asian countries invaded Okinawa, establishing their presence with political reforms and new tributary relations (although Okinawa still continued their tributes to China). In 1879, Japan officially established Okinawa as a Japanese prefecture and overhauled Okinawa’s political and social structures. However, Okinawa also became dependent on sugar production, and its economy suffered.
Then, with World War II, US troops targeted Okinawa, causing the Battle of Okinawa that led to the deaths of over 140,000 non-combat Okinawans. The US built army bases on the island, injecting US culture into Okinawa’s through food and lifestyles. Okinawa was finally returned to Japan in 1972.
This Stop’s Menu
Main meal: Pork Tamago Onigiri (ポーク卵おにぎり)
Side dish: Okinawa Tofu and Vegetables
Sweet Treat: Sata Andagi (サーターアンダギー)
Main: Pork Tamago Onigiri
Before the war, pork was considered a luxury in Okinawa due to their lack of pigs on the island. In the Ryukyu Dynasty, pork was essentially reserved for entertaining Chinese guests, but later with Japan’s takeover of the island, the pig population in Okinawa flourished. While the war killed a large portion of pigs on the island, as the US military’s SPAM rations were quickly adapted into Okinawa’s cuisine it became a popular replacement for pork, and still plays an important role in the island’s recipes.
To make this dish, I used this recipe from Food in Japan as inspiration. This dish was super easy and quick to make; it only has three ingredients to prepare. This was my first time cooking SPAM, and I think it went pretty well! There’s no sauce or marinade on the SPAM, but I made a sort of ketchup sauce with ketchup, onion powder, and garlic powder to add to the final dish, and I think it added a nice flavor variation. You really can’t go wrong with rice, spam, and eggs, and with the easy prep and cleanup this recipe lends itself well to a last-minute meal or snack that’s very portable.
Side Dish: Okinawa Tofu and Vegetables
This is a semi-traditional take on Okinawa-style sauteed vegetables (Yasai-champuru) that highlights the importance of tofu in Okinawa’s cuisine. Okinawans eat a significant amount of tofu, with some sources claiming they’re the largest consumer of the food in the world. Citizens of the island also have the world’s highest life expectancy—almost 8 years more than the average US American. Is it from all the tofu? Possibly…
For this dish, I followed A Bountiful Kitchen’s recipe, found here. This recipe had more steps than the Pork Tamago Onigiri, but it still was pretty simple. Unfortunately, as someone who can only tolerate onions to a certain extent, I found this dish a little too onion-y for my taste. If I were to remake it, I would opt for sweet instead of yellow onions and limit the amount of green onions added on top. I also think it could use a bit more sauce, so I would recommend doubling the amount of soy sauce the recipe recommends. In the future, I’d pair this dish with rice and teriyaki sauce. Overall, if you really enjoy onions and need a simple dish, this recipe is a great choice.
Sweet Treat: Sata Andagi
In simple terms, Sata Andagi are the Okinawan version of a doughnut. They’re often made for happy occasions because the cracks on the surface resemble both a smiling face (good luck) and a blooming flower (symbol of women)! According to theories, Sata Andagi was introduced to Okinawa by Chinese chefs during the Ryukyu Dynasty. However, since sugar was a delicacy, these treats were generally reserved for the upper-class.
I followed this recipe from Just one Cookbook to make these. If you make one Okinawan dish, I highly encourage it to be this one. Not too sweet, cakey but not dense, and only four ingredients, no cons exist for Sata Andagi. Due to allergies, I swapped the cake flour for King Arthur’s Measure for Measure flour, and although my dough was significantly drier than the images on the recipe, they turned out delicious nonetheless. This is definitely the best recipe I’ve made in a long time. I cannot recommend Sata Andagi enough.
Packing up the Cart
Thank you for joining the Traveling Cart as we dove into the history of Okinawa through making three delicious dishes! Each course offers a new flavor profile, just like how each of Okinawa’s eras brought new cultural practices. If you’re interested in learning more about Okinawa, I’ve scribed a few sources on the back of this parchment you can check out. Ah, the horses are ready for our next adventure—see you at the next destination!
Sources:
https://visitokinawajapan.com/discover/overview-okinawa-history/ https://www.kadena.af.mil/portals/40/documents/AFD-120828-077.pdf
Interested in learning more? Here’s a good place to start: