Yakiniku

Yakiniku (焼き肉 or 焼肉), meaning "grilled meat", is a Japanese term which, in its broadest sense, refers to grilled meat dishes. "Yakiniku" originally referred to the "barbecue" of western food, which was given by Japanese writer Kanagaki Robun (仮名垣魯文) in his literature, "Seiyo Ryoritsu" (meaning "western food handbook"), in 1872 (The Meiji period). Meat has been eaten in Japan since the Jōmon period. However, the rise of Buddhism made the eating of meat tabooed, and consequently some people have theorized that meat "disappeared" from the table from the Middle Ages to the Edo period. The term "yakiniku" became associated with Korean-derived cuisine during the early Showa period. Due to the Korean War, Korean restaurants in Japan were divided into North Korean (Kita Chōsen) and South Korean (Kankoku); "yakiniku restaurant" arose as a politically correct term to refer to restaurants of either type.

Today, it commonly refers to a Japanese style of cooking bite-sized meat (usually beef and offal) and vegetables on gridirons or griddles over flame of wood charcoals carbonized by dry distillation (sumibi, 炭火) or gas/electric grill. In North America, China, and Taiwan, Yakiniku is also referred to as "Japanese barbecue" while in Japan the origin has become a subject of debate, though it is conventionally considered to be Korean cuisine. In 2002 the NHK program NHK Ningen Kouza (NHK人間講座, literally NHK Humanity Lecture) stated: "While some tend to think that yakiniku came from Korea, it was born in post war Japan." Yet there are those who say that while yakiniku may have its beginnings in Japan, they believe it was first made by Zainichi Koreans (long-term Korean residents), and should therefore be considered Korean cuisine.

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