Asia

Asia experience – 【Malaysia】Soy meat vegetarian dish

　I made a business trip to Malaysia in the mid-1990s. After business talks with the customer, we decided to have dinner at a Chinese restaurant. The customer ordered a variety of menus and had a delicious meal. There was a menu like chicken in it. When I ate it, it was not chicken, but I could taste the texture of meat. The customer was actually a vegetarian. 　At that time, the word vegetarian was not so familiar. I only knew about eating mainly vegetables. I remember being impressed by a dish that used soy meat to make it look like meat. （Image: Soy meat dish）

Asia experience – 【China】I can’t forget the taste of Shanghai crab.

　So far, I have visited about 30 countries on business trips and vacations. Each country has its own delicious food. For example, I will never forget the taste of Shanghai crab that I ate for the first time in Shanghai. I’m sure many people like crab, but I didn’t like it that much. However, my evaluation of crabs skyrocketed after enjoying Shanghai crabs. 　I visited Shanghai around November, which was the season for Shanghai crabs. The whole steamed Shanghai crab was rich in crab miso and eggs, and had a rich taste and was very delicious. Shanghai crabs are eaten by breaking them apart and scraping them out. I wasn’t very good at it at first. I still remember that the waiter helped me to scrape out the contents of the crab. （Image: Shanghai crabs）

Asia experience – 【India】The combination of plain dosa and sambar is exquisite taste

　My first business trip to India was in the mid-1990s. Among the Asian regions, I have not had many business trips to India, but I have still made more than 20 business trips. One of the pleasures of my business trip was to taste the local cuisine. Actually, when I went on a business trip to India, I was surprised at the variety of curries. There are also a wide variety of vegetarian curries. 　During my business trips to India, I had delicious dishes other than curry. My recommendation is Dosa, one of the South Indian dishes. Dosa is a fermented rice and bean dough that is baked like a crepe. Plain dosa is a simple dosa with nothing inside. A dosa with a diameter of 50 cm is rolled into a cylinder or cone. Dosa is served with a side dish. Sambar is a spicy and sour curry soup made with beans and vegetables. The combination of plain dosa and sambar has an exquisite taste. （Image: Dosa and Sambar）

Asia experience – 【Singapore】The most famous food Chicken Rice

　Singapore’s best dishes include chicken rice, chili crab, laksa and satay. Chicken rice is one of the popular set meals. Chicken and rice are together. That rice is cooked in broth, but that soup is made from boiled chicken. 　Among the many shops, Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice is famous. When I was stationed in Singapore, there was this restaurant just a short walk away, so I went to eat there many times. Whenever I went, customers were queuing up. Many years ago, when my family came to Singapore from Japan, I took them to Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice. I remember my children happily eating it, saying, “It’s delicious!” （Image: Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice）

Asia experience – 【Thailand】Mango sticky rice is a popular dessert in Thailand !

　It was more than 20 years ago, but it was when I went on a business trip to Thailand. I went to a Thai restaurant with a Thai customer.  I thoroughly enjoyed Tom Yum Kung (a famous spicy and sour Thai soup dish with shrimp) and Green Curry (a curry based on green chilies and coconut milk). And the mango sticky rice was served at the end of the meal. 　I have never eaten or seen anything like this before, fresh mango, sticky rice and coconut milk on a plate. The mango sticky rice I tried for the first time didn’t taste very good. However, after eating it a few times, I got used to the sweetness of mango and the sweetness of coconut milk. Eating it with sticky rice makes for an exquisite taste. Sticky rice is very sweet and delicious like Japanese Ohagi. Mango sticky rice is now one of my favorite Thai foods. I discovered that even if I didn’t like the taste of the food at first, I could come to like it after eating it over and over again. （Image: Thai mango sticky rice）

Asia experience – 【Korea】Unforgettable Hosu-Samgyetang taste

　In my previous company, I was stationed at a local subsidiary in South Korea. Samgyetang is one of the representative Korean dishes. Samgyetang is a dish of chicken stuffed with ginseng and glutinous rice. I like samgyetang, but I have never tried samgyetang, which is said to be particularly delicious. 　One day, I went to a popular restaurant, Hosu-Samgyetang, with an employee of the local subsidiary. There is no menu other than samgyetang because it is a specialty store. Ordering is easy, just tell the staff how many people you want. The samgyetang soup that I usually imagine is transparent or slightly whitish. The samgyetang brought to the table was a thick, rich, pure white soup. I still remember the first bite of well-cooked tender chicken with a little salt and this soup. It was the only flavor that you can’t find in any other samgyetang restaurants. After that, I tried other samgyetang, but Hosu-Samgyetang is still number one in my opinion. （Image: Korean food）

Asia experience – 【Taiwan】Pearl milk tea and soup dumpling of Din Tai Fung

　It is said that Din Tai Fung of Taiwan first entered the Japan in 1996.  There are now more Japan chain restaurants than there are in Taiwan. In addition, it seems that Pearl milk tea invented in Taiwan landed in Japan in the late 1990s. 　Actually, when I went on a business trip to Taiwan in the mid-1990s, I enjoyed soup dumpling of Din Tai Fung and pearl milk tea. We went to Din Tai Fung for lunch and tasted soup dumpling. I had soup dumpling full of gravy on a small plate with soy sauce, vinegar and ginger. The soup dumpling I ate for the first time was very delicious and exciting. After finishing lunch at Din Tai Fung, we went to the small stand next door and ordered pearl milk tea. This was also the first time I had drunk it. Milk tea alone is delicious, but when it contains tapioca pearls, its texture can’t be said anything, and I immediately became a fan.  I even wanted to sell pearl milk tea in Japan. （Image: Pearl milk tea and Soup dumpling）

Asia business experience – 【Singapore】Excellent human resources who support the development of the country

In my previous job, I stayed for about 6 years to manage a local subsidiary in Singapore. What I found wonderful about Singapore is that its national policies are clear and its politicians and bureaucrats are excellent. Singapore is a small country with a small land area and a population of about 5.7 million. If the national strategy is inferior, the prosperity of the country cannot be expected. The Singapore government reclaims coastal areas to expand the country, but imports the sediment from overseas. They also import water from Malaysia to ensure a water source. The Singapore government also invite talented human resources from overseas for economic development. The Singapore government is also active in developing human resources. They provide elite education to talented people and train them to become bureaucrats who lead the nation and lead Singapore’s industry. Also, not many people may know that the salaries of politicians and bureaucrats in Singapore are orders of magnitude higher. A system that works for the country and guarantees a life of more than enough seems to help create a competent government. （Image: Singapore）

Asia business experience – 【Hong Kong】The world’s most difficult airport to land at

　I visited Hong Kong for the first time in 1993. The current Hong Kong International Airport is located in Hong Kong New Territories Islands District, but the former international airport at that time was in Kowloon, close to the center of Hong Kong. The airport grounds are narrow and there are mountains nearby. Since the plane could not go straight ahead and land, the route was to make a large turn in a certain place and fly over the height of the buildings. At that time, I thought that the aircraft would crash into a building at any moment. As I later learned, it was called ‘the most difficult airport in the world’ to land at. 　The purpose of the trip was to attend IT-related seminars and have meetings with distributors. I walked around the city in between business, but there were many buildings and people in the city, and it was very lively. Also, when conversing in English, I remember that the other party spoke quickly and it was difficult to keep up with the conversation. （Image: Food-related exhibition, Hong Kong）

Asia business experience – 【Malaysia】 The only country in Southeast Asia with domestic automobile manufacturers

　Malaysia is a popular country for long-term stays and migrations. I first visited Malaysia in the 1990s, but I felt that prices were cheap, the food was delicious, and the city was safe. Malaysians are multiracial, mainly Malay, Chinese and Indian. They also have different cultural backgrounds. One of the reasons why Malaysia is so popular may be because it embraces diversity. 　As you may know, Malaysia is the only country in Southeast Asia where there are domestic automobile manufactures. There are two companies, Proton and Perodua. I had the opportunity to visit an automobile manufacturer for a business meeting. It made me think about what it takes to survive and grow in the competitive automotive industry. （Image: Automobile company in Malaysia）