In 1543, a Chinese ship with three Portuguese sailors on board headed to Macau, but was swept off course and ended up on the Japanese island of Tanegashima. Antonio da Mota, Francisco Zeimoto and Antonio Peixoto – the first Europeans to ever step on Japanese soil – were deemed ‘southern barbarians’ by the locals. The Japanese were in the middle of a civil war and eventually began trading with the Portuguese, The Portuguese remained
in Japan until 1639, when they were banished because the ruling shogun Iemitsu believed Christianity was a threat to Japanese society. As their ships sailed away for the last time,
the Portuguese left an indelible mark on the island: a battered
and fried green bean recipe called “Peixinhos da Horta”. Today, in Japan, it’s called tempura and has been a staple of the country’s cuisine ever since.
HISTORY