Long before Iron Chef morphed into Iron Chef America, I enjoyed the grandaddy of televised culinary throwdowns in its original format. No, that doesn't mean Food Network's dubbed Japanese version. I watched Iron Chef sans dubbing on UHF. Back then I was hardly a gourmand and my knowledge of Japanese was gleaned from watching Godzilla. Nevertheless, I was fascinated by the show's fierce competitive spirit and exotic ingredients. Those episodes and the film Tampopo convinced me that Japanese people are crazy about food.

I hadn't given too much thought to the role of food in Japanese popular culture, until yesterday. Not that I hadn't seen such snacks such as Calbee Pea Crisps with its happy cartoon legume, dancing across the package before. What shocked me out of my cocoon of hipster-foodie complacency was a friend telling me of a manga hero whose feats revolve around baking bread. That's right, bread. I'm no student of manga, but the last time I checked these Japanese comics featured darker plots often involving sex and gore.


Yakitate!! Japan, now has more than 20 volumes. It's even given rise to a TV show. The title of Takashi Hashiguchi's epic translates to "freshly baked Japan." Japan, in this case, is a pun on the hero Kazuma Azuma's quest to create an artisanal style of Japanese bread, Ja-pan.

Like all good superheroes, Azuma is endowed with a superpower, Solar Hands. When he kneads dough, it rises faster because his hands are much warmer than those of mere mortals. With a full complement of villains and a judging panel Yakitate!! combines cartoons like Pokémon with Iron Chef. One of the bread judges is a graduate of Harvard's food science program. Another is a world-class clown who can speak 135 languages.

And the breads these anime artisans cook up are quite diverse ranging from such clearly Japanese varieties as soy-milk toast and okonomiyaki-sandwich with Yakisoba filling to non-Japanese specialties as croissants and naan. Then there are the breads that don't seem to fit into any category: Eel, Nori, Silk and Black-soybeans Sports bread for Racecar Drivers and Red Turtle Sports bread (with Snapper Turtle blood and red wine). My favorite among these oddball creations has to be the Cannabis Bread Donut. Did I mention that the Japanese strike me as a bit food-crazed?