My moldy grody tomato

Is this tomato moldy? Not really but if it had a "Japanese" expiration date on it, it would have been considered LONG expired. The tomato is just short of a week old, but I'll let you know that some Japanese people consider that produce sin! The cutest thing: all my eggs have a little expiration sticker on them - which is very handy because usually I toss out the plastic carton. Btw, eggs in Japan don't come by the dozen, they come in 10's, 6's and even 4's!

Back in my family, we had large dinners consisting of several dishes. In Chinese culture it is good to see much food remaining at the end of a meal. If it is finished one might think people are still hungry. It is considered extremely rude if a host doesn't serve his/her guest enough food! Leftovers are consumed the next day, the day after that and in extreme cases...one more day! The smell test comes in handy for those uncertain X-day old foods. Though I might add - even if the food pass the smell test it doesn't necessarily always pass the later on taste test at dinnertime! In Japan food is made AND consumed on the same day. Leftovers are highly frowned upon and sometimes quickly eaten for breakfast the following day to prevent even further flavor/nutrient deterioration. I suppose it is true - food does lose its flavor and nutritional benefits over time.

Groceries. Back in the States we'd go once a week or in a busy month, once every two weeks with a trip or two to the convenience store in between. Here in Japan most housewives try to shop for food on a daily basis. You can imagine how seafood, especially fish, tastes really 'fishy' after a day or two! I used to think this was a bit extreme but now I too try to buy ingredients fresh on the very same day I make it. A year ago I would not have blinked twice at a wilting Chinese bok choy in my fridge. Now I shudder at the mere thought of wilting veggies in my teeny Japanese-sized fridge. Oooooo how I have changed. You can imagine how horrified I was to visit Germany, home of wilting veggies in the SUPERMARKET. I often went shopping for food and was very disappointed by the lack of decent fresh produce! The prices were significantly lower than Japan...huge quantities of carrots for a lot less money...but but...a bit on the dehydrated side. Who knew living in Japan could make one a supermarket SNOB? Ooh noooo, what have I become???