If the stomach is the way to someone’s heart, might as well get constituents by… making them sympathize over what you eat?

Fumio Kishida is no stranger to the Japanese political scene. Formerly the Minister of Foreign Affairs and currently an incumbent of Japan’s House of Representatives representing Hiroshima’s 1st district, the 63-year-old was one of the potential candidates considered to replace Prime Minister Abe Shinzo in the fall of 2020.

While then Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga was elected instead, life went on and legislative work continued for Representative Kishida, except he made waves again on social media for a photo of his dinner which netizens have dubbed a depression meal.

▼ (Translation below)

“Because of COVID-19, dinner gatherings have been canceled and I continue to eat my meals at home. I tend to make food that can be easily shimmered on the stove, but yesterday night my sons made me miso soup. It was a surprisingly (they’ll get mad at me for saying that) delicious meal I ate together with my family. 

For those unfamiliar with Japanese food, what’s in Representative Kishida’s spread can be broken down to the following from left to right:

  • Miso soup with a generous helping of enoki mushrooms
  • Microwavable instant rice
  • Raw egg
  • Sukiyaki udon (thick noodles as well as beef broiled in a savory and sweet soy sauce-based broth)

▼ Before anyone gets alarmed, raw egg is a common companion to many Japanese meals, due to the country’s specific handling methods for poultry goods.

Of course, depending on the individual, Representative Kishida’s dinner might not look that bad. Especially to someone who just graduated from university, his meal looks pretty similar to what I had to scarf down on busy nights juggling assignments, assistant teaching, and extracurriculars, save for the raw egg.

But Japanese netizens on Twitter couldn’t help but comment on his photo with some leaving posts reflecting pity or skepticism, and others offering supportive messages:

“Good work today! Looks delicious.”

“There’s really no vegetables in this meal….”

“Well, that’s one way to relate to the masses.”

“Anyone think he might have just dunked everything into the trash right after the photo op?”

“Huh, looks a lot like what I eat! Feels pretty relatable.”

“Eating rice on top of udon? That’s a lot of carbs.”

“So much soup… if you already have sukiyaki udon, you don’t need miso soup on top of it.”

“Is Sukiyaki Udon Uncle the successor to Pancake Uncle?”

▼ For the last netizen response, it’s in reference to Prime Minister Suga’s love for pancakes.

At the end of the day, as long as its edible and helps put gas in the tank, I say each to their own when it comes to food!

…unless you catch a poisonous pufferfish and cook it yourself without any training. Then you might want to reconsider some things.

Source: Twitter/@kishida230 via Hachima Kiko
Top image: Wikipedia/外務省
Insert image: Pakutaso
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