What's for breakfast?

If you were born and raised in Japan, chances are you will have a traditional breakfast consisting of a small piece of grilled fish, rice, a wafer of nori, a few bites of salad, a slice of fruit, and a bowl of soup made from miso, fish stock, and chopped vegetables. If you opt for a modern, western style breakfast, count on an egg, a thin slice of ham or a taste of bacon sauteed with spinach, a piece of toast, salad, fruit, and soup. Plus milk or juice, yoghurt or cheese, coffee or tea.

Key point? Servings are small, and there are many ingredients covering most of the food pyramid. We are talking about 500 calories, depending on how big the rice bowl is and what dressing goes on the salad.

Except for the rice (which takes an hour and should be prepared in a cooker with an automatic timer), it takes about ten minutes to get it all on the table and another ten minutes to eat and clear away. Twenty minutes, plus a well stocked fridge, and you get kids who pay attention in school and adults who have no interest in donuts and lattes during the work day.