Tomatoes in Tokyo

The first time I asked for San Marzano tomatoes in Tokyo, the greengrocer disappeared into a back room for what felt like ten minutes and returned with a single tin, kept on a shelf above the door. He treated it the way a Florentine salumiere treats a wheel of pecorino di fossa — quietly, with respect, as if he were lending it to me.

Sourcing across borders teaches you something that local shopping never will. It teaches you that an ingredient is never just an ingredient. It is the work of a soil, a climate, a person, and — increasingly — a logistics chain that someone took the time to build because they thought it mattered.

I left the shop with the tin and a new vocabulary word.