From Court Cooking to Household Cooking
Court cuisine developed in the course of the Ryukyu Kingdom's relations with China and the Satsuma fief in Japan. Chinese and Satsuma officials were entertained at banquets prepared by chefs who had gone to China and Satsuma, respectively, to study cooking. These chefs introduced the cooking styles they learned and brought back to the royal palace. This court cuisine then became a feature of entertainments, ceremonies and annual events.
However, the new Meiji government abolished the Ryukyu Kingdom and created Okinawa Prefecture in its place. Okinawa was swept by social change and the princes and nobles of Shuri lost their palaces and other prerogatives along with their rank. This put an end to lavish court cooking and to the ceremonies and Buddhist rites at which it was served. With their employment gone, male chefs and servants who had prepared and served these sumptuous meals drifted away and very few of their styles and skills were taken over by women in their household cooking.
However, at Shuri, the tradition of court cuisine was kept up in the cooking for formal ceremonies and Buddhist rites.
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