This thesis traces the development of the daily menu featured in domestic cookery books in modern Japan through the period 1861-1930. One of the main features of the modern menu is the introduction of daily three-course menu. There are two types of such meals. The first-the Western-style three-course menus-appeared chiefly during the Meiji era in the cookery books that were available and introduced Western eating habits and etiquette. Moreover, this style menu of these books resembled that of the British or American cookery books of those days. The 1900s witnessed the appearance of the Japanese-style three-course menus that featured various dishes that comprised a basic combination of rice and Japanese soup. This thesis also analyzes the three-course menus constructed with a variety of substitute foods consumed in the Taisho era due to the rising prices in the period following the Russo-Japanese War. For example, there existed numerous three-course menus featuring cheap pork, potatoes, sardines, herrings, etc. The food was not only cheap but also nutritious. In other words, this type of menu was developed due to progress in the field of dietetics and the necessity of cultivating economical eating habits.
