15 foods you must try in Japan
Japan is known for its amazing food. If you’re a foodie then you just must travel to Japan! Japan’s food is fresh, always well presented and oishii (delicious). After our last trip we were all craving Japanese food when we came home. Just thinking about it makes me want to go back!
For families with a fussy eater or two, the food of Japan may not be such a great draw card but you will be able to find foods similar to home. I will write a separate blog about surviving with fussy eaters in Japan – we have personal experience!
Sushi and sashimi
Sushi is the most iconic Japanese dish and can be found throughout the world. However, in Japan the sushi is made to prefection! Even the inexpensive sushi in the 7 11, Lawson and FamilyMart stores in Japan is fresh and an awesome budget meal.
However, to have the full sushi experience you have to visit a sushi train restaurant! In these restaurants, you will find the conveyor belt with plates of Sushi, but the best part is ordering the sushi you want via a tablet on the table (usually with English available). Your order is then brought to your table freshly made by ‘bullet train’. The kids love the whole experience of ordering what they want, taking it from the train, sending the train back to the kitchen, eating and then ordering some more.
Ramen noodles
Ramen is a wheat based noodle and probably the most popular of Japan’s many noodle varieties. It is curvy and slightly yellow in colour. It is usually served in a hot broth that is soy or miso based, with various toppings, usually onion, pork, egg and seaweed but it can be found as a cold dish in summer. In winter, there is nothing better than a hot ramen, so tasty and filling, the perfect way to warm up!
If you love cup noodles then a visit to the cup noodle museum near Osaka is a must!
Udon
Udon is a wheat flour noodle, served in a soup stock. There are many different versions of Udon noodles and is one of the most widely eaten foods in Japan. They can be served hot or cold. Udon noodles are another filling and warming food on a cold day, yum!
Soba noodles
Soba is a buckwheat noodle, although Nagano soba has a combination of wheat and buckwheat. Soba can be served in a number of ways from cold with dipping sauce or in a hot broth. This has been one of the kids all time favourite noodles, particularly on our first trip when they weren’t sure of the tastes, plain soba noodles can be found everywhere and were a guaranteed hit!
Tonkatsu
Tonkatsu is a piece of pork, crumbed, fried and sliced. It is very similar to a chicken schnitzel and the meat is so soft and juicy it’s delicious. It’s a favourite with the kids and one of the first meals they want when we arrive in Japan! Tonkatsu can be served with curry rice, however, my favourite is served with shredded cabbage, dipping sauces and barley rice. Places like Tonkatsu Saboten give you black and white sesame seeds to first grind in a mortar and pestle and mix with the tonkatsu sauce.
There are often different prices for the pork cutlet, which relate to the different grades of pork, higher quality grades are better quality and more expensive. The meal is served with a massive bowl of shredded cabbage (eaten raw – which sounds odd but is delicious and so refreshing), a bowl of rice, miso soup, pickles and a variety of sauces for the cabbage. Many restaurants also have kids set meals.
Katsu sandwiches can be found in convenience stores and are a favourite with the kids, they are just like a chicken schnitzel sandwich!
Kare Raisu – Curry rice
This dish is really popular with Japanese kids. It can be served just as curry sauce with rice or with a variety of meats or vegetables. We love it served with tonkatsu – yum! Japanese curry is not like Indian curry it is quite mild and almost sweet. If you like a hot curry, many places provide the option for choosing the heat of the meal (such as Curry House Coco).
Yakisoba
Yakisoba with waving Bonito Flakes
Although this has the word soba in it, it is very different to soba noodles and is usually more like a ramen noodle. It’s a wheat noodle that’s fried, then meat, vegetables and sauce are added, its essentially like stirfry noodles and is a staple street food that is found throughout Japan.
Tempura
Tempura consists of vegetables and seafood that is fried in a very light batter so that it is not oily and has a beautiful crunch. Tempura can be served with rice or is often served as an accompaniment to other meals. Tempura vegetables are cooked to perfection and are absolutely delicious.
Okonomiyaki
Okonomiyaki is a savory pancake, made of yam, egg and flour. It literally means ‘cooked as you like it’ and you can order with different vegetables or meats. Toppings vary by region but often cheese, mayonnaise and bonito flakes are used. At some restaurants you can have it served on the grill at your table and then use metal spatulas to serve yourself slices, like cutting up a pizza!
Kushiage
Kushiage (or as our kids called it, stick food) is essentially meat and vegetables on a stick and deep fried – what kid doesn’t like that! The foods on the skewers can vary, we had chicken, prawns, squid, fish, sausage, quail eggs, cheese, asparagus, sweet potato, mushroom, eggplant and green beans served with cabbage, edamame beans and a dipping sauce. It’s a bit of a lucky dip as to which food you will get, which is half the fun!
Takoyaki – octopus balls
This is a popular street food found throughout Japan but especially Osaka. They are fried balls of batter, with a little piece of cooked octopus inside. We loved watching them be cooked, expertly flipping each ball as it was cooked to perfection! The are then served with mayonnaise or the sauce of your choice, shallots, ginger and bonito flakes. But warning, let them cool a little or over keen eaters will find that they are hot little lava balls!
Yakitori – chicken skewers
This is another popular street food. These chicken skewers are delicious and you can sometimes also find beef or pork skewers. Chicken skewers can be different parts of the chicken, some of the skewers are meat, some can be chicken skin or chicken liver (we avoided that one). Our youngest quickly learnt the hiragana for momo もも – chicken thigh.
Gyoza
Gyoza are similar to Chinese potstickers but with a thinner dough. They can be pan fried, deep fried or steamed and are filled with ground meat, usually pork, and vegetables. This dish can be served on its own or as a side dish. Gyoza are very popular and one of our absolute favourites.
Shabu shabu
Shabu Shabu involves cooking meat and vegetables in boiling broth at the table. The meat is provided raw in paper thin slices with a variety of vegetables. The name shabu shabu is onomatopoeia for ‘swish swish’ the action used to swish the meat through the boiling broth before you eat it. These meals can be long as everyone cooks their food, but it’s a great conversation piece and keeps the kids entertained. In fact, I don’t think the adults had much of a chance to cook, the kids did all the swishing!
Yakiniku
Yakiniku means grilled meat. It is a Japanese barbecue similar to Korean barbecue. At Yakiniku restaurants, there is a grill built into the table where you cook your own meat and vegetables. Different grades and cuts of meat are offered, mostly beef but also sometimes chicken and pork. The kids loved being chefs for the night and it was fantastic for us adults to be waited on!
Bonus food to try: Ekiben
‘Eki’ means station and ‘ben’ is short for bento or lunch box. These are traditionally eaten on the shinkansen. It is only ok to eat on the fast trains. There are usually a couple of shops that sell ekiben at the major shinkansen stations (smaller stations it will be harder to find them). Ekiben are usually cold. In winter you can find some meals that heat up by pulling on a string, triggering a reaction in the bottom of the box, releasing heat and steaming the food. However, most ekiben are cold so be prepared for cold rice and small pieces of cold fish and cold vegetables. Doesn’t sound so appealing? Give it a go, it is a Japanese experience you can’t pass up, it tastes amazing and the food looks so pretty it makes for great photos! There are heaps of cute kids ekiben in different shapes with kid friendly food.
Whatever food you try in Japan, you will have an amazing experience. Itadakimasu!