Japanese cuisine appeals to all five human senses, sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and especially umami. It is highly focused on presentation and good quality ingredients with particular emphasis on seasonal fruits and vegetables.
Generally, Japanese food is a combination of rice, noodles, soup, meat, vegetables, and fish. Next time you travel to this far eastern country, make sure you include some of the following Japanese dishes in your bucket list.
When you return home after your vacation, visit a Japanese online store and try to recreate your favorite dishes in your kitchen.
Sushi
Sushi is one of the most famous Japanese dishes and often the first thing that comes to mind when people think about Japanese cuisine. The dish is seasoned rice topped with various kinds of fish.
When rice is topped with slices of raw fish it’s called Nigiri. Rolled sushi in which rice is layered with cucumbers, carrots, meats, or fish is called Makizushi. Usually, it’s rolled with nori seaweed and cut into little circles.
Tempura
Tempura is the name for a batter in which meats, seafood, and vegetables can be fried until golden and crunchy. The batter is light and airy and unlike any other fried food batter.
You can eat tempura with grated daikon, soy dipping sauce, or by itself. You might also find it served with noodle dishes or rice bowls.
Yakitori
This dish is skewered barbecued meat. Small bite-size pieces of meat are marinated in salt, mirin, soy sauce, sake, and sugar. These are then barbequed until tender and charred.
Various versions are available such as momo-chicken thighs, Negima-chicken and spring onion, and tsukune-chicken meatballs.
Gyukatsu
This dish is a beef cutlet coated in breadcrumbs and fried until golden brown. It is typically served with shredded cabbage, salad greens, barley rice, miso soup, potato soup, and pickles.
You can also eat it in a bento box, sandwich filling, or curry.
Gyoza
Gyoza are dumplings that are pan-fried to give them a crispy exterior that’s light golden. They can be filled with different things, but the most popular filling is cabbage, ginger, garlic, onion, and minced pork. People eat Gyoza by dipping them in soy sauce, vinegar dip, or chilly oil.
Fugu
Fugu is a type of pufferfish that is usually served as sashimi. The fish can be toxic if not prepared correctly. Chefs have to be rigorously trained to make sure they know how to remove all toxic parts of the fish.
Gyudon
Gyudon is a one-pot meal. It consists of beef and rice. Putting it together is super easy and it tastes delicious.
Steamed rice is topped with beef, onions, and dashi broth and seasoned with a dash of soy sauce and mirin. Occasionally, an egg is used as a topping. It is a very wholesome and filling dish.
Sashimi
Sashimi is thinly sliced raw fish or meat that’s served with daikon radish, wasabi, soy sauce, and ginger. Unlike sushi, it is never served with rice and should always be made with the freshest fish possible.
Karaage
This is Japan’s version of fried chicken, although, in some areas, pork is used instead. The meat is coated in potato starch and deep-fried until it’s extremely crunchy and golden. You’ll find it served with or without a slice of lemon on the side.
Kushikatsu
Kushi is the Japanese word for skewers and Katsu means deep-fried meat. The dish is deep-fried skewered meat cutlets such as pork or chicken. However, sometimes, fish or vegetables are used. More creative versions of this dish use bamboo shoots and lotus roots. Every region has its special way of creating the dish.
Miso Soup
This soup is a staple of Japanese cuisine and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. The soup is made with a miso paste and dashi broth. To make it more filling, they add tofu, wakame seaweed, mushrooms, daikon, onions, potatoes, shrimp, or meat.
Mochi
Mochi are traditional Japanese treats made out of glutinous rice. They are made by steaming, mashing, and pounding rice. This makes it chewy and sticky. Cute shapes are then made out of the rice mixture and the shapes are filled with sweet red bean paste.
Onigiri
This is a dish you eat on the go and you’ll find it in grocery stores in Japan. Onigiri is a rice ball seasoned with various spices. It’s usually filled with meat, seafood, and vegetables, and wrapped in seaweed which can be flavored or unflavored.
Ramen
This is a type of soupy noodle dish made with wheat flour noodles and a broth or soup made with pork bone/chicken/fish. Ramen is seasoned with soy sauce, miso, and salt. On top of the noodles, there might be vegetables such as spring onions, bamboo shoots, nori seaweed, tofu, meats such as sliced port, and an egg.
Soba
Soba noodles are made from buckwheat. This gives them a nutty, earthy flavor. They can be served cold with green onions, shredded nori, and wasabi. They can also be served hot in soups along with spring onions, fish cakes, and grilled mochi.
