Latest Posts - Japanese Food Guide

A person wearing a white top, black pants, a red beanie and black gloves is bending over arranging yellow and red apples into an almost completed replica ukiyo-e artwork of “The Actor Otani Oniji III as Yakko Edobei” by Toshusai Sharaku next to Hirosaki Castle.

Aomori Apples: How Aomori Became Japan’s Apple Capital and Where to Enjoy the Best

When you think of Japanese apples, Aomori is the first place to come to mind. Learn all about Aomori apples and where to try the best Aomori apple products.

Osaka food: A hand can be seen dipping a skewered kushikatsu into a stainless steel rectangular metal container from the right of frame. What this particular kushikatsu contains is not exactly clear but could be cheese or a white fish. Other cooked kushikatsu ready for dipping can be seen in the background such as renkon lotus root and quail eggs.

Osaka Food Guide: 9 Delicious Things You Need to Eat in Osaka

What to eat in Osaka? We’ll explain the Osaka food you’ve got to try at least once when you’re in the food capital of Japan.

A clear glass vessel filled with awamori with a golden hue sits on a red, yellow and mustard striped tablecloth along with two full glasses of awamori and a plate of stewed 'sōki' Okinawan spare ribs.

A Guide to Awamori, Okinawa’s Ancient Alcohol: How it’s made and how to drink it

Awamori is Japan’s oldest distilled liquor. With more than 600 years of history, this fascinating Okinawan drink has unique flavor profiles that will surprise.

Perfectly arranged slices of raw salmon atop a bed of ice and daikon radish strings in a shallow dark ceramic bowl-plate. Other sashimi garnishes can also be seen such as shiso leaf, shiso flowers, a chrysanthemum flower, and red and green seaweed.

Your Informed Guide to Sashimi Garnishes: What are they and should you eat them?

We’ll explore the common sashimi garnishes and whether you should eat them – the seaweeds, the flowers, the leaves, the daikon strings – or not.

A black textured ceramic plate with one Osaka-style (Kansai-style) okonomiyaki on it. The pancake is topped with okonomiyaki sauce, mayonnaise, katsuobushi (bonito flakes) and green aonori seaweed.

What is Okonomiyaki? The Difference Between Kansai-style and Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki

Most people have heard of it, but just what is okonomiyaki? And what is the difference between Osaka okonomiyaki (Kansai-style) and Hiroshima okonomiyaki?

A three-year-old girl wears a red kimono with a white 'hifu' vest at a shrine in celebration of Shichi go san. She faces the camera with such a huge grin that her eyes appear closed. She holds up a stick of red (pink) chitose ame in her right hand. The chitose ame bag can be seen in her left hand.

Chitose Ame: The One Thousand Year Candy Given to Children on ‘Shichi Go San’

‘Chitose ame’ is the traditional sweet of the ‘Shichi go san’ festival that celebrates the health and longevity of girls aged 3 and 7, and boys aged 3 and 5.

A large open barrel of black Japanese vinegar. The shot has been taken from the point of view of someone pouring some into a small glass cup with a bamboo ladle.

A Guide to Japanese Vinegar: From Sushi and Dressings, to Mocktails, Tea and Beer

Japanese vinegar or ‘su’ (酢, す) is used in a wide variety of foods and drinks, including sushi, salads, stir-fries, ice cream, and even milk, tea and beer.

About seven beautifully-arranged pieces of yuba (tofu skin) on top of some shiso leaves on a black oval ceramic plate. The plate is sitting on a dark wooden surface.

Discovering ‘Yuba’: Japan’s Versatile Tofu Skin Delicacy & Where to Try It

Yuba or tofu skin is a wonderfully versatile ingredient in Japanese cuisine, and a dish in its own right | What is yuba, how to eat it and top yuba restaurants.

A dark ceramic bowl of Tamago Kake Gohan on a blue tablecloth. A perfectly intact raw egg yolk sits on top of the white rice. Soy sauce can't be seen in the dish, although there is a white ceramic soy sauce dispenser to the right. Behind the TKG is a large bowl of uncracked eggs and to the left we can see a small bowl with the egg shell from the egg that's already in the dish.

Tamago Kake Gohan (TKG): Japan’s Simple Raw Egg Breakfast & How to Eat It

Tamago Kake Gohan (TKG) or raw egg over rice is a popular breakfast dish in Japan, and there are a surprising amount of ways to eat it.

Part of a large round bamboo container/basket can be seen (similar to what you'd see at a yum cha or dumpling restaurant) and it is filled with immaculately-presented inari sushi (inarizushi) that have been placed in circular rows following the shape of the container. It's partially sitting on a wooden turntable (Lazy Susan) with three inari sushi placed directly in front of it. The table is covered in a table cloth with a pink floral design.

A Guide to Inarizushi: Japan’s Sweet and Juicy Inari Sushi, the Fast Food of Samurai

Inarizushi, also known as Inari Sushi, has been a staple Japanese food since the Edo period when it was a popular fast food for feudal lords and samurai.

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