Must-Try Food in Japan For the Best Culinary Experience

Japan is an enchanting country with boundless allure. Many visit for the traditional culture, lifestyle, beautiful scenery, or the culinary scene. Frankly, the diverse selection of food in Japan alone is reason enough to visit. More than that, the capital city of Tokyo has the highest number of Michelin-starred restaurants in the world. The Japanese clearly know what they’re doing when it comes to food. Have a read through five of our favourite foods in Japan to try during your stay.

Sushi 

Sushi and Japan certainly go hand-in-hand. This classic food in Japan consists of seafood slices and vinegar-seasoned rice rolled together into bite-sized pieces. Nowadays, sushi comes in a wide range of varieties. Most common types include the nigirizushi (hand-shaped), makizushi (seaweed-rolled), and inarizushi (sushi rice stuffed inside thin tofu slices). You may enjoy sushi with soy sauce and wasabi. As for etiquette, you can eat sushi with chopsticks or with your hands.

Ramen

Another popular food in Japan, you can find ramen in all the regions. A bowl of ramen generally contains noodles, savoury broth, and toppings of proteins and vegetables. Japanese folks usually make ramen broth with chicken bones, pork bones, soy sauce, or miso. Depending on your preference, you can order ramen with thick broth or a lighter broth instead. Each region in Japan most likely has its own unique ramen specialty. For example, tonkotsu ramen is a Fukuoka specialty, while miso-style ramen belongs to Sapporo.

Sukiyaki

Visiting Japan during the cold winter months? Nothing better to warm yourself up than sukiyaki. Many consider this dish as comfort food in Japan. This hearty hot-pot dish is prepared by cooking beef-slices and sukiyaki broth in a pan, topped with different ingredients like mushroom, tofu, green onions, and other vegetables. For the best experience, prepare the dish with your loved ones. The dish will warm you from the inside out.

Kaiseki Cuisine

Kaiseki is the elegant haute cuisine of Japan. Also known as kaiseki ryori, this cuisine is a traditional, multi-course, aesthetically pleasing Japanese dinner. A kaiseki can include a dozen or more dishes, each prepared with fresh, seasonal ingredients. The table setting and garnishes are just as important as the main dish. Because this culinary experience is more than just a meal, it’s a form of art. Kaiseki meal is for those looking for a different, more lavish type of food in Japan.

Wagyu Beef

Wagyu is a type of premium beef from specific breeds of cattle in Japan. Currently, there are four breeds of Wagyu: Kuroge (Black), Akage (Brown), Nihon Tankaku (Shorthorn), and Mukaku (Polled). These cattle have gone through a rigorous process of selective breeding. In short, the lengthy process results in high-quality, tender meat with rich marbling. There are restaurants dedicated solely to Wagyu-based cuisine in Japan. But to savor its natural flavour, wagyu beef is best enjoyed as a steak paired with a glass of wine. Truly a sumptuous culinary experience.

Japanese cuisine is special because restaurants often specialize in just one dish. They spend generations perfecting the recipe to achieve the culinary delights we now enjoy. The Japanese pay close attention to every stage of preparation, from sourcing the freshest ingredients to setting the stage for the dish to shine. Hope you enjoy mytripology’s recommendation of must-try food in Japan.