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(Early 2010s) Japanese Cuisine

Osechi

Osechi is a dish eaten during the New Year in Japan. It is an assortment of many dishes, and the contents vary depending on the region, era, and family.

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Ozōni

Ozōni (zōni) is also a New Year's dish commonly eaten in Japan. Ozōni is a soup made with mochi, but the ingredients vary depending on the region, and although it is basically mochi and vegetables, some regions also add meat or fish.

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Chazuke

Chazuke (Ochazuke) is a food that is eaten by placing pickles, seaweed, grilled fish, etc. on top of rice and pouring tea or hot water over it.

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Gyūdon & Soba

Gyūdon (beef bowl) is a dish of rice topped with thinly sliced sweetly boiled beef and sliced onions. Depending on your preference, it may be topped with red ginger or topped with beaten raw egg.

Soba is one of Japan's traditional noodles. "Zaru soba", which is eaten by dipping it in soy sauce for soba noodles, is common, but "kake soba", which is served with noodles in soup like ramen, is also popular.

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Okonomiyaki

Okonomiyaki is a dish made by mixing flour dissolved in water with vegetables, meat, seafood, etc. and grilling it on an iron plate. Okonomiyaki can be divided into Osaka-style and Hiroshima-style, and although there are differences in ingredients, cooking procedures, and seasoning, they both look similar.

This is Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki with noodles.

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Okonomiyaki, Takoyaki & Yakisoba

Osaka's most representative foods are okonomiyaki and takoyaki (Octopus Balls). Both are flour-based dishes, but if you add yakisoba (Fried Noodles) to the mix, you've got an unbeatable trio.

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Soup Curry

As the name suggests, soup curry is a curry-flavored soup, and is a relatively new dish that became popular in Sapporo, Hokkaido in the 1990s, and has since spread throughout Japan.

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