WHAT IS THAT DISH?

Food Dictionary

Your essential guide to identifying and understanding Japanese food.

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Miso Nikomi Udon — thick udon noodles simmered in a rich red miso broth with chicken, egg, narutomaki, mushrooms, and green vegetables, steaming in an iron pot

味噌煮込みうどん

Miso Nikomi Udon

Firm Udon Noodles Simmered in Miso Broth

✨For the Bold

Miso Dengaku — konjac coated in sweet miso glaze.

Grilled Tofu or Konjac with Sweet Miso Glaze

✨For the Bold

Goma-ae — spinach or greens dressed in a fragrant sesame sauce.

Vegetables Dressed in Sweet Sesame Sauce

✨For the Bold

Wafu Pasta — Japanese-style spaghetti with bacon and greens in a soy-based sauce, topped with shredded nori

和風パスタ

Japanese-Style Pasta with Soy Sauce or Dashi

✨For the Bold

Dobin Mushi — a delicate Japanese soup steamed in a clay teapot, fragrant with seasonal mushrooms.

Delicate Autumn Broth Steamed in a Clay Teapot

Steamed & Simmered

✨For the Bold

Shio Ramen — ramen in a light, clean salt-based broth, topped with chashu pork and toppings.

塩ラーメン

Delicate Clear Salt Broth Noodles

✨For the Bold

Ika no Shiokara — fermented squid preserved in salt and squid ink, served in a small white dish with shiso leaves

Salted, Fermented Squid Innards

✨For the Bold

Furofuki Daikon — daikon radish slow-simmered until tender, topped with a miso sauce.

ふろふき大根

Furofuki Daikon

Meltingly Tender Simmered Daikon

Steamed & Simmered

Buri Daikon — yellowtail and daikon radish braised in a sweet soy sauce.

Yellowtail and Daikon Simmered in Sweet Soy Broth

Steamed & Simmered

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Grated daikon radish on a small black dish, with a whole daikon radish in the background

大根おろし

Grated Daikon Radish

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Tempura — an assortment of shrimp and vegetables, each lightly battered and fried until crispy.

Light and Crispy Japanese Battered Seafood & Vegetables

Tempura Udon — udon noodles in a clear dashi broth topped with crispy shrimp tempura, nori, and green onion

天ぷらうどん（そば）

Tempura Udon (or Soba)

Noodles with Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Tendon — freshly fried tempura over rice, drenched in a sweet soy-based sauce.

Crispy Tempura over Rice with Sweet Soy Sauce

✨For the Bold

Tenshinhan — soft fluffy egg over rice, topped with a glistening sweet-and-sour sauce.

Fluffy Egg Omelette over Rice with Sweet Sauce

Futomaki — a thick sushi roll filled with tamagoyaki, crab stick, and vegetables, wrapped in nori and sushi rice

Thick Rolled Sushi with Multiple Fillings

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Okonomiyaki — a savory Japanese pancake topped with sauce and mayo.

お好み焼き

Savory Japanese Pancake with Meat and Vegetables

✨For the Bold

Yosenabe — a hot pot with seafood, meat, and a generous variety of vegetables.

Everything-in-the-Pot Japanese Hot Pot

Chirashi Sushi — a festive bowl of sushi rice topped with colorful assorted sashimi, ikura, lotus root, and shredded egg

ちらし寿司

Scattered Sushi Rice Topped with Assorted Fish

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Regional Nabe — a regional Japanese hot pot showcasing local ingredients.

Japan's Regional Hot Pot Specialties by Locale

Temaki Sushi — hand-rolled sushi cones filled with salmon, tuna, shrimp, ikura, and vegetables, served with toppings on the side

手巻き寿司

Hand-Rolled Sushi Cones

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Agedashi Tofu — lightly battered and fried tofu served in a delicate dashi broth.

揚げ出し豆腐

Crispy Fried Tofu in Savory Dashi Broth

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Nigiri Sushi — an assortment of fresh nigiri including tuna, fatty tuna, uni, ikura, eel, crab, and shrimp, served on a lacquer tray

Hand-Pressed Sushi with Fresh Fish

Harumaki — crispy Japanese spring rolls with a golden fried skin, served in a traditional dish

Crispy Fried Spring Rolls

✨For the Bold

Itawasa — sliced kamaboko fish cake served simply with wasabi and soy sauce.

Chilled Kamaboko Fish Cake with Wasabi and Soy Sauce

Edamame — salted steamed young soybeans served in their pods.

Salted Steamed Young Soybeans

✨For the Bold

Umezuisho — shark cartilage tossed in pickled plum, a crunchy and tangy izakaya snack.

Shark Cartilage with Plum and Vinegar Dressing

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Mizutaki — chicken and vegetables simmered in a milky chicken broth, eaten with ponzu — a Fukuoka specialty.

Pure Chicken Hot Pot with Ponzu Dipping Sauce

✨For the Bold

Kenchinjiru — a hearty soup of root vegetables and tofu simmered in dashi.

けんちん汁

Buddhist-Style Root Vegetable and Tofu Soup

✨For the Bold

Ara-jiru — a rich miso soup made from fish heads and bones, full of deep umami.

Rich Miso Soup Made from Fish Bones and Head

✨For the Bold

Abura Soba — soupless ramen noodles tossed in a savory soy-based sauce, topped with chashu pork, bean sprouts, and green onion

Ramen Noodles Tossed in Rich Sauce, No Soup

Kaisen Don — fresh sashimi arranged like a jewel box over a bowl of rice.

Fresh Sashimi Rice Bowl

✨For the Bold

Tsukemono — an assortment of Japanese pickled vegetables.

Japanese Pickled Vegetables

✨For the Bold

Nira Reba Itame — stir-fried pork liver and garlic chives, a classic stamina dish.

ニラレバ炒め

Nira Reba Itame

Stir-Fried Liver and Garlic Chives

✨For the Bold

Monjayaki — Tokyo's savory runny batter sizzling on a hot iron griddle.

もんじゃ焼き

Tokyo's Runny Savory Pancake Cooked at the Table

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Sukiyaki — thinly sliced beef and vegetables simmered in a sweet soy broth, dipped in raw egg.

Sweet Soy Hot Pot with Beef and Vegetables

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Takoyaki — round balls of batter with octopus and vegetables, served hot — Osaka's iconic street food.

Crispy Octopus Balls from Osaka

Yakisoba — stir-fried noodles with pork and vegetables, seasoned with Japanese sauce.

Stir-Fried Noodles with Meat and Vegetables

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Yakiniku — beef cuts being grilled over charcoal flames at a Japanese barbecue restaurant

Japanese Grilled Beef, Table-Side

Yakizakana — fresh fish simply salt-grilled, a staple of Japanese home cooking.

Simple Japanese Grilled Whole Fish

Yakitori — skewered chicken grilled over charcoal, a staple of izakayas across Japan.

Grilled Chicken Skewers with Tare or Salt

Teriyaki Chicken — chicken thigh glazed and grilled in a sweet soy teriyaki sauce.

照り焼きチキン

Teriyaki Chicken

Glossy Soy-Glazed Grilled Chicken

✨For the Bold

Nibitashi — vegetables soaked in dashi broth until the flavor fully absorbs.

Vegetables Soaked in Savory Dashi Broth

Steamed & Simmered

Kabocha no Nimono — Japanese pumpkin simmered until soft in a sweet-savory dashi broth.

かぼちゃの煮物

Kabocha no Nimono

Sweet Soy-Simmered Japanese Pumpkin

Steamed & Simmered

✨For the Bold

Hijiki no Nimono — black hijiki seaweed simmered in a sweet-savory broth, a nutritious side dish.

ひじきの煮物

Hijiki no Nimono

Simmered Black Seaweed with Vegetables and Tofu

Steamed & Simmered

✨For the Bold

Kabu no Nimono — turnips gently simmered in dashi broth, a simple Japanese side dish.

かぶの煮物

Delicately Simmered Japanese Turnip in Light Dashi

Steamed & Simmered

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Nizakana — fish simmered in soy sauce and mirin until deeply flavorful.

煮魚（煮付け）

Nizakana (Simmered Fish)

Japanese Soy-Simmered Fish

Steamed & Simmered

✨For the Bold

Gyutan — thick-cut grilled beef tongue with a beautifully charred surface and juicy pink interior, Sendai's most famous specialty

Grilled Beef Tongue with Salt

Gyudon — a rice bowl topped with beef and onion simmered in a sweet soy broth.

Sweet Soy Beef and Onion Rice Bowl

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Tamagoyaki — a softly rolled Japanese omelette, lightly sweetened with dashi.

Sweet Japanese Rolled Omelette

✨For the Bold

Shira-ae — vegetables dressed in a smooth, creamy tofu sauce.

Vegetables Dressed in Creamy Tofu Sesame Sauce

✨For the Bold

Shirako — a creamy winter delicacy of fish milt, served with ponzu sauce.

Creamy Fish Milt, a Delicacy for the Adventurous

✨For the Bold

Chikuwa Isobe-age — fish cake fried in a seaweed batter until golden and crispy.

ちくわの磯辺揚げ

Chikuwa Isobe-age

Deep-Fried Fish Cake with Seaweed Batter

❤️ Kaa-chan's Pick

Takenoko no Nimono — spring bamboo shoots gently simmered in dashi broth.

Takenoko no Nimono

Spring Bamboo Shoots Simmered in Dashi Broth

Steamed & Simmered

Chikuzen-ni — chicken and root vegetables simmered in a sweet-savory sauce, a classic Japanese home dish.

Braised Chicken with Root Vegetables

Steamed & Simmered

✨For the Bold

Natto — fermented soybeans being lifted with chopsticks, showing the characteristic sticky strings over a bowl of white rice

Fermented Soybeans

Nikujaga — beef and potatoes simmered in a sweet-savory broth, one of Japan's best-loved home dishes.

Japanese Beef & Potato Stew

Steamed & Simmered

Niku Yasai Itame — pork and seasonal vegetables stir-fried together, a Japanese home-cooking staple.

肉野菜炒め

Niku Yasai Itame

Hearty Stir-Fried Meat and Vegetables

✨For the Bold

Ankimo — steamed monkfish liver, a rich winter delicacy served with ponzu sauce.

Steamed Monkfish Liver, the Foie Gras of the Sea

✨For the Bold

Nasu no Miso Itame — eggplant stir-fried with miso, a popular Japanese home-cooked side dish.

茄子のみそ炒め

Nasu no Miso Itame

Stir-Fried Eggplant in Sweet Miso Sauce

✨For the Bold

Nasu no Nibitashi — Japanese eggplant simmered in dashi broth, served as a side dish.

茄子の煮びたし

Nasu no Nibitashi

Chilled Eggplant Soaked in Savory Dashi

Steamed & Simmered