JET Tales: stories from rural Japan
This website is a record of my experiences in the JET Programme as an AET (Assistant English
Teacher) in two Japanese public high schools.
Lagniappe: food vocab
As one of my favorite poets once said, "Food: I love food. I eat it every day." (Li-Young Lee)
When you come to Japan, it isn't absolutely necessary for you to be able to use chopsticks;
cheerfully consume tea, raw fish, rice, and umeboshi (pickled plums) if offered any; or be
generally willing to try anything at least once. Having said that, however... it helps if you
can use chopsticks; like rice and tea; won't gag or faint if your host
offers you raw fish or pickled anything (and everything); will try anything at least
once.
For the average Westerner's eyes, tongue, table manners, and tummy, Japan can be a
wild and crazy place. You'll quickly get used to: octopus tentacles in the meat section of
the grocery store; pickled anything; little piles of shredded cabbage called "salad";
sushi served so raw that it's still wiggling its appendages at you from your dinner plate;
slurped soup or noodles; and sweet red bean-paste in the most unexpected places. And
that great mystery of Japanese cuisine, natto. But if you just love good food
and have a certain sense of adventure, Japan is an absolutely fabulous place to be.
Any good travel guide will have a list of places to eat and drink, or at least a list translating all of
your favorite, familiar food into Japanese, so I will have none of that here. This is just a rough
guide to things you may encounter in the sometimes sublime, sometimes very, very strange
world of dining in Japan.
- bento/o-bento
- boxed lunch set sold at most train stations, convenience stores, etc. They are a popular
choice for travelers. Prices range from the usually cheap (600 yen) to the sometimes
expensive (1200+ yen) according to the contents. Sashimi (raw fish) or unagi (baked eel),
for example, are usually much more expensive than the average rice, pickles, veggies, fish,
or meat that make up a typical obento. These sets may contain area specialties - especially
when sold at large train stations.
- biru
- beer is quite popular in Japan, and it can even be bought from vending machines. You can
even get mini-size cans which are just big enough to fit into the palm of your hand. They're
quite cute. Asahi and Kirin are two of the major beer labels.
- coffee shops - national & international chains
- Starbucks fanatics, do not despair, for the franchise is thriving in Japan. They even had the balls to put a Starbucks in Gion (the traditional, geisha district of Kyoto). I was surprised to find the Café du Monde franchise (out of New Orleans) all over the Kansai region -
the ones in Kyoto Station, by the way, as well as near the Aquarium in Osaka, sell beignets. A common national chain goes by the charming name of Mister Donut.
- convenience stores
- 7-11, Lawson's, Family Mart
- daikon
- a giant, Chinese radish that is ubiquitous in Japanese cooking. This veggie comes boiled,
baked, fried, shredded, pickled, grated, etc, etc.
- daizu (soybean)
- soybean products are a staple of the Japanese diet: miso, tofu, natto, shoyu
- donburi
- rice dishes - an exception to the purity of plain, white rice found elsewhere in Japanese
cuisine - this is typically a large-ish bowl of rice with some kind of topping (veggies, egg,
beef, pork, chicken). More filling than it appears to be.
- fast food chains
- McDonalds, KFC, Mr. Donut, Dominos Pizza
- fruit and cheese
- are absurdly expensive. Shop around and buy seasonal produce: spring (strawberries), summer (plums, loquats), autumn (chestnuts, persimmon, pears, apples, grapes), winter
(mandarin oranges, strawberries).
- gohan
- rice in Japan is of a glutinous (i.e. sticky) variety which makes it chopstick-friendly.
Given that many Japanese people eat rice with every meal, it may be surprising to foreigners
how expensive it is to buy rice at the grocery store. At restaurants or at Japanese households,
rice is usually eaten plain - without soy sauce on it or anything else. Go crazy with
your toppings at home, but be aware that elsewhere that might get you the odd look of, "What
in the world is that foreigner putting on her/his rice?!"
Also, rice cookers are a good investment, especially if your kitchen has only one burner. Rice
cookers are sold at most houseware stores and usually cost 3 times the price of those in the
U.S. (upward of 4,000 yen). However, these things are versatile. I've kept everything from
steamed broccoli to spaghetti sauce in my rice cooker. A friend frequently uses hers to
make cassaroles.
- gyoza
- fried dumplings came from China, but they can be found all over Japan in restaurants
or at local convenience stores. Usually served with spicy, yellow mustard and a thin, brown
dipping sauce.
- hojicha
- roasted tea
- kara-age
- fried chicken pieces. These are very popular and quite tasty.
- katsuo bushi (bonito flakes)
- these shavings from dried bonito are used as a topping on many dishes (soup, okonomiyaki,
etc.). They may seem strange, at first, because they move around in the warm-air currents
generated by your meal. Do not mistake them for something that isn't quite dead yet.
- kissaten
- Japanese coffee (kohii) shops and teahouses usually serve many (non-alchoholic)
beverages as well and have a light food menu. Kissaten can seem expensive, and they are not
so common in rural areas.
- kohii
- coffee fiends should rest assured that they will be in good company in Japan.
- kocha/oolong cha
- brown, English-style tea
- miso
- miso is a very basic, very traditional part of the Japanese diet. It is basically a
paste made from fermented soybeans. Mixed with hot water, it makes miso shiru, or miso
soup, which is frequently eaten from breakfast, along with a bowl of white rice. It is slightly
salty in flavor and may be disconcerting to watch, as the particulate matter in the soup swirls
around inside the bowl, but the flavor is not too dissimilar from that of ramen.
- nabemono
- also just called nabe, this is the general name for winter stews. Nabe is quite
popular and is usually made with a group of friends or family - either at home or at a good
nabe restaurant. The stew is prepared in a large, communal pot, and everyone adds their
own ingredients from a tray of prepared food.
- natto
- my completely subjective opinion is that natto is one of the most repulsive things I have
ever eaten. Another soybean product, many Japanese who are struggling to describe for
you what, exactly, it is say, "rotten soybeans." It is sticky and smelly, but it is also
a basic breakfast food for many Japanese - especially those living in the Kanto region of
Honshu. Most people will not be offended if you crumple and gag before the natto-monster. They
generally understand that most foreigners cannot eat natto.
- noodles
- basically fall into three categories: ramen, soba, or udon. See
below for descriptions.
- okonomiyaki
- some people struggle to describe this as a hybrid of pizza, pancake, and omelette. I say,
Just eat it! Okonomiyaki is usually started off with a kind of egg batter cooked (at your table)
with a choice of veggies, seafood, or meat. It always includes shredded cabbage, egg, katsuo
bushi (bonito flakes), and a musty-sweet sauce. Okonomiyaki is supertasty, and some
regions of Japan - Hiroshima, for example - have their own spin on this traditional dish.
- ramen
- if you were ever a university student, you are probably familiar with the instant
variety. Ramen is another Chinese import which the Japanese have enthusiastically made
their own. These are usually large bowls of noodles - in a meat broth (vegetarians
can ask for miso-ramen) - that are served either plain or include veggies, meat, etc.
- renkon
- lotus root is sometimes served as a small side dish, or included in soups. This crunchy
veggie, when sliced, resembles the spoked wheel of a bicycle.
- sashimi
- raw fish, no rice. Be aware that some restaurants also offer raw meats such as chicken
(niwa tori), beef (gyu niku), or pork (buta niku). If in doubt, just ask.
What is this/that? ... Kore/Sore wa nan desu ka?
- sembei
- crunchy, soy sauce-flavored rice crackers, sometimes with dried nori (laver -
seaweed)
- shoyu
- soy sauce
- soba
- thin, brownish noodles made of buckwheat. Served hot, cold (zaru soba - along
with a cup of broth to dip the noodles into), or fried (yaki-soba - usually with
veggies and/or meat).
- sushi
- fish (usually raw, sometimes grilled) served on a little mound of vinegared rice.
Wasabi (spicy green paste made from Japanese horseradish), soy sauce, and gari (pickled
ginger) are usually eaten on the side.
Sushi in Japan can be very expensive, but a good option is to find a kaiten
zushi restaurant, which is usually cheaper and more fun. Sushi is served by the
plate, and each plate is usually color-coded as to price (100-300 yen per plate). These
plates are set on conveyor belts which run throughout the restaurant, and customers
just pull the kind of sushi which they want to eat. At the end of the meal, you are
charged according to the number of plates you've eaten (and stacked neatly beside you).
Ask the locals for a good one.
nigiri-zushi, with fish (etc) simply served on a little mound of rice, is the
most common kind of sushi in Japan
maki-zushi, same as above but wrapped in nori (seaweed), this is most foreigners'
idea of sushi
- tamagoyaki
- sweet scrambled eggs, usually served in rolled slices as a small side dish
- tempura
- Veggies, seafood, or meat fried in a fluffy batter - not very oily, actually.
Usually served with a dipping sauce and some grated daikon
- tsukemono
- any kind of pickled vegetable, in a variety of shapes and colors. For example,
umeboshi are very salty, pickled plums which are alleged to keep people who eat
them regularly in good health.
- udon
- thick, white noodles made of wheat. These are usually served hot, such as in a
soup, but cold udon are popular during the hot summer months
- unagi
- grilled eel, lightly flavored with a brownish mystery sauce, this is pricy
but very popular. You can sample this as nigiri-zushi or try a meal of it - but if you
choose the latter, beware of bones.
- yakimeshi
- fried rice in Japan may seem absurdly expensive to those foreigners who have been
accustomed to ordering those cheap, little takeout boxes back home. However, the
Japanese regard this Chinese import as gourmet food, and restaurants vie for their
own, unique spin on preparing...fried rice.
- yakiniku
- another communal eating/cooking adventure, this one involves trays of prepared
meat (niku) that each person grills (at the table) and then eats. Veggies are also
grilled.
- yakitori
- grilled chicken on skewers, this may be chicken pieces, meat balls, livers,
and sometimes even fried cartilage.
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