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Oyakodon

Oyako donburi (親子丼), which literally means “parent child bowl” is a popular chicken and egg rice bowl in Japan. It’s a simple one bowl meal with flavorful chunks of chicken wrapped in a custardy blanket of eggs, all seasoned with a mild dashi broth that tickles down onto the steamy bed of rice below. At [...]

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Tonjiru

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While most of the world knows Japan for only one soup, there’s more to the Japanese soup repertoire than miso soup. Tonjiru (豚汁), which is also sometimes called Butajiru, literally means “pork soup” and is a mainstay at the dinner table during the frigid months of winter. To make the preparation fast, the pork is [...]

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Kenchinjiru

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When people think about Japanese soups, miso soup is about the only one that comes to mind for most. But with harsh winters and rampant poverty only a few generations ago, there’s a rich culinary history of soups and stews in Japan. For vegans that are dismayed to find out that many Japanese soups contain [...]

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Easy Chicken Teriyaki (Pan-fried)

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If you’ve been following this blog for long, you probably remember that I’ve posted about chicken teriyaki before. It was a grilled preparation that involved brining, grilling and basting the chicken, and while delicious, it’s a fair amount of work. While teriyaki may have originally been a grilled dish, these days in Japan, the chicken [...]

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Caterpillar Roll

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I often hear from people that are surprised by the lack of rolls at sushi restaurants in Japan. For those that only eat rolls, it can be a problem, but for those that are a little more adventurous it’s a chance to try authentic nigiri sushi that you’d have a hard time finding in the [...]

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Chicken Chashu

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Chashu is the Japanese version of Chinese Char Siu. Unlike its grilled Chinese counterpart, the Japanese version is typically made by rolling pork belly into a log and braising it until tender. It’s then unbound and sliced before being used to garnish bowls of ramen. When served on hot rice, or over a bowl of [...]

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Tebasaki (Japanese Fried Chicken)

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Tebasaki(手羽先) literally translates to “wing tips” and refers to the cut of chicken as well as to a dish popular in izakayas around the city of Nagoya. Unlike the other Japanese fried chicken, Tebasaki is always made with bone-in chicken wings, has little to no breading, and is seasoned after it’s fried. Despite the absence [...]

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Beef Teriyaki

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Unlike its sibling chicken teriyaki, you won’t see beef teriyaki much in Japan. Like the California Roll, it was likely cooked up by a clever chef in the US trying to lure in more American patrons. In Japan, teriyaki sauce has a longstanding monogamous relationship with chicken (except perhaps the occasional fling with yellowtail). If [...]

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