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    Home » Japan

    Japanese Dinner Foods

    Published on Apr 24, 2023 Modified: Apr 23, 2023 by Alexandria Drzazgowski.

    If you are hoping to bring a little bit of Japan into your home, there is no better way than by experimenting with traditional Japanese dinner foods. Here are a few of the most popular dinner dishes enjoyed in Japan.

    Chicken katsu on a plate, thinly sliced with white rice, tomatoes and cabbage.

    When most Americans think about Japanese food, their mind automatically goes to ramen or sushi. While these dishes have become popular worldwide, there are many other dishes that Japanese people enjoy in their homes on a regular basis. 

    Most Japanese meals are served with sushi rice, soup, protein and vegetables. Each side is served in its own dish–which is helpful for anyone who believes food should not touch! 

    Traditional Japanese cuisine is known for being savory and salty, and often dishes are served with pickled vegetables. The region’s cuisine has grown and changed over the centuries. It has also been influenced by other Asian and Western countries over the years. 

    Food in Japan cannot be listed in just one article, but if you want a list of some of the most popular dishes, this is a great place to start! Here are some of the most popular foods in Japanese homes! Let me know below what other recipes you’d like to see on this list! 

    Jump to:
    • Tonkatsu
    • Onigiri
    • Miso Soup
    • Japanese Curry Rice
    • Nikujaga
    • Sukiyaki 
    • Oyakodon
    • Gyoza
    • Ramen
    • Yakisoba
    • Other meals + what to serve

    Tonkatsu

    Tonkatsu sliced and served with tomato slices and cabbage on a plate.
    Plate of Tonkatsu with a side of cabbage and sliced tomatoes.

    Tonkatsu is one of those meals that was inspired by Western cuisine but it has quickly become a favorite all over Japan. It is a breaded and deep-fried cutlet of pork, similar to schnitzel but with an Asian twist. 

    The panko bread crumbs on the outside provide an extra crispy texture and the dish is often smothered in a savory katsu sauce that pairs perfectly with white rice. Katsu can also be made with other types of meat, including chicken. Here is my favorite Air Fryer Chicken Katsu recipe!

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    Onigiri

    Onigiri served with pickled carrots and cucumbers.
    Onigiri with pickled carrots and cucumbers.

    Onigiri is a Japanese rice ball, stuffed with protein or vegetables and wrapped in seaweed. It can come in many different shapes but the most common is a triangle.

    There are many different ways to enjoy onigiri. It may be stuffed with salmon, tuna, crab or even teriyaki chicken. The seaweed or sesame seeds on the outside makes it easy to pick up and eat with your hands.

    Onigiri may be served for dinner but most often it is enjoyed on the go. Families may pack onigiri in their lunch or find it for sale at local convenience stores.

    Miso Soup

    Bowl of miso soup.
    Miso soup and green onion and fried tofu and wakame.

    Miso soup is served with just about every Japanese meal – breakfast, lunch, and dinner. 

    It’s a very traditional soup made from broth and miso paste. The broth itself has a very mild flavor but it is the green onions, tofu, seaweed, and other vegetables added to the soup that really give it substance. 

    Miso soup has been served for generations and is believed to have many health benefits, including helping with digestion. It is served in a small dish and often sipped right from the dish at the start of the meal.

    Japanese Curry Rice

    Japanese curry soup served in a bowl with white rice served next to it and a pair of chopsticks resting on the edge.
    Japanese curry in a bowl with white rice and chopsticks resting on the edge of the bowl.

    Japanese curry is very different from Indian or Thai curries and is very simple to make, thanks to pre-made curry paste.

    It looks like a very thick stew, served next to rice. It can be made with chicken or beef and is also filled with potatoes and carrots. The potato starch and curry paste combine to make the sauce thick like gravy.

    Japanese curry is very mild in its spice level, compared to many other curries. This, of course, can be adjusted depending on the chef preparing the dish. The Japanese will sometimes add katsu or katsudon into their curry to make the national dish of the country, Chicken Katsu Curry. 

    Nikujaga

    Pair of chopsticks resting on the edge of a bowl filled with Nikujaga.
    Nikujaga and chopsticks resting on the edge of the bowl.

    Nikujaga is another meat and potato dish that is popular in Japan. but unlike curry, the sauce in nikujaga is thin and light.

    The meat, which is typically beef or pork, is sliced very thin and stewed with potatoes, shirataki noodles, and other vegetables in a broth made from soy sauce, mirin (rice wine), sake, and sugar. 

    This one-pot meal is Japanese comfort food and is often served in private homes.

    Sukiyaki 

    Sukiyaki served in a bowl with chopsticks holding up a pair of thinly sliced beef from the bowl.
    Sukiyaki in a bowl with chopsticks holding up thinly sliced beef.

    Sukiyaki, also known as Japanese hot pot, is a very delicious meal that can be enjoyed in its most simple form at home or shared among a large group at Japanese restaurants. 

    Thinly sliced meat, noodles, and vegetables are simmered together in a shallow dish in a broth of soy sauce, sugar, mirin, and sake. Often this is done in a pot right at the table but it can also be done on the stove and brought to the table.

    Diners sit around the pot and remove vegetables, noodles, or meat when they are cooked to their liking. The longer the pot simmers, the more the broth begins to thicken and the food inside becomes caramelized and tender. This is a meal that encourages people to come together and take time to enjoy their food slowly.

    Sukiyaki typically includes beef, which can be dipped in a raw egg yolk before it is eaten, as well as cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, tofu, snow peas, and noodles. When served at home, the contents in the pot may be simple but the options are endless.

    Oyakodon

    Spoonful of Oyakodon being scooped up from a bowl.

    Oyakodon is a chicken and egg dish that is simple to make but full of flavor. Oyako means “parent and child”–referring to the chicken and the egg, while don is the Japanese word for bowl. The dish is literally a chicken and egg rice bowl.

    Bite-sized pieces of chicken are cooked with onions and green onion and then simmered in a soy-sauce broth. The finishing touch is adding beaten eggs to the top of the broth, covering the pot, and letting it simmer for a few minutes until the eggs are mostly cooked but still soft.

    This meal can be enjoyed with just chicken and onion or dressed up with some bean sprouts or tofu. It is served over rice.

    Gyoza

    Gyoza dumplings served on a rectangular plate garnished with sliced green onions.
    Gyoza or dumplings snack with soy sauce, selective focus, copy space.

    Gyoza are Japanese dumplings filled with ground meat and vegetables.

    These small pockets of deliciousness are fried and then steamed, giving them a crispy exterior but tender and soft interior. 

    Gyoza are small enough to be served as an appetizer or side, or enjoyed as the main course. They are often made for special occasions when there are many willing hands nearby to help stuff and seal the dough for cooking.

    They are usually served with a dipping sauce of soy sauce, rice vinegar and a little bit of chili oil. 

    Ramen

    Ramen in a bowl a boiled egg sliced in half, sliced green onions garnished on top and a pair of chopsticks holding up ramen noodles from the broth.
    Ramen, ramen, Chinese noodles, steam, hot, soy sauce, up, sizzle, ramen, close-up, freshly made, warm

    Ramen is a Japanese noodle soup that has taken the world by storm. That’s probably because it can be as simple as a 25-cent Japanese dinner food you can purchase from grocery stores or a gourmet meal served at the fanciest of sushi restaurants.

    The base of ramen is a warm umami broth and chewy noodles. You can add whatever vegetables you like and will often find ramen topped with a thin slice of pork belly, green onions, soft-boiled eggs, and chili paste. 

    In Japan ramen is served in a large bowl with a wide and deep spoon that helps to scoop up all of the rich broth. 

    Yakisoba

    Yakisoba being picked up with a pair of chopticks from a plate with vegetables mixed in.
    Yakisoba noodles. Yakisoba dish with meat, chicken and vegetables.

    Japan is famous for its noodles. From ramen to udon noodles, there are so many to enjoy! Soba noodles are chewy noodles made from buckwheat flour. Yakisoba is stir-fried soba noodles with meat and vegetables.

    This dish can be made using just about any meat or vegetables you desire. It is all cooked together with a sauce made of Worcestershire, soy sauce, oyster sauce, ketchup, and sugar. 

    Yakisoba is a popular dish to find served at street festivals and may come in many different varieties.

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