Continuing with vol. 1 and vol. 2 of my Japan Trip 2013, this final post is all about food! We had this really fresh sashimi appetizer in Sapporo, Hokkaido. Guess how much it costs and continue reading for more food stories!
Food, Food, and More Food!
1) During our 6-week stay in Japan, we ate many kinds of noodle dishes both at home and outside at the restaurants. It was very hot and humid so my preference was light and cold noodles like my mom’s Hiyashi Chuka (Cold Ramen).
2) Zaru soba with Shrimp Tempura and Vegetable Tempura. Although my Soba Salad was really a popular post, it’s more of a fusion dish. Traditional soba noodle dishes are cold zaru soba or warm noodle soup in Japan.
3) Cold udon noodle soup with seared pork belly. It was really delicious and I will try making this at home!
4) When you are in Japan, I hope you try MOS Burger once. The unique thing about this burger is that the meat patty is topped with delicious meat sauce along with thick tomato slice, very finely chopped onion and mayonnaise. So yummy! I also love the fact that most fast food chains in Japan have the option of oolong tea for drinks (yep, to wash down all the oily food)!
5) We rarely eat donuts but when we are in Japan, we always make a stop or two at Mister Donut to check out their new and seasonal menus. This past summer they offered cool peach glaze on top of their signature pon-de-ring donuts. The peach jello jiggles when biting to it – very interesting texture but delicious!
6) Growing up in Japan, I remember I always looked forward to summer and a huge shaved ice with all kinds of toppings. I hadn’t been back in Japan during the summer for 16 years (I sort of avoided going back being afraid of high humidity) and so being able to eat the shave ice again was my wish-come-true moment.
1) Unaju (charcoal-grilled unagi/eel on top of rice in a lacquer box) was one of the dishes I wanted to eat while I was in Japan. It’s not easy to find very good unagi imported from Japan in the U.S. so I try to enjoy it at least once when I visit.
2) The quality of sushi is simply amazing in Japan. SF has many good sushi places but still, can’t compete with the many varieties of sushi available in Japan.
3) When you are in Osaka, you eat Okonomiyaki! However I like Modern Yaki (Hiroshima-style) which includes noodles.
4) On summer days, we don’t want to deep fry at home so we eat Tonkatsu at our favorite tokantsu restaurant.
5) Korokke Sandwich, one of my favorite sandwich!
Shopping for Food
1) While shopping at a supermarket in Japan, my daughter asked me “what’s this?” That’s right, she only knows frozen edamame in package and didn’t recognize fresh ones! When I was growing up in Japan, it was my duty to remove each edamame from the stalk. Oh I wish we get fresh edamame stalks here. Edamame tastes much better, and really delicious!
2) Three peaches for Y780 yen!? Yes…fruits are so expensive in Japan. Our little fruit monsters were used to enjoying large quantity of fruits in the U.S. so it was hard for them to get used to the lesser quantity served in Japan.
3) Vegetables, fruits, eggs, yogurt, tofu, bento, and some takeout menus… no, we were not in a supermarket. We were inside a 7-Eleven convenience store! Japanese convenience stores are like mini-supermarkets. And in most cities, you’ll see one every few blocks. Yep, that’s a real “convenience” store.
4) When you shop in Japan, don’t forget to stop by at the basement level(s) of department stores. It’s food heaven (high end grocery stores). Here are well-marbled Japanese wagyu steaks. They simply melt in your mouth!
5) Thinly sliced well-marbled wagyu beef for Shabu Shabu and Sukiyaki.
6) Bakeries are everywhere in Japan. This one is inside my nearest train station so we stopped by to pick up some baked goods for breakfast the next day.
7) Before riding Shikansen (Japanese bullet train) to Osaka, we picked up bento lunch for the train ride. There are so many kinds of bentos and I can literally spend 15 minutes checking each shop to pick my bento.
8) And I picked this Makunouchi Bento made by a Japanese kaiseki restaurant (about $10).
Food in Hokkaido
1) Sanpeijiru (三平汁) is salmon and vegetable soup in a salt and kombu broth and it’s a Hokkaido’s local specialty dish.
2) This soft cream we had in Shiroi Koibito Park was really delicious and it tasted just like Shiroi Koibito (the cookies I talked about in vol. 2).
3) I wanted to eat ramen before I leave Hokkaido. I thought Sapporo Ramen means miso base broth so I order that, but mom’s friend who lives in Sapporo said there is no particular flavor that is a feature of Sapporo. She said if I ask different persons, each would answer different flavor.
4) So have you guessed the price for this amazing sashimi appetizer? It’s only $15! I almost fell off the chair when I found that out. Hokkaido has amazing quality seafood for great price. I had plenty of seafood meals while I was in Hokkaido.
5) Jingisukan (ジンギスカン鍋料理) is Japanese grilled mutton dish prepared on a grill. Lamb is not commonly eaten meat by Japanese, but Jingisukan in Hokkaido is one of exception where lamb is served and enjoyed. It’s a very popular dish in Hokkaido.
Things I Brought Back to the U.S.
1) I finally bought chiffon cake pans (17cm and 20cm). I haven’t had a chance to try baking with them yet. You probably know what flavor I am planning to try first.
2) What are these black things? These are very good quality kombu (kelp) that my mom’s friend in Hokkaido gifted me. I’m going to make very delicious dashi (Japanese stock) soon!
3) These are all my props that I (I mean, my husband) brought back to the U.S. for me. There are more, but I could only fit this much in his luggage this time. Most of plates and bowls are from my grandparents’ house. My family kept them for me knowing that Just One Cookbook will keep using them.
Thank you for checking my Japan Trip 2013 posts (vol. 1, vol. 2, vol. 3)!
My husband just left for Japan last night. He should be in Kagoshima by now unless there is some delay by typhoon. Your post made me wish I was there with him. I sure miss kakigori and the variety of high quality food in Japan. What I truly miss is the gathering of family when my kids were young. I love seeing the photos of your kids enjoying their visit to your homeland. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Holly! Hope your husband is having a wonderful trip in Kagoshima. I haven’t been there although I visited different prefectures in Kyushu area. One day! Thank you for writing! 🙂
This post made me miss living (and eating!) in Japan! I had totally forgotten about MOS Burger and Mister Donuts! Your photos and journaling lulled me into a nostalgic (and hungry) trance. Thank you for sharing, as always, and can’t wait to see the new “props” used on JOC.
Hi Andria! I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the post. Hehe I can survive without eating MOS burger and Mister Donuts, but once I land there… I lost my control. 😀 Hope you get to visit Japan again. 🙂 Thank you for writing, Andria!
G’day Nami and how interesting your trip, true!
Loved seeing Unaju…have not tried it to date too!
What is one or two of your favorites from a Japanese bakery?
I am curious about all country’s and all cuisines…it is my food curiosity!
Cheers! Joanne
@mickeydownunder
I guess that you will bake matcha/green tea chiffon!!
Hi Liliana! You know me SO well! 😉
I loved visiting grocery stores in Japan. I’ll never forget seeing a clear plastic container with ONE strawberry in it. It was perfect and it cost the equivalent of Australian $2.50. I spent a lot of time in the shops and much of it I couldn’t understand and many of the ingredients were new. Thanks for another peek into “going home.”
I agree that the Mos burger is delicious. We use to eat at the Waikiki store before it closed. Thanks for reminding me. Maybe there will be expansion to thr Mainland.
I hope it will come to the U.S. (mainland) one day, but can be a tough competition with gourmet burger shops, especially Waikiki store didn’t survive… sad. Thanks so much for your feedback, Sandy! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your visit with us on your blog.
20 years ago I lived in Sapporo for a few years. It made me natsukashii to see places and food I loved.
I am so happy I found your blog. I wanted my kids to learn to love Japanese food too. Your recipes are so simple and always so oishii.
Thank you for your recipes and sharing your trip. Arigato!
Hi Penny! I’m really happy to hear you enjoy my blog, and thanks for following! Hope your children will like Japanese food too. 🙂
Nami-this volume is my favourite! I can’t believe the sashimi was $15. When I go travelling in Japan, I will email you for all the restaurant recommendations! Thank you!!
Vivi, I couldn’t believe either. With $15 here in SF, I can only buy one kind of sashimi or something. Hope I can be a good help then! 🙂
Wow, I cannot wait to see all the props with some of your lovely recipes. The pictures, the description everything was wonderful. Shaved ice with flavors sounds so good.
Everything and I mean EVERYTHING looked delicious.
I especially look forward to your chiffon cake … I’m guessing matcha flavour. 🙂
I really enjoyed reading this post, Nami! It’s great to get a little insight of life in Japan. And the 7 Eleven over there sounds awesome! I think our 7 Elevens here need to take some tips from them! I’d probably go there everyday if ours had bento boxes and take out!
Very beautiful pictures – the food looks divine – not sure I’d like all of it but it looks gorgeous!!
Thank you so much for your feedback Roberta! 🙂
Wow, I should’ve eaten before I read this post because I’m starving. The food in Japan just looks so beautiful, like they really took their time with the presentation, a lot of passion went into it for sure. Thanks also for sharing some tidbits on each picture too!
Thank you for treating us to such beautiful photos of the delicious food! The photos of the kakigori and bakery have my mouth watering. =) And I’m always impressed with how fresh food – meat, seafood, and produce – looks in Japan, even in mass quantities in the supermarkets.
Can’t wait to see those chiffon cake pans and props put to use for the blog!
Thank you Kimmi! I guess people there are more picky about the quality of food. And when other stores have good quality stuff, you just cannot sell “okay” food… your stores will be closed soon. It’s a great competition to keep up the good quality of food in general. I hope to share some new props soon! 🙂
Thanks for all the memories that you brought back for me showing us your pictures! I loved living in Tokyo and eating things like ika sumi spaghetti and MOS burger! Thank you for all that you do- your recipes are yummy and your pictures are natsukashii!
Hi Lily! Thank you for your kind comment. I’m glad to hear you enjoy my recipes/pictures! Oh Ika Sumi Pasta… so delicious!! Living in Tokyo is best when it comes to food. 😀