Japan has a wide variety of dishes. Below are some of the most popular and common Japanese dishes.
Okonomiyaki is a mix between pizza and pancake. Various ingredients such as seafood, vegetables and meat can be mixed with the dough and placed on the okonomiyaki as topping.
A bowl of rice is often served as a side dish for lunch and dinner. It is also part of the traditional Japanese breakfast, eaten plain, mixed with a raw egg and soya sauce or with natto or other toppings.
Sushi can be defined as a dish which contains sushi rice, a cooked rice that is prepared with sushi vinegar. It is usually filled with raw fish (sashimi) and vegetables. There are various kinds of sushi dishes.
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Kare Raisu (Curry Rice) is cooked rice with a curry sauce. It can be served with additional toppings such as tonkatsu. Curry is not a native Japanese spice, but has been used in Japan for over a century. Kare Raisu is a very popular dish, and many inexpensive Kare Raisu restaurants can be found especially in and around train stations.
Tempura is seafood, vegetables, and other pieces of food coated with tempura batter and deep fried. Tempura was introduced to Japan by the Portuguese in the 16th century, but has internationally become one of Japan's most famous dishes.
Fried rice, or chahan, has been originally introduced from China. A variety of additional ingredients such as peas, egg, negi and small pieces of carrot and pork are mixed to the rice when stir fried. It is a suitable dish for using left over rice.
Sashimi is raw seafood. A large number of fish can be enjoyed raw if they are fresh and prepared correctly. Most types of sashimi are enjoyed with soya sauce and wasabi.
Soba noodles are native Japanese noodles made of buckwheat and wheat flour. Soba are about as thick as spaghetti. They can be served cold or hot and with various toppings.
Udon noodles are native Japanese noodles made of wheat flour. Udon are thicker than soba and can also be served either hot or cold and with various toppings.
Ramen are Chinese style noodles prepared in a soup with various toppings. Ramen is one of the many popular dishes that were originally introduced from China but have become completely 'Japanised' over time.
Yakitori is made from several bite-sized pieces of chicken meat. It is threaded onto a bamboo skewer and barbecued, usually over charcoal. Yakitori is a very popular dish in Japan. Many working people grab a yakitori and a beer from yakitori stalls on the way home from work.
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Miso soup is often served as a side dish for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is made by dissolving miso paste in hot water and adding additional ingredients such as wakame seaweed and small pieces of tofu.
