Food in Japan
I knew that my lack of language skills would be a problem, but I have decided that food will be an even bigger problem. I have wandered around a few supermarkets & regardless of language issues, I realise that I don’t even recognise what I see.
Everything seems to be packaged to within an inch of it’s life
A teeny courgette 
Burdock … not at all what I was used to seeing in HK
Biscuits … each in own packet & 4x3cm! 
A box of tea with each teabag in an envelope 
Butter in foil & then a cardboard box
Japanese supermarkets, depending on size, appear to be similar to those in UK in that they sell a wide of groceries, fresh & frozen and some non food items. But you can also buy food in convenience stores (so so many of them), vending machines, department stores, farmers markets etc. The supermarkets in ex-pat areas have a small range of western food but we are not planning to live in such an area.
It all looks so confusing that I booked a session with a life coach who offers a grocery store information session. And I learnt some amazing stuff!
All vegetables and fruit are sold singly unless they are already in a prepack bag. Super expensive fruit for gifting is available in the food halls of Department stores.
Milk is either full fat or not. No differentiation between semi & skimmed milk. And there is an ingenious way to tell the difference …. look carefully at the photo and the notch cut out of the top of the carton on the left indicates that it is full cream!
We looked at vegetables and fruit (my time in HK helped me identify many) and then meat. Because Japanese kitchens don’t have ovens, all meat is in small quantities thinly sliced …. so please do not visit me hoping for a Sunday roast! And of course there are counters and counters of fish.
OK, so fresh food is relatively straight forward, but the aisles and aisles of other goods are so bewildering. I decided to use the expertise of my guide to help me put together a selection of sauces & condiments that I would need if cooking Japanese food.
So far, I have made oden, a winter Hot Pot. Trying to ascertain how much Geoff liked it, I asked if he would like one each week. His response was once a fortnight so I’m guessing an OK but not a good!
I was pleased to find an English language cookery book …. and delighted to read ‘A step-by-step beginner’s guide’
Hopefully, when we are Covid-free and allowed to travel again, a few of you will venture this way. And that gives me some time to hone my new cuisine skills !
12 thoughts on “Food in Japan”
Missing you here, my dead friend
I’m alive & kicking …. and blundering around Tokyo
Really enjoyed reading this. I would be completely at a loss in a Japanese supermarket as I have virtually no knowledge at all of Japanese food even in the very limited context of what is available in restaurants in the UK. I, like you, would be trying to work it out from the pictures but without the advantage of your HK experience to help. I think the idea of a life coach supermarket trip is brilliant. It would never have occurred to me that such a thing existed. I wonder if you’ll need further sessions on other aspects of Japanese life?
My stepdaughter Ellie lived in Tokyo for a year when she was teaching English over there but we never really discussed how she coped with the practical aspects of life at the time. I suppose it was around 2000 and the internet was in it’s infancy so we only had occasional letters from her.
I know several of our children love Japanese food but it has never really featured in my life- probably because I was living in sleepy west Wales by the time I could afford trips to restaurants and I don’t think a Japanese restaurant would last very long in this area!!
I’m really looking forward to your further adventures both culinary and otherwise. Some pictures of the finished dishes and maybe the odd recipe for those that gain Geoff’s approval would also be fun.
Thanks for all your comments and for joining me on my Japanese travels. I promise to post photographs of my cooking endeavours – good and bad! The life coach told me a story about a woman who lived here for a number of years before she decided to find out about Japanese food ingredients. Her response to being asked how she had coped was that she always cooked pasta at home but ate Japanese food out.
What an education! Good for you Avril….you’ll soon be an expert expat in preparing local food!
I think it will take me quite some time…..! As with everything each tiny piece of information I learn makes me realise the vast amounts of stuff that I don’t know.
bravo for hiring someone to take you to the grocery store! what a clever idea.
Maybe you would enjoy taking japanese cooking lessons. Maybe we could take them together when I’m able to visit.
I remember language being a huge problem in Japan. Once went to an Italian restaurant in Tokyo and the menu was all Japanese. I could have navigated an Italian menu but was at a total loss with the Japanese and had to resort to pointing to other diners’ meals.
The first months in such a new and different place will be a wonderful challenge. I’m glad you’re sharing your findings with us all.
Cooking lessons are a great idea – on my own & with you when you visit. Grocery shopping is a challenge, but a fascinating one. Today I bought a tub of barley miso … watch out Geoff!
Fascinating! You’re such a trouper, Avril! Interesting to hear that there are no ovens. I use my oven all the time. So there’s no baking going on in domestic kitchens? No bread or biscuit making? Quite a culture shock. I’m quite sure you will master it all in no time at all.
I didn’t have an oven in Hong Kong either ….. but I love baking so I bought an oven/grill/steamer/microwave that sat on the work top. Unfortunately this is now in the UK so I’m trying to buy one second hand this time.
Dear Avril, I love your blog! The food is incredibly interesting, it’s not going to take you long to master it me thinks. Great idea to book a guide to start you off with your shopping. We did a food tour in Osaka once and were very glad we had a guide as we would have got incredibly lost. Looking forward to seeing photos of all your efforts and reading the rest of your blog. Have fun! xx
Maggie, I fear it will take me ages to be able to cook anything remotely like a recognisable Japanese dish!
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