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7 Rarely Known Japanese Food Recommendations That You Should Try

Hello FlokqMarch 8, 2022

There are so many typical Japanese food recommendations that you can try while on vacation to Japan. Who doesn’t want to go on vacation to Japan? The reason is, the country dubbed the Land of Sakura has many interesting things. Starting from tourist attractions, Japanese culture itself, to various kinds of delicious culinary that you can try.

Japanese specialties such as sushi, ramen, yakiniku, udon, and so on, you may often find it familiar and easy to find in Japanese restaurants in Indonesia. However, you also need to know that Japanese cuisine is very diverse. Here are 7 typical Japanese food recommendations that are rarely known by many people.

Read also: 10 Recommendations for Typical Indonesian Food that You Must Try

1. Chankonabe

The first Japanese food recommendations that are rarely known is chankonabe. Highly nutritious beef and vegetables braised in a large pot, chankonabe is well known as a dish that sumo wrestlers use to shape their bodies. If you want to try this authentic chankonabe dish, it is recommended that you visit a restaurant run by a former sumo wrestler.

2. Fugu

In Japanese, fugu is a Pufferfish. If not cooked by a professional chef, this food can be very dangerous because it contains poison or tetrodotoxin. Chefs who are used to cooking fugu will be very skilled at removing the poison so it doesn’t get contaminated with the delicious meat parts.

One of the areas in Japan that are famous as a supplier of this fugu fish is Shimonoseki. To serve fugu on restaurant menus, chefs must comply with government regulations and guidelines on how to cook and prepare them. There is training for 2 to 3 years for chefs who want to sell fugu. Fugu is usually served with sashimi or fried, grilled, and even served in salads. This fugu dish is quite expensive because the price offered is around 1.5 million per head.

3. Motsunabe

Motsunabe is a famous dish from the Fukuoka region is beef and pork offal cooked in a pot with various vegetables such as cabbage and Chinese scallions, known as nira in Japanese. You can add more ingredients when cooking it. After finishing the main course, it is common to add Chinese-style noodles, chanpon noodles to the soup, or rice to make rice porridge from the soup.

4. Yudofu

Yudofu is a dish in the form of soft tofu soup which is cooked and served in a hot pot or hot pot with fresh broth and mixed with various kinds of vegetables. Yudofu is usually served with ponzu sauce or yuzu kosho which is made from chili powder, salt, and orange zest. Yudofu is a Kyoto specialty and is perfect for winter. Yudofu can also be a choice of food for those of you who are looking for halal Japanese food because yudofu is filled with healthy vegetables.

5. Yosenabe

One of the other halal Japanese foods that you can try is yosenabe, which is a traditional Japanese soup usually served for winter. Yosenabe is a type of hot pot dish in Japan. The pot or pan is placed on a portable stove, when the broth begins to boil, ingredients such as tofu, meat, and vegetables will be added together.

The pot that is often used to cook yosenabe is a traditional Japanese pot made of ceramic called donabe. Yosenabe is better eaten in groups because it can cook alternately. Yosenabe is the right food to warm the body in cold air or weather.

6. Mizutaki

The next rarely known Japanese food recommendation is mizutaki. Mizutaki is food in the form of soup which is also cooked in a hot pot. Mizutaki is from the Fukuoka area in Japan. Mizutaki is classic winter food. It is said that there is a restaurant in Japan that serves mizutaki since 1928.

The thing that slightly distinguishes yudofu and yosenabe dishes is that mizutaki mixes chicken and mushrooms and adds konbu or seaweed sauce. Mizutaki is famous for its thick sauce that resembles milk. After getting tired of walking around buying Japanese souvenirs in winter, this mizutaki is perfect for you to enjoy with your family.

7. Nizakana

The last Japanese food recommendation is nizakana, which is fish stewed in soy sauce and super sauce that has a completely different taste from grilled fish. Typical fish used are mackerel (saba), halibut (karei), and red snapper (kinmedai). Burikaidon, braised fish with daikon is another popular dish. You can enjoy nizakana in a variety of restaurants, including Japanese bars (izakaya).

In addition to the types of food mentioned above, of course, there are many more Japanese food recommendations that you can explore further for you to try.