What's your favorite Japanese food?

[thomas]

Time for another poll!

I'm wondering what's your favorite Japanese food. I have listed a few popular dishes; I admit I love all of them. Some of them, such as sushi and sashimi, I can never grow tired of.

Is there anything you can't stand? Or - shame on me! - have I forgotten your most favorite food? Just holler.

The poll options are:


Sushi/sashimi: obvious
Sukiyaki: vegetables, tofu and beef cooked ina pot, dipped in a raw egg
Okonomiyaki: pancake with a variety of ingredients and toppings
Udon/zoba: Japanese noodles, endless local varieties
Tempura (tendon): seafood, vegetables and other things deep fried in Tempura batter
Ramen/somen: another variety of Japanese noodles (somen are usually eaten cold in summer)
Donburi: bowl of rice with different toppings
Gyoza: dumplings of Chinese origin
Shabu shabu: Japanese meat fondue
Yakitori: grilled chicken skewers

[Microage97]

トムアスさん、

どこで　なっとに　ですか。　

Where is Natto on the list?

[thomas]

Hehe, I know, I know, minorities have to be respected, but I didn't dare to add natto. Ask Moyashi...

Actually natto tastes very nice, but have you ever smelled it....?

[moyashi]

gero gero .... hehehe ... barf barf

Apparently if you can handle really smelly cheese then you can do the Natto thing. Natto is actually fermentated (rotten) beans. Some foreignors just love it while others liek me can't stand the reek.

hmmm ... Natto is really a side dish.

hehe another Kansai (Osaka) vs Kanto (Tokyo) charm point ;)

hey Thomas you forgot TONKATSU (deep fried pork cutlet) great stuff!!!

[Microage97]

なっと　is the stuff that nightmares are made of. I mean it! I had some in a convayer belt sushi shop and I felt sick for the rest of the day.

The problem is that a lot of dog food is made from soybeans. So I will let you guess where I am going with this one..

[thomas]

@ Dave

I don't trust these running sushi bars. You never know how long they keep their sushi running.



@Moyashi

I love French cheese. There's nothing that can compare to a week old Roquefort. My wife wouldn't even approach it, and the same applies to me and natto, lol.

[Microage97]

It wasn't like you would think. There was this old, old guy making the sushi and here was very busy when I was there. The convayer was chilled and this kept the sushi cold also.

[moyashi]

@natto/cheese .... don't worry eating Natto isn't a requirement to becoming Japanese ;) although, UNI (sea urchin), Tsukemono (salt pickled cuccumbers, cabbage) and umeboshi (pickled plums) might help.

Natto is already spoiled so how does it spoil more?

@running sushi -- Kaiten suchi
is pretty safe! and if you suspect it's been on the conveyer too long I always order straight from the Chief.

compared to regular sushi shops
kaiten sushi is normally safer, cheaper and fresher.
I stay away from sushi shops in the Summer ;) but will go to Kaiten sushi.
hehe ... bad economy = bad turn around on raw fish :P

[thomas]

Uni is a challenge, but it's really nice with a cup of rice and in small quantities. They say you'll find the best in Tohoku, but probably they say that everywhere.

[moyashi]

Hokkaido is famous for it's purple uni ... well the outside is purple with these quills / spikes that hurt when you put the uni in your trunks.

;)

I wonder if the Tahoku kind is the smooth white shell uni?

[Microage97]

I don't know about you guys but I love Tako!

[moyashi]

A: Taco ?? I love tacos!!
B: no ... I said Tako!
A: Yeah! me too! I love tacos and burritos!
B: No .. no no no ... Tako!
A: eh?
B: Tako is octopus in Japanese!
A: oh!



heheh .... tako also referrs to a guy that is all over girls!

[Microage97]

heheheh chikan!!!!

[tosh]

I thought something looked different. ...What happened to the pet rocks? Did they run off or something?

[larry_s]

Probably Moyashi walked them too much, especially Tomtom.

[moyashi]

hey hey hey ... no poking fun at TomTom ... he's still my favorite

I just felt bad about all my posts -- especially the long ones.
I'm really happy to be able to share what I know, but I don't want to be a ball hog too

sorry ...

[chinkasu]

does gyoza really count as Japanese food?

[Dluxon]

This thread is killing me!!!! It is making me hungry just reading through all of the posts!!!!

Dana

[ghettocities]

While I was in Japan I found my favorite food to be either Tanuki Udon or Tenpura Udon. Udon shops are easy to find in Japan, though I found the best Udon that I had was at a University in west tokyo while i spent the day there with one of my friends. My other favorite place to eat Udon was in the JR Train Station, I would wake up and on my way to a skateboarding spot i'd stay at the station for five minutes and down a big bowl of tenpura udon which was around 400yen (2.50-3.00USD) , they supply free water also.

Some important information you should know about Udon shops.

- Memorize how to READ your favorite Japanese foods, in most cases , at the entrance or before you get served you'll see an odd machine, most likely without photos (at ramen shop and udon shops), the machine will have pieces of writing and prices next to it. You'll insert a bill / coins and make your choice, then approach the counter / seating and hand your ticket to whom ever approaches you.

Some important Japanese to remember:

"Irrasshaimase" (usually said in a prolonged tone.)
What could I get for you? How may I help you? (Greeting)

(spoken so quickly i probably heard it 100 times before i even knew what it meant, nobody in japan replies to the comment but a smile is nice.)

Some important Japanese to use at Mcdonalds:

(I remember arriving in narita and asking for chicken mcnuggets in english and then realized I was in Japan.)

"Bikkumakku to cora no Lsize o kudasai"
Bigmac meal with a coke please

(meals have different sizes, Lsize is the regular size.)

"Koko de omeshiagari desuka."
Was that for here or to go?

"Nande kimi wa boku ni kecchappu o misenaiyou ni suru no?"
Why do you keep the ketchup away from me?

(In mcdonalds in Japan you need to ask for the ketchup, rather in america you get it yourself, this is at mcdonalds, at wendys you get your own. This should be said with a smile, don't act like your angry, it's supposed to be a funny thing to say and make it sound like your japanese is well.)

IMPORTANT NOTE: You can't get a side of BBQ sauce unless your order something that has it, usually.

"chikin nagetto o osusume shite kuremasenka"
Would you recommend the chicken nuggets?

(another funny thing to say, you can change "chikin nagetto" with any type of food. )

IMPORTANT NOTE, It's pronounced "chikin nagetto" , if you pronounce it "chikan" that means "male pervert who illegally fondles people during the morning and afternoon rush-hour on JR.
So I wouldn't suggest going into KFC and asking for a "Chikan Potpie" just say chicken or chikin.

Dozo. sehrerj@hotmail.com
Ghetto Cities Clothing Co (Tokyo Promo)
http://www.geocities.com/ghettocities/

[moyashi]

ahhh more kernels of knowledge.

The legendary Eki-ben foods (station Bentous (lunch boxes) and other localized delictacies). Many stations cater to folks who love to eat local foods. Many major stations supply variations for their particular area. Definitely a good bet.

ughhh Ketchup is hard to find in Japan.

MacDonalds tends to be totaly non-Mickey D's. Japan loves to tinker with the menu and provide sizes that make you smirk. They also love to give 1 pack of Ketchup for a L - saizu (large size) ... ughhhh I need like a 1/4 bottle at least Also, their s-saizu = children's water cup in the states. sorry ... but I still expect MacDonalds in Japan to live up to what service they provide in the States.

[ghettocities]

I know, it's really funny, i remember sitting at a mcdonalds once thinking of how i could ask for a drink-refill (since Mcdonalds in America you get as much drink as you want at no extra charge.) , I finally thought of what to say and they didn't understand the concept of "free-refill" , so after about five minutes of confusion and five minutes of laughing with them over our cultural differences i bought another drink.

[thomas]

Originally posted by chinkasu
does gyoza really count as Japanese food?

While being of Chinese origin, I am sure you can count them in. The same applies to to curry rice.

Originally posted by moyashi
ughhh Ketchup is hard to find in Japan.

But it seems that mayonnaise is very popular. My wife insists that Japanese mayo is the best in the world.

[thomas]

Originally posted by ghettocities
I finally thought of what to say and they didn't understand the concept of "free-refill", so after about five minutes of confusion and five minutes of laughing with them over our cultural differences i bought another drink.

I love that American concept of free refills. That's definitely something I would like to be adopted by European food chains. I also assume refills only apply to non-alcoholic beverages...

[TomAsInfinity]

Goh, I love that American concept too. Nothing better than to chill out on a long hot day. They do practise this in Pizza Hut over here and in some select restaurants, but not in the bigwig fast food chains like KFC or Makudonarudo ["McDonald's," wake up!]

Hmmm, I really like sushi, but one of my faves is (Ton)katsu [which means "to win"]. This dish is so popular that there are diners that serve only this (either for a whole part of the day or for the whole day)! I'm still on the hunt for the best Californian rolls though

[jus_defy]

..that is, those that I've tried so far. Unfortunately, I never really learned how to cook those dishes and some of the names of the ingredients I don't know so I would have a difficult making them anyway. I haven't had natto since the '70s! How about "funnu"..another funny-smelling stuff you eat with rice. I also miss when we used to crack a raw egg over a bowl of hot rice and add a little soy sauce. Wasabi is something I am not quite used to.