Your Favorite Japanese Foods

Responding to the question posed on the Highlighting JAPAN website, “What is your favorite Japanese food?,” foreign readers proposed a wide variety of Japanese dishes. We now reveal the top ten Japanese dishes, as chosen by our readers.

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No. 1: Sushi (50 votes) Easily the number-one favorite Japanese food was sushi. Sushi has now become the food that people around the world think of first when it comes to Japanese dishes that are healthy and delicious. Sushi in its present form, in which raw fish is placed on top of rolled vinegar-flavored rice, was introduced during the Edo period (1603–1867). It became popular in the United States in the 1970s, later finding fans around the world.

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No. 2: Ramen (27 votes) Ramen is a noodle dish that originated from Chinese noodles. Since arriving in Japan in the Meiji period (1868–1912), they have evolved in a uniquely Japanese manner. Japanese ramen is characterized by the variety of soup flavors, including soy sauce, salt and misoflavors, and a choice of toppings, such as meat, leeks, bean sprouts and eggs. Japanese ramen has even become popular in China recently.

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No. 3: Sashimi (26 votes) Sashimi is raw fish or shellfish served thinly sliced and flavored with soy sauce and other seasonings, as well as wasabi horseradish, ginger, and other spices. Sashimi is believed to have become popular in Japan during the Muromachi period (1336–1573), in tandem with the increasing use of soy sauce. Reader Comment: “Those thin slices are little pieces of heaven.” (North American female in her thirties)

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No. 3: Soba (26 votes) Soba is a dish of noodles made of buckwheat flour that is milled from the seeds of soba grains, and served with soup. There are two main ways to enjoy these noodles. Zarusoba is soba noodles served on a bamboo draining board, which the diner dips in a cold sauce, and then eats. Kakesoba is soba noodles served in a bowl filled with hot sauce. Many soba restaurants offer free soba yu, the hot milky water in which the soba was cooked, to customers who order zarusoba. When customers finish their dishes, they may add sauce to the soba yu and drink it.

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