1. Wasabi Juice & Wasabi-don Rice Bowls

!!! WARNING !!! the following contains !!! WASABI !!!

For some of us it’s a lethal weapon, for others, it is a pleasure. That sharp sensation that starts by burning the mouth, then strikes up through the nose and sinuses, finally bringing tears to the eyes…

Whether you like the spice of wasabi or not, these dishes will surely wake you up! Above, you’ll see a full meal of wasabi available at the Daio Wasabi Farm restaurant in Nagano Prefecture. This tray features wasabi-don (ワサビ丼, a wasabi rice bowl), tempura wasabi leaves, and a little knob of fresh wasabi you can grind for yourself. Forget the horseradish you get overseas, this wasabi is the real thing, and it doesn’t get much fresher. At the same wasabi farm you can also try wasabi curry (Thai green curry style), wasabi ice cream, and wash it all down with a refreshing wasabi beverage.

When life gives you wasabi and lemons, make wasabi-ade! The drink is a surprisingly refreshing mix of tart lemon and wasabi, which adds just a little kick. (They also have wasabi beer!)

Freshly grated wasabi is something almost unheard of outside of east Asia, because genuine wasabi is notoriously hard to grow and difficult to ship. We can all be thankful that the wasabi farms of Japan have perfected the art of wasabi cultivation, and that they offer opportunities to try some pretty crazy wasabi creations!

2. Shirasu Pizza

Shirasu (シラス), small fish fry sometimes called “whitebait,” is not a common ingredient across the globe, but the little fish is widely used in Japanese cuisine. Shirasu is an excellent source of calcium, so the rest of the world is missing out!

In Japan, shirasu is eaten both cooked and raw, although the raw fish are only available for part of the year. During shirasu season, there are a few places around Japan where you can enjoy these little fish fresh-caught. For a taste of the little umami-packed jewels, Enoshima is the closest spot to Tokyo.

For a more traditional take, raw shirasu (a bit like sashimi) is a delicacy when the little fish are in season. Shirasu-don, a bed of rice topped with a pile of super-fresh fish fry, is a rare treat even for many in Japan!

3. Ippon Udon

Not your ordinary udon.

This dish, found in Hanyu City, Saitama, comes with just one long single noodle of udon in a bowl. That’s right – one big, long hunk of udon noodle. But the udon is cooked in the broth to soak up all that savory flavor. Just looking at it, you can see this isn’t any ordinary udon. 

Ippon udon (一本うどん, literally single-strand udon), has a history shrouded in mystery and legend in Japan. Some gastronomic historians think it’s a genuine dish that existed in Japan’s past. One family restaurant in Japan claims that their recipe dates back to ancestors who created ippon udon long ago. Others in Japan say that there’s little evidence for this claim, and it’s just the stuff of myth. Whoever it was that came up with the original concept, they clearly had an impressive imagination! This particular bowl of ippon udon came from a roadside restaurant, where it took the chefs three whole years to perfect the new recipe. In the end, they came up with one chewy and flavorful noodle, with a texture almost like mochi!

4. Firefly Squid Hotpot

This is not your everyday shabu-shabu hot-pot!

Shabu-shabu is most commonly a meat dish, and you’re more likely to find high-quality beef at a Japanese hot-pot restaurant than seafood. However, in this case, delicate firefly squid (or hotaru ika, ホタルイカ) are the star of the show. Firefly squid, so named because they glow bioluminescent in the nighttime sea, are quickly cooked in the mild broth, and eaten whole! If the eyeballs freak you out a little, this might not be the dish for you, but trust us when we say it’s quite a delicacy.

5. Negisoba

Opt out of chopsticks – try eating this bowl of soba noodles with a single green onion!

That’s right, in Japanese “negi” (ネギ) means green onion, so this is literally green onion soba. It might seem hard to eat just looking at it, but after giving it a try, people often say that it’s actually not too much of a challenge. You can see the negi does an alright job of picking up some noodles! The dish is a specialty of Ouchi-juku, in Fukushima Prefecture.

Don’t worry, the restaurants will still provide chopsticks for those who need them.

When something like this is placed in front of you, it’s kind of difficult to know where to start.

This is how you do it! Apparently, you can eat the negi as a condiment as you go.

6. Ox Tongue (Gyu-Tan)

In Japan, cow or ox tongue is called gyu-tan (牛タン) and it’s a high-priced delicacy. In recent years, tongue meat has lost popularity in many parts of the world, similar to offal and cuts like tripe. But the tender meat, with a unique texture and satisfyingly meaty flavor, is still popular in Japan! Since each cow only provides a very limited amount of tongue meat, tongue ends up being a valued cut of meat, and it’s actually a high-priced indulgence. 

^{▶︎ Looking for halal options? There are a couple halal gyu-tan specialty restaurants in Japan, but you’ll also find the cut offered at the halal yakiniku barbecue shops that are increasingly common in Tokyo and other big cities!}

Gyu-tan is often prepared on a flaming grill, barbecued to perfection. The finished product actually goes extremely well with freshly ground wasabi, too!

Discover Japan’s Culinary Hidden Gems

Planning to travel to Japan? Ramen and sushi are delicious parts of any trip, but we recommend getting a little out of your comfort zone, and trying something totally new to you! We think these six dishes are actually pretty delicious, but even if you can’t agree, you’ll have a great story to bring home!

For more unique gourmet experiences in Japan, check out the following articles:

・Gibier Game Meat Culture in Northern Kyoto – Eating Locally in More Ways Than One

・3 Must-Try Ramens in Tokyo

・Exploring Japan’s All You Can Eat and Drink “Houdai” Culture

For more info and updates from Japan, check Japankuru for new articles, and don’t forget to follow us on X (Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook!