Ramen!

I’ve talked about the food here in Japan a few times in passing, but it’s time to finally dig in. I’ve settled into a few go-to spots, and there’s still plenty of Japanese foods I’ve yet to try, but I can declare with certainty, Japanese food is damn tasty. 

When I first arrived in Japan, after my big trip to Tokyo, I got rather sick. In that time, I lost a bit of weight. Enough that it was remarked on by another teacher. I went through various possibilities in my head, maybe being sick, or all the walking I did around Tokyo. What hadn’t crossed my mind, until I was searching the web, was that it could be the food. 

Japan is known for having a very high life expectancy, the highest among G7 countries, (Canada, US, UK, etc.) at 85 years old. A common reason cited for this is low rates of obesity, lower consumption of red meat, and higher consumption of fish. There are more complicated, technical reasons involved, but I’m not a nutritionist so I’ll try to keep this pretty high level. 

Rice is a staple food here in Japan, usually accompanied by fish. Since Japan is an island country, fresh seafood is easily accessible, and a large part of the Japanese diet. Plant foods, soybeans in particular, are also common in the Japanese diet in the form of tofu, miso, soy sauce, and more. Western meat and dairy products are found occasionally, rounding out the typical Japanese diet. 

Food supply quantity (kg/capita/year) in selected countries in 2013

The Japanese diet, or Japanese cuisine more broadly, is often considered to be one of the healthiest, if not the healthiest, in the world. Consuming less red meat, more fish, plant based foods like soybeans, less sugar, and green tea widely tend to have positive health benefits.

Food in Japan also places an emphasis on high quality fresh ingredients. I couldn’t find any quantitative data on this, nor do I know enough about food standards to make a proper comparison, so this is largely anecdotal. But, many restaurants seem to have a more seasonal menu, prioritizing what is in season rather than always having the same offerings.

Now, this isn’t to extol the virtues of Japanese food, or make you rethink your diet and eating habits, just a bit of table setting. I wanted to let you know a bit about the reputation of Japanese food before jumping into my personal experience with it.

I gotta say, I love Japanese food. The portion sizes are generally a bit smaller, but eating out is also a lot cheaper here. It’s a bit of comparing apples to oranges since the Japanese Yen is not the strongest currency. My salary here as an ALT would be a below average salary back home, but the cost of living seems comparably lower as well. I have more expenses here in Japan, but my money seems to go a lot further thanks to that lower cost of living.

Which means, I get to eat ramen whenever I want! Ramen was my favorite Japanese food even before coming to Japan. I’d had my fair share of ramen back home, but was pretty blown away by the quality of ramen here in Japan. I go out for ramen at least once a week, usually stopping by Miso no Joe, a miso ramen speciality chain here in Ibaraki. 

Ramen has three main components, the noodles, the broth, and the toppings. Depending on which restaurant you go to, you can often customize your ramen order to suit your preferences. You can adjust the kind of noodles, the firmness of the noodles, the flavor of the broth, and the richness of the broth. Some places even let you adjust the oiliness of the ramen, though I usually just stick with “normal”. 

I’m a big fan of a richer broth, a thicker noodle, and the standard noodle firmness, all of which Miso no Joe does excellently. Though, the first time I went, I was initially somewhat discouraged, as it used a ticket vending machine. 

These ticket machines, written all in Japanese of course, are a quick way for customers to decide and pay for their order before they even sit down. It works like a fairly standard vending machine, you enter your bills or coins, make your selection, your change comes out, and you take your ticket. Once you enter or sit down, you pass your ticket to the staff, make any adjustments or requests, depending on the restaurant, and your order will be on its way. 

Ramen is usually ready quite quickly after ordering, and because the price of each order is relatively low, it’s this speed that really helps them profit. Once you’re done eating, you’re expected to leave fairly quickly, in order to free up the seat for the next customer. I’ve been in some fairly busy ramen restaurants where I did feel a slight pressure to eat my meal quickly, but in my small town that pressure is rarely present. 

I can take my time, enjoy the anime playlist in the background, and happily slurp up my noodles. That’s right, slurp. Loudly. While my best friend growing up used to get annoyed at the way I would slurp my noodles, eventually leading to me breaking the habit, it’s actually encouraged here in Japan. Loudly slurping your noodles shows the cook how good you find the noodles, and is rather practical as ramen is usually served quite hot.

Once I’ve eaten all the noodles, you’re welcome to drink the broth, leading to more slurping. I rarely finish all the broth, since as I mentioned I like it quite rich, but I always make an effort. There’s a certain comfort to drinking warm broth that I really enjoy, it brings on an inner warmth that leaves me both full, and relaxed. 

My other usual spot in my little town is a conveyor belt sushi restaurant. I gather that conveyor belt sushi has changed pretty drastically as a result of covid, but I still think it’s pretty cool in its current incarnation. At this restaurant, Hama-sushi, you sit either at the counter or at a booth and use a tablet to punch in your order. Once your order is ready the conveyor belt will start to move, and your order will arrive, accompanied by a cheery chime. 

Now, the definition of sushi is a little more stringent than I expected from eating sushi in the west. I assumed there would be things like California rolls or dynamite rolls to choose from. Nope. Sushi here is almost exclusively nigiri, meaning hand pressed sushi, which is fish on a small mound of rice. Rolled sushi, like California rolls, are called maki, which I’ve yet to encounter here in Japan. 

After an initial adjustment in expectations, I’m happy to say sushi here is delicious. I’ve tried types of sushi I never thought I would, and in some cases, never will again. It’s only two pieces of sushi for a single order, about $1 each. By the end of the meal I’ve usually stacked up quite the number of small plates, which is a fun sort of satisfaction. 

I once went out for sushi with a coworker while the students had winter break. I was scolded for dipping my rice directly into the soy sauce, a bit of a faux pas here in Japan. The rice has already been seasoned, and can begin to fall apart when dipped directly in soy sauce. Instead, you’re supposed to just dip the fish in the sauce, then eat it all together in one bite. When I eat alone I still dip it directly into the soy sauce, etiquette be damned, but it was a good lesson to learn if I dine with others. 

I’ve tried some other Japanese foods, like udon, katsudon and yakiniku. Udon is similar to ramen but without many of the things I really like about ramen, so it’s not something I’m dying to have more of. Katsudon is always a treat when I have it, it was easily a favorite meal from my trip to Kyoto. Yakiniku was such a fun experience that it’s hard to separate it as just a meal, it’s also a little more expensive, so definitely a special occasion kind of meal. 

Some others I’ve tried are tempura, curry rice, gyoza, and onigiri. There’s still plenty I haven’t tried yet either, like oden, soba, sukiyaki, okonomiyaki, and more! I’m a bit of a picky eater, so I’m not always eager to try something new, but the food here in Japan has been so good it makes me want to try them all. 

I sure hope you’ve had a good meal recently, as just writing this article is starting to make me hungry. Enjoying the food as much as I have here in Japan has been quite the surprise, as I’m often pretty indifferent about food. I often find it more inconvenient than pleasurable, and I’ve even found some good meal substitutes here in Japan like Calorie Mate or protein bars. 

At the end of my workday, I often look forward to stopping for food on my way home. It doesn’t quite compare to the familiarity of being treated to my mom’s cooking, but it brings me comfort nonetheless. Getting to try a wide array of foods, and maybe even being healthier for it, has been a great experience here in Japan. I look forward to trying new things, and eating boatloads of delicious ramen while I have the chance.