Vegetarian Japanese recipes

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Yaki onigiriGrilled rice balls

Yaki onigiri (焼きおにぎり) are rice balls grilled until they form a crisp, toasty crust, then brushed with soy sauce glaze. They are eaten all over Japan, at izakaya, at barbecues and from the freezer section, as a snack or with miso soup. The inside stays soft and steamy while the outside crackles. Best eaten hot, straight from the pan. Chef's tip: let the shaped rice balls dry for 10 minutes before they go in the pan. A drier surface forms a better crust and won't stick, and the glaze goes on only at the end so it doesn't burn.

30 min

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HiyayakkoChilled tofu with ginger

On a hot July night in any Tokyo izakaya, the first plate to arrive is often a cold block of tofu: hiyayakko, a summer staple that takes five minutes and no cooking. Silky tofu sits in a little pool of soy and is heaped with fresh ginger, spring onion and shiso, so it is cool, creamy and sharp at once. Bonito flakes are the usual topping; here crisp nori and sesame keep it vegan. The common mistake is serving it wet: blot the tofu, or the water dilutes the soy into a pale puddle. Chef's tip: buy the freshest silken (kinugoshi) tofu you can find and chill it well in its water, since this dish is only as good as the tofu.

5 min

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Miso nikomi udonUdon in miso broth

In Nagoya, udon is cooked in its broth rather than boiled separately, in a small clay pot called a donabe that comes to the table still bubbling. The broth is made with Aichi's famous dark soybean miso, hatcho miso, which is aged for years and tastes deep, slightly bitter and chocolatey. Nagoya's noodles are deliberately firm, almost chewy at the centre, and locals use the pot's lid as a plate to cool each mouthful. It is a cold-weather lunch, and the egg poached on top is part of the ritual. Our version uses kombu-shiitake dashi and fried tofu instead of chicken. Chef's tip: dissolve the miso in a ladle of broth before adding it. Hatcho miso is dense and stays in lumps if it goes straight in.

30 min

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Matcha mochiGreen tea rice cakes

Mochi (もち) are soft, chewy rice cakes made from glutinous rice flour, and Kyoto's confectioners have long flavoured them with matcha from nearby Uji. This quick home version cooks the dough in the microwave rather than pounding steamed rice. Each little green ball is wrapped around a centre of sweet red bean paste and dusted with cornflour. They are best eaten the day they are made, while still soft. Chef's tip: work while the dough is still warm, and keep your hands and the tray well dusted with starch. Warm mochi stretches easily around the filling; once it cools it tears and won't seal.

26 min

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Agedashi tofuFried tofu in warm broth

Agedashi tofu (揚げ出し豆腐) is a classic izakaya dish eaten all over Japan: cubes of soft tofu dusted in potato starch, fried until they form a thin, crisp shell, then bathed in a hot, savoury broth. The coating turns silky as it soaks up the sauce while the tofu inside stays creamy. Usually topped with bonito flakes; here it's grated daikon, ginger and spring onion with a kombu-shiitake broth instead. Chef's tip: coat the tofu in starch right before it goes into the oil, not ahead of time; if it sits, the starch turns damp and the coating fries up gummy instead of crisp.

20 min

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Zaru sobaChilled buckwheat noodles

Zaru soba (ざるそば) is the simplest and most loved way to eat buckwheat noodles in Japan, served chilled on a bamboo tray (zaru) with a small cup of dipping sauce. You pick up a mouthful of noodles, dip them, and slurp. The usual tsuyu sauce is made with bonito; this one gets its savoury depth from kombu and dried shiitake. Refreshing on a hot day, with grated wasabi, spring onion and a little nori. Chef's tip: the ice-water rinse is not optional. It washes off the surface starch and tightens the noodles so they're slippery and firm; soba shops call this 'shime', the finishing chill.

20 min

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OkonomiyakiSavoury cabbage pancake

Okonomiyaki (お好み焼き, 'grilled as you like it') is the pride of Osaka, where it's cooked on hot iron griddles in lively restaurants. Finely shredded cabbage is folded into a light batter with egg and spring onion, then fried into a thick, soft pancake with a crisp outside. It's painted with a fruity brown sauce and zigzagged with mayonnaise. Bonito flakes are usual on top; this vegetarian version uses seaweed flakes and pickled ginger instead. Chef's tip: don't press the pancake down with your spatula while it cooks. Osaka cooks leave it alone so the cabbage steams inside and stays light and fluffy; pressing squeezes out the air.

35 min

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Kuri gohan (chestnut rice)

Kuri gohan is one of the great dishes of the Japanese autumn, made all over the country when fresh chestnuts arrive in September, and it is often eaten around the harvest moon, when chestnuts are offered beside dumplings and taro (the later moon-viewing in October is even nicknamed the "chestnut moon"). Sweet, fluffy chunks of chestnut sit in salty, slightly sticky rice scented with kombu, and the dish is all about the season's bounty. It traditionally uses a spoonful of sake; this is optional, and plain water works perfectly well for an alcohol-free version. Serve with miso soup, pickles and grilled fish, sprinkled with black sesame salt. Chef's tip: soak the chestnuts in hot water for 30 minutes before peeling; the shells soften and the furry inner skin lifts away far more easily.

75 min

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Abekawa mochi (kinako mochi)Mochi with roasted soybean flour

Abekawa mochi comes from the banks of the Abe River in Shizuoka, where teahouses served it to travellers on the old Tōkaidō road, and today families all over Japan make it with leftover New Year mochi and at kagami-biraki on 11 January, when the offering cakes are broken open and shared for good health. Kinako, roasted soybean flour, gives a nutty, toasty sweetness, and its golden colour is said to look like gold dust, a wish for wealth in the year ahead. The mochi underneath is pillowy and stretchy. Serve with hot green tea, with a little black sugar syrup (kuromitsu) poured over if you like. Chef's tip: dunk the cooked mochi in hot water just before rolling, so the kinako sticks in an even, velvety coat.

15 min

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Hanami dango (three-colour dumplings)

When the cherry trees bloom in late March and April, families and colleagues spread blankets under the branches for hanami, and these skewers of pink, white and green dumplings are the sweet that goes with them. The colours tell the story of the season: pink buds on top, white for the fading snow, and green for the summer leaves still to come. They are lightly sweet and pleasantly chewy, with a faint grassiness from the matcha, and need no sauce; just bring a flask of green tea. Mochi is very sticky: cut the dumplings into small pieces for young children and older people, and make sure they chew well and eat sitting down. Chef's tip: add the water a spoonful at a time and stop when the dough feels like a soft earlobe, since rice flours vary a lot in how much they drink.

40 min

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Tsukimi udon (moon-viewing udon)

Tsukimi means moon-viewing, and in noodle shops all over Japan the name is given to any bowl topped with an egg: the yolk is the full harvest moon, the white the clouds drifting round it, and it is a favourite around the September moon festival. Here the broth is a vegetarian kombu and shiitake dashi seasoned with soy, sweetened with a little sugar instead of mirin so it has no alcohol, giving a clean, savoury base for silky thick noodles and a rich yolk you break into the soup. Add spring onions and a pinch of shichimi, and eat at once. Egg safety: use pasteurised eggs or British Lion eggs if the yolk will stay runny, and for pregnant women, young children or anyone with a weakened immune system, poach the egg in the broth until it is firm. Chef's tip: heat the kombu slowly and lift it out before the water boils, which keeps the broth sweet and clear.

25 min

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Chitose ame (thousand-year candy)

Chitose ame, "thousand-year candy", are the long red and white sugar sticks that children carry home from the shrine at Shichi-Go-San in November, in Tokyo and now right across Japan. The length of the stick is a wish for a long life, and red and white are the colours of celebration. Pulling the cooling sugar fills it with air, turning it from clear to a silky, opaque white with a soft, almost milky crunch. Boiling sugar reaches more than 150 °C, so wear heatproof gloves, work on a heatproof silicone mat, and keep children well away until the candy has cooled; they can admire the finished sticks. Hard sweets are a choking risk for small children, so break off small pieces for them and stay with them while they eat. Chef's tip: oil your gloves lightly and keep pulling until the candy turns satiny and starts to resist; that is when it sets into sticks.

60 min

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Konpeito (Japanese sugar stars)

Konpeito came to Japan with Portuguese traders in the sixteenth century and became a treasured gift; Kyoto confectioners still make them the old way, rolling them in a tilted, heated pan for two weeks or more. Today the tiny pastel stars are given as wedding and birth favours, slipped into tins of emergency hardtack biscuits, and nibbled with green tea. They crunch like a sugar cube and taste purely of sugar, sometimes with a hint of fruit. This home version uses a wok over the lowest heat and a few patient hours, which gives smaller, knobbly stars rather than the perfect shop ones. They are naturally egg-free: they are made of nothing but sugar, and the setting comes from thin layers of syrup crystallising one after another. Chef's tip: add the syrup a teaspoon at a time and keep the crystals rolling until dry. The common mistake is pouring in too much, which glues everything into one clump.

240 min

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Rakugan (pressed dry sweets for tea)

Rakugan are higashi, the dry sweets served before thin matcha at a tea ceremony, and the castle towns of Kanazawa and Matsue, both with a long tea tradition, are famous for them. Fine sugar and roasted rice flour are pressed into carved wooden moulds to make cherry blossoms in spring, maple leaves in autumn and plum flowers in winter; they also appear on Obon altars as offerings. They feel firm in the hand but dissolve on the tongue into a delicate, clean sweetness, which balances the bitterness of the tea. Serve two or three per person with matcha or sencha. They are naturally egg-free: a few drops of water make the fine sugar just damp enough to stick, the roasted rice flour holds the shape, and drying sets it hard. Chef's tip: add water a few drops at a time and stop when the sugar feels like damp sand; the common mistake is too much water, which glues the mixture into the mould.

200 min

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Nishime (simmered root vegetables)

Nishime is the quiet backbone of the Shōgatsu osechi box all over Japan: root vegetables that grow deep and hold together, cooked so the family stays rooted and united through the year. Unlike chikuzenni, nothing is fried first and there is no chicken here; each vegetable is simmered on its own, very gently, until the seasoned dashi has soaked right in and almost vanished from the pan, so the colours stay clean and the flavours distinct. This version is vegan, with a dashi of kombu and dried shiitake, and the sweetness comes from sugar and mirin, a sweet rice wine (for no alcohol, use 1 tbsp water plus 1 tsp sugar for every tbsp of mirin). Serve it at room temperature in the osechi box, beside rice and pickles, or with zōni. Chef's tip: cook the pale vegetables before the dark ones, so the shiitake never stains the taro.

75 min

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Fukumame (roasted lucky soybeans)

On Setsubun, the eve of spring in early February, households all over Japan fling roasted soybeans out of the door shouting "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" (demons out, luck in), then each person eats one bean for every year of their age, plus one for the year ahead. The beans are called fukumame, "fortune beans", and roasting them matters: a raw bean could sprout, and a demon's bean must not take root. Home-roasted ones are nutty, toasty and properly crunchy, far better than the packet kind, and they are good with green tea or scattered over a salad. Whole roasted beans are a choking hazard, so do not give them to children under five; grind theirs to a powder and sprinkle it on rice or yoghurt instead. Chef's tip: let a test bean cool for a minute before you judge it, because hot beans always feel softer than they will be.

30 min

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Sekihan (red bean rice)

Sekihan, "red rice", is Japan's celebration dish, cooked nationwide for birthdays, weddings and especially Shichi-Go-San in November, when girls aged three and seven and boys aged five visit the shrine in their best clothes. Red has long been thought to drive away bad luck, so rice tinted with adzuki beans is a wish for the children's health and growth. Steamed glutinous rice gives a chewy, slightly springy texture and a nutty bean flavour, finished with black sesame salt. Some cooks sprinkle the rice with a spoonful of sake while it steams; this is optional, and the bean liquid alone gives an alcohol-free version. Serve it warm or at room temperature with tai no shioyaki and clear soup. Chef's tip: ladle the bean cooking liquid high in the air and pour it back several times; the contact with air deepens its red, and the rice turns a stronger pink.

120 min

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Hishi mochi (diamond rice cakes)

Hishi mochi sit on the tiered doll display for Hinamatsuri, Girls' Day on 3 March, and their colours are a little poem about early spring: green for new grass pushing through, white for the last snow, pink for peach blossom (some families also read them as health, purity and protection from evil). The diamond shape is said to echo the water chestnut and a wish for growth and many children. This home version is made from glutinous rice flour set in a square tin, so the cake is soft, bouncy and only gently sweet, with a grassy hint from matcha. Serve small pieces with green tea, or beside chirashizushi and clam soup at the festival table. Mochi is very sticky: cut it small for young children and older people, and see that they chew well and eat sitting down. Chef's tip: press each layer on while the one below is still warm and tacky, so the three bond into one cake.

120 min

Japanese Breakfast & Brunch

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Sakurayu (salted cherry blossom tea)

Sakurayu is not really tea at all but salt-pickled cherry blossoms steeped in hot water, and it is served all over Japan at engagements, weddings and other happy occasions, as well as in the hanami season. Green tea is avoided at such moments because "muddying the tea" is a phrase for being evasive, while a blossom opening in a clear cup is a picture of a bright beginning. The drink is pale pink, gently salty and faintly scented of cherry and almond. The blossoms are bought ready-salted (sakura no shiozuke) from Japanese grocers. Serve it with small sweets such as sakura mochi or hanami dango. Chef's tip: use water just off the boil and pour it slowly down the side of the cup, so the petals open without tearing.

5 min

Japanese Drinks

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Azuki-gayu (red bean rice porridge)

On Koshōgatsu, the 'little New Year' of 15 January, households across Japan eat a bowl of azuki-gayu in the morning; the red of the adzuki beans has long been thought to drive away evil and illness for the year ahead. It is a plain, comforting dish: rice cooked slowly until the grains burst, stained soft pink by the bean cooking water, with the beans themselves floury and tender. It is lightly salted rather than sweet, as it is traditionally eaten. Serve with umeboshi, a sprinkle of sesame salt or a few toasted mochi pieces dropped in at the end. Chef's tip: throw away the first boiling water of the beans to lose their bitterness, but keep the second; that is where the pink colour comes from.

75 min

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Tsukimi dango (moon-viewing dumplings)

On the night of the harvest moon in September or early October, families across Japan set a tray of plain white dumplings by the window with a vase of pampas grass, as thanks for the harvest and an offering to the full moon. The round white dango stand for the moon itself, and the traditional count is fifteen, for the fifteenth night of the eighth lunar month, stacked nine, four and two. This Kanto-style dough is steamed and then kneaded, which gives a smoother, firmer bite than boiled dango, with a clean rice flavour that loves a dusting of kinako or a spoonful of sweet red bean paste once the moon-viewing is over. Mochi is very sticky: cut the dumplings small for young children and older people, and see that they chew well and eat sitting down. Chef's tip: knead the steamed dough while it is still hot, wrapped in a damp cloth, until it turns satiny.

40 min

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Nanohana karashi-ae (rapeseed blossoms with mustard)

Nanohana, the budding shoots of the rapeseed plant, arrive in Japanese shops at the end of winter, and their little yellow-green flower heads are a sign that spring has come. That makes them a natural side dish for Hinamatsuri on 3 March, next to chirashizushi and clam soup. The greens are blanched just until tender, then dressed with Japanese karashi mustard loosened with soy sauce and kombu dashi: pleasantly bitter, nose-tinglingly hot and very fresh. Outside Japan, tenderstem broccoli or cime di rapa works almost as well. Chef's tip: dress the greens at the last minute, because the soy starts to dull the green colour within half an hour.

15 min

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Kuwai no nimono (simmered arrowhead)

Kuwai, the arrowhead tuber with its proud little sprout, appears in osechi boxes in Kansai and across Japan because it says 'me ga deru': a bud comes out, a wish for success and for children to grow and thrive. It tastes like a cross between chestnut and potato, with a faint pleasant bitterness, and simmering it slowly in sweet dashi gives it a smooth, dense texture. This version is vegan, using kombu dashi, and the seasoning includes mirin, a sweet rice wine (for no alcohol, swap the mirin for 2 tbsp water plus 2 tsp sugar). Serve it at room temperature among the other osechi dishes, or with grilled fish and rice. Chef's tip: leave the tubers to cool completely in their liquid; that is when they soak up the flavour.

45 min

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Nerikiri (hand-shaped bean paste flowers)

Nerikiri are the jewel-like sweets of the tea ceremony in Kyoto and Tokyo, shaped by hand into the flower, leaf or fruit of the season: cherry blossom in April, hydrangea in June, chrysanthemum in autumn. Each is served alone on a small plate before thick matcha, cut with a pick. The dough is white bean paste kneaded with gyuhi, a soft paste of glutinous rice flour and sugar, and it feels like fine modelling clay, smooth and gently sweet, wrapped around a centre of red bean paste. They are naturally egg-free: the gyuhi gives the bean paste stretch and holds the carved shapes, so no other binder is needed. This simple five-petal flower is a good first shape. Chef's tip: dry the white bean paste well before adding the gyuhi; the common mistake is a soft, wet dough that slumps and loses its petals within minutes.

90 min

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Amazake (sweet koji rice drink)

On New Year's Day, crowds queuing for hatsumōde, the first shrine visit of the year, warm their hands on cups of amazake, and shrines all over Japan ladle it out as a welcome. This is the koji kind: cooked rice is held warm with rice koji, whose enzymes turn the starch into sugar, so the drink is sweet with no added sugar and contains no alcohol (unlike the other amazake made from sake lees). It is thick, creamy and gently fragrant, a little like rice pudding you can drink. Serve it hot with a pinch of grated ginger, or chilled in summer. Chef's tip: a cheap probe thermometer is the whole secret; keep the mixture at 55–60 °C and it will turn sweet every time.

480 min

Japanese Drinks

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Isobeyaki (grilled mochi with soy and nori)

In the first days of the year, Japanese kitchens are full of mochi, the rice cakes pounded or bought for Shōgatsu, and isobeyaki is the easiest, most loved way to eat them. The name means 'grilled on the rocky shore', after the sea flavour of nori, and mochi itself stands for strength and long life because it stretches without breaking. Each cake puffs and blisters in the pan, then gets a lacquer of sweet soy and a crisp sheet of seaweed; the outside crackles while the inside turns stretchy and molten. Serve as a snack with green tea, or alongside a bowl of miso soup. Chef's tip: brush the soy on only once the mochi has puffed, or it will burn before the middle is soft.

15 min

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Kinukatsugi (steamed baby taro)

In Kyoto and the Kansai region the harvest moon is also called imo meigetsu, the "potato moon", and steamed baby taro are set out beside the moon-viewing dumplings as thanks for the new crop. The name kinukatsugi recalls the silk veils that court ladies once wore over their heads, because the brown skin is peeled halfway so the white taro peeps out beneath it. Squeeze the base and the soft, slippery, nutty flesh pops out, ready to dip in sesame salt. Serve as a snack with green tea or as a side to grilled fish. Taro must always be cooked through, and its raw skin can make hands itch, so wear gloves while you trim it. Chef's tip: cut a shallow ring round the middle of each taro before steaming, so the top half of the skin lifts off neatly.

30 min

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Noppe-jiruTaro and vegetable soup

Noppe-jiru is the everyday and festive soup of Niigata, cooked in big pots for New Year, the Obon holidays and winter family gatherings, and served hot or even cold the next day. Taro, carrot, konnyaku, shiitake and fried tofu are simmered in a soy-seasoned dashi, and the taro's own starch, helped by a little potato starch, gives it a soft, gentle thickness. Many homes use bonito or chicken; this is the vegetarian version with kombu-shiitake dashi. It is warming and earthy, with about 5 g of protein per portion from the fried tofu and shiitake. The usual mistake is skipping the salt rub on the taro, which leaves the broth sticky and gluey rather than silky. Chef's tip: cut all the vegetables to the same small size so every spoonful has a bit of everything.

45 min

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Gobo saladBurdock and carrot salad

Gobo salad is a fixture of Japanese supermarket delis, bento boxes and izakaya small plates from Tokyo to Osaka, eaten all year but especially in autumn and winter when burdock is at its best. Thin matchsticks of earthy burdock and sweet carrot are blanched until just tender, then tossed in a creamy dressing of mayonnaise, ground toasted sesame, soy and rice vinegar, giving a crunchy, nutty, slightly sweet side for rice or grilled tofu. It is vegetarian but not vegan, because of the egg in the mayonnaise; shop-bought mayonnaise is made with pasteurised egg, so it is safe for everyone. A portion gives about 3 g of protein, from the sesame and egg, so treat it as a side. The most common mistake is skipping the soak: cut burdock darkens and turns bitter within minutes unless it goes straight into water with a dash of vinegar. Chef's tip: dress the vegetables while still slightly warm; they drink up the soy and vinegar first, so the mayonnaise coats rather than slides off.

20 min

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Sansai sobaBuckwheat noodles with mountain vegetables

In the mountains of Yamagata, Akita and Nagano, spring brings sansai, the wild shoots foraged from the hillsides: bracken, royal fern, nameko and more. Station-side soba shops serve them on hot buckwheat noodles all year, using salted or boiled sansai packed for winter. This version uses a kombu and shiitake broth instead of the usual bonito dashi, and sugar in place of mirin, so it is vegan and alcohol-free. A bowl gives about 14 g of protein from the buckwheat noodles, mushrooms and soy, so it is not high-protein. Most soba contains wheat; 100% buckwheat noodles are needed for a gluten-free bowl, along with tamari. The common mistake is putting boiled noodles straight into the broth: their starch clouds and thickens it. Chef's tip: rinse the cooked soba under cold water, rubbing it gently, then dunk it in hot water to rewarm before it goes in the bowl.

50 min

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HōtōThick noodles in miso soup

Hōtō is the winter pot of Yamanashi, at the foot of Mount Fuji, served bubbling in iron pans in Kofu restaurants after a cold day on the slopes. Thick, wide, unsalted wheat noodles go into the miso broth raw, with kabocha squash that half melts and thickens everything. This vegetarian version uses kombu-shiitake dashi and adds firm tofu and fried tofu pouches, so a bowl gives about 22 g of protein, from the tofu, wheat noodles and miso. The common mistake is boiling the noodles separately or salting the dough; hōtō noodles are cooked in the pot so their starch makes the broth silky. Rest the dough for 30 minutes before rolling. Chef's tip: dissolve the miso in a ladle of broth and add it in two goes, half early for depth and half at the end for aroma, and never let it boil hard afterwards.

80 min

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Mozuku-zuSeaweed in sweet vinegar

In Okinawa, where most of Japan's mozuku is farmed, a small bowl of mozuku-zu starts many a home supper and izakaya meal, especially in the hot months. The fine, slippery strands of seaweed are rinsed of their salt and served cold in a gentle dressing of rice vinegar, a little sugar and soy, topped with grated ginger, so it tastes clean, sour and of the sea. Shop versions often use bonito dashi; this one uses kombu dashi, so it is vegan. It is very light, with less than 1 g of protein a portion, so it belongs alongside a tofu dish and rice rather than as a main. The most common mistake is not rinsing salted mozuku enough: it needs two or three changes of water or the dish turns harsh. Chef's tip: chill the dressing and the bowls well; mozuku-zu should be served icy cold.

10 min

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Iri-dofuScrambled tofu with vegetables

Iri-dofu is a thrifty home dish cooked all over Japan, from Tokyo flats to farmhouses in Shikoku, made to fill out a weekday dinner tray or a bento. Firm tofu is crumbled and stirred in a dry pan until it turns fluffy, then cooked with carrot, shiitake and green beans in soy and dashi, with an egg stirred through at the end. It tastes gently sweet and savoury, and is eaten warm or cold with rice and miso soup. This version uses a kombu and shiitake dashi, so it is vegetarian. A portion gives about 22 g of protein, from the tofu and egg. The common mistake is not drying the tofu enough, which leaves a watery scramble. Chef's tip: keep stirring until the tofu crumbs squeak against the pan; that is when they are dry enough to soak up the seasoning.

25 min

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葛切り (Kuzukiri, Kyoto kudzu noodles)

Kuzukiri is a summer sweet of Kyoto, served most famously in the old tea houses of Gion: a lacquered box of clear, flat noodles floating in iced water, with a cup of dark kuromitsu black-sugar syrup to dip them in. It is eaten in the hottest months as a refreshing afternoon dessert with green tea. The noodles are cool, springy and smooth, with a clean, faintly sweet taste, and the syrup is deep, smoky and molasses-rich. It is naturally egg-free and plant-based: pure kudzu starch mixed with water sets into a firm, glass-clear sheet when it is cooked in a thin layer over boiling water, the starch alone doing the binding. Serve it within half an hour of making it. Chef's tip: buy pure kudzu starch rather than a blend; the common mistake is making kuzukiri ahead, because within an hour or two it turns cloudy and stiff.

45 min

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Monaka (最中, rice wafers with azuki bean paste)Rice wafers with sweet bean paste

Monaka is sold in wagashi shops all over Japan, from Tokyo's old districts to temple towns, often pressed into the shape of a flower, a fish or a local landmark. It is a year-round tea sweet and a favourite souvenir. Two crisp, paper-light wafers made of glutinous rice flour and water are filled with tsubuan, a chunky azuki paste cooked with sugar. The wafer is dry and toasty, the filling dense, sweet and earthy, and the pleasure is in eating it before the shell softens. Serve with matcha or sencha. Making the shells needs a special iron mould, so we use bought monaka shells; they are normally just rice flour and water, but check the pack to be sure they are eggless. The bean paste is naturally egg-free, set by the azuki's own starch and the sugar. Chef's tip: the common mistake is filling them in advance; sandwich them just before serving, or the wafers go limp.

120 min

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Mizu shingen mochi (Yamanashi raindrop cake)

Mizu shingen mochi comes from Hokuto in Yamanashi, at the foot of the Southern Alps, where a sweet shop first set the local spring water into a trembling, glass-clear dome. It is a summer sweet, eaten in the heat of July and August, and it has to be eaten within half an hour of being made, before it starts to weep. There is almost no flavour of its own: the point is the cool, melting texture, with nutty kinako and dark kuromitsu syrup poured over at the table. Despite the name it is not a rice mochi at all, and it is naturally egg-free. Agar, a seaweed setting agent, holds the water in shape; using just enough to set it makes it melt on the tongue. Serve with green tea. Chef's tip: boil the agar hard for a full 2 minutes; just warming it is the common mistake, and the domes stay liquid in the mould.

80 min

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Wakatake-niBamboo shoot and wakame simmer

Wakatake-ni means 'young bamboo simmer', and in Kyoto it marks the few weeks of April when fresh shoots arrive from the hills around Rakusai; it is served in small bowls at home and in kaiseki menus as a quiet taste of spring. Tender bamboo shoot is simmered in a pale, lightly seasoned broth, and soft wakame goes in at the very end, so the bowl is all clean, sweet and sea flavours. Classic recipes use bonito dashi; this one uses kombu and dried shiitake, and sugar instead of mirin, so it is vegan and alcohol-free. It is a light side dish of about 4 g of protein per portion. The common mistake is boiling the wakame with the bamboo: it turns slimy and drab, so it needs only a minute. Chef's tip: cool the bamboo in the broth for 10 minutes before reheating; it drinks up the seasoning far better than it does while boiling.

35 min

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Nameko jiruNameko mushroom miso soup

Nameko jiru is one of the most common miso soups in Japan, made in homes from Tohoku to Kyushu for breakfast or dinner, especially in autumn and winter when the small amber nameko mushrooms are cheap. The mushrooms have a natural silky coating that gives the soup a gently thickened, slippery feel, which the Japanese love. Homes usually use bonito dashi; this is the vegetarian version, with kombu and dried shiitake. A bowl has about 7 g of protein, from the tofu and miso. The most common mistake is boiling the soup after the miso goes in: it kills the aroma and turns the miso grainy. Chef's tip: give nameko only a quick rinse in a sieve, and never scrub away the gel; that coating is what makes the soup.

15 min

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Dango-jiruDumplings in miso soup

In Oita prefecture on Kyushu, dango-jiru is a grandmother's winter supper: a soft wheat dough is rested, then pulled by hand into long, flat ribbons and dropped straight into a miso soup of taro, burdock, carrot, daikon and mushrooms. Oita cooks usually use mild barley miso and often add pork or chicken; this vegetarian version uses kombu-shiitake dashi and fried tofu instead. A bowl gives about 13 g of protein, from the dumplings, miso and tofu, so it is not high-protein. The common mistake is stretching the dough before it has rested: it springs back and tears. Give it at least 30 minutes. Chef's tip: keep the rested dough pieces in a bowl of water and stretch them with wet hands; they pull out long and thin without breaking.

75 min

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Kombu maki with burdock and carrotKelp rolls with burdock and carrot

Kombu maki is one of the dishes packed into the lacquered boxes of osechi for New Year's Day all over Japan, where the word kombu is a pun on yorokobu, 'to rejoice'. Soft kelp is rolled around a filling, tied with ribbons of dried gourd and simmered slowly until it can be cut with chopsticks. Families often roll it around herring or salmon; here it is filled with burdock and carrot, cooked in kombu broth and sweetened with sugar instead of mirin, so it is vegan and alcohol-free. Each portion of three rolls has about 3 g of protein, so it is a side, not a main. It keeps for 4 days in the fridge and is eaten cold. The common mistake is rushing the simmer: the kelp needs a full hour or it stays chewy. Chef's tip: keep a drop-lid or a circle of baking paper on the surface the whole time, so the rolls cook evenly without being turned.

105 min

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Uiro (ういろう, steamed rice-flour cake)

Uiro is the classic sweet of Nagoya, sold in long blocks at the station as a souvenir, and Yamaguchi has its own lighter version made with bracken starch. It is eaten through the year with tea, and in June a triangular version topped with azuki, minazuki, is eaten in Kyoto to mark the halfway point of the year. A simple batter of non-glutinous rice flour, sugar and water is steamed into a firm, smooth, slightly springy cake with a gentle sweetness. This one is flavoured with matcha; stir in a little sweet bean paste or sakura instead for variety. Uiro is naturally egg-free: steaming cooks the rice starch, which sets the cake into a dense, clean-cutting slab with no binder needed. Chef's tip: the common mistake is cutting it hot; let it cool completely, then slice with a wet knife or a piece of cling film, or it smears.

75 min

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Atsuage no nimonoSimmered fried tofu and greens

Atsuage no nimono is the kind of simmered dish that turns up on everyday dinner tables across Japan, especially in autumn and winter when komatsuna and spinach are at their best. Thick blocks of fried tofu, crisp outside and soft within, are simmered in a light, slightly sweet broth of dashi and soy until they drink it up, then the greens go in for the last few minutes. This version uses kombu and shiitake dashi and no mirin, so it is vegan and alcohol-free. Served as a main for two with rice, each portion gives about 23 g of protein, from the fried tofu. The common mistake is boiling the broth hard, which toughens the tofu and makes the greens drab. Chef's tip: pour boiling water over the atsuage first to rinse off surface oil; the broth then soaks in instead of sliding off.

25 min

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Kibi dango (吉備団子, Okayama soft millet rice cakes)

Kibi dango is Okayama's souvenir sweet, sold in boxes at the station and tied to the folk tale of Momotarō, the peach boy, who shared them with a dog, a monkey and a pheasant on his way to fight the ogres. It is a year-round snack with green tea. Today's version is a gyuhi, a soft, cooked dough of glutinous rice flour, sugar and starch syrup, with a little millet flour for a pale-gold colour and a gentle, grainy sweetness. The small flat rounds are pillowy, smooth and stretchy, dusted with potato starch. The cakes are naturally egg-free: cooking the glutinous rice flour with sugar and syrup turns it into an elastic dough that binds itself, and the sugar keeps it soft for days. Chef's tip: add the sugar in three goes and stir until each lot is absorbed; the common mistake is tipping it in at once, which makes the dough seize and go lumpy. Cut them small for children and supervise, as with any mochi.

40 min

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Mugi gohan with tororoBarley rice with grated yam

Mugi gohan, white rice cooked with flattened barley, was everyday food in rural Japan and is back on family tables for its nutty chew and fibre. In Shizuoka and along the old Tokaido road it is famously eaten as mugitoro: barley rice under a pour of grated nagaimo yam loosened with seasoned dashi, slurped quickly at lunch. A portion is about 300 kcal and gives roughly 8 g of protein, so it is light rather than high in protein. The usual mistake is using the plain rice water ratio: barley drinks more, so add extra water or the grains stay hard. Raw nagaimo can make sensitive skin itch, so peel it with gloves on. The dashi here is made from kombu and shiitake, with no bonito. Chef's tip: grate the yam on the finest side of the grater and beat it with a spoon for a minute; it turns light and fluffy and coats the rice evenly.

70 min

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Mame gohanRice with green peas

When the first pea pods arrive in Japanese greengrocers in April and May, home cooks from Kyoto to Tokyo make mame gohan: short-grain rice steamed with a strip of kombu and lightly salted, then folded through with sweet, bright green peas. It is eaten warm with miso soup and pickles, or pressed into onigiri for a spring picnic. A bowl gives about 9 g of protein, from the rice and peas, so serve it with tofu or an egg dish if you want a fuller meal; it is not a high-protein dish on its own. Many recipes add a splash of sake; this version leaves it out, so it is alcohol-free. The common mistake is cooking the peas with the rice from the start: they turn khaki and wrinkled. Here they are boiled separately and added at the end. Chef's tip: let the peas cool in their salted cooking water rather than draining them hot; they stay plump instead of puckering.

70 min

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Jaga bataSteamed potatoes with butter and soy

Jaga bata is Hokkaido's simplest pleasure: whole steamed potatoes split open and topped with a slab of butter and a few drops of soy sauce, sold at Sapporo snow-festival stalls and summer street fairs, and made at home as a snack or side. The potato is floury and steaming, the butter melts into it, and the soy adds a savoury edge. The mistake is boiling the potatoes, which makes them watery so the butter slides off; steam them in their skins instead. Chef's tip: cut a deep cross into each hot potato and squeeze from the bottom so it bursts open like a flower to hold the butter.

25 min

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OkayuPlain rice porridge with pickled plum

Okayu is the porridge Japanese mothers make when someone is ill, tired or simply needs something gentle, and it is also eaten on 7 January as part of the new year with seven spring herbs. This weeknight version starts from cooked rice, simmered in water with a little salt until soft, white and spoonable, then served with a sour-salty umeboshi plum to stir in. The mistake is stirring it constantly, which breaks the grains and turns it gluey; stir only now and then. Chef's tip: for the full, silkier version, start with 100 g raw rice and 1 litre of water and simmer, lid ajar, for 40 minutes.

17 min

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Japanese tofu salad

Tofu sarada is a fixture on Japanese izakaya menus and family dinner tables everywhere from Tokyo to Fukuoka, especially in the humid summer months. Cool cubes of tofu sit on crisp lettuce, tomato and cucumber under a sesame-soy dressing sharpened with rice vinegar and ginger, with a few strands of wakame if you have them. It makes a light dinner with rice and miso soup. The usual mistake is not draining the tofu, so its water dilutes the dressing into a bland pool. Many shop-bought wafu dressings contain bonito; this home-made one is vegan. Chef's tip: dress the salad at the table so the leaves stay crisp.

10 min

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Daigaku imo (candied sweet potato)

Daigaku imo, 'university potatoes', got their name from the Tokyo student cafés of the early 1900s, and today they are what Japanese parents fry when autumn sweet potatoes arrive and children come home hungry. The chunks are crisp at the edges and fluffy inside, coated in a glossy glaze that sets to a light crackle, with nutty black sesame on top. This version uses a modest amount of sugar balanced with soy sauce. It contains soya, gluten (soy sauce) and sesame. Chef's tip: pull the pan off the heat the moment the glaze turns thick and bubbly; a few seconds more and it hardens into toffee.

30 min

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Kuri manjuChestnut buns

Made to look like a chestnut, kuri manju (栗まんじゅう) is one of Japan's favourite baked wagashi, a little teardrop of tender, cake-like dough wrapped around sweet white bean paste studded with candied chestnut. The top is glazed twice with egg yolk until it bakes a glossy chestnut brown, and the flat base is dipped in poppy seeds to mimic the pale bottom of a real chestnut. Japanese confectioners sell them all year, but they are most popular in autumn, given as gifts and eaten with green tea. Freshly baked, the dough is slightly firm; after a day in a tin the moisture from the filling softens it, so they are even better the next day. Glazing only once is an easy mistake: the first coat soaks in and looks patchy, so brush, bake briefly and brush again. Chef's tip: dust your hands well with flour as you wrap; this dough is soft and sticky, and handling it with floured fingers is the only way to keep the shell thin and even.

85 min

Japanese Baking

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Imo mochi (Hokkaido potato mochi)

On Hokkaido, Japan's great potato island, imo mochi are what grandparents make from leftover boiled potatoes when the children come in from school or the ski slopes. Mashed potato is kneaded with potato starch into a smooth, stretchy dough, shaped into thick discs and fried until crisp outside and pleasantly chewy within, then glazed in a little butter, soy and sugar. A cube of cheese hidden inside is a popular children's twist. It contains milk, soya and gluten (soy sauce). Chef's tip: mash the potatoes while they are still hot; cold potato turns gluey and the patties crack.

35 min

Japanese Breads & Parathas

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Shio pan

Shio pan (塩パン) began in 2003 at a small bakery in Yawatahama, a port town on the Ehime coast of Shikoku, and spread so fast that most Japanese bakeries now sell their own, as do the 'sogeum-ppang' shops of Seoul. Each roll is wound around a stick of cold butter; in the oven the butter melts out and fries the base, leaving a crisp, salty, golden bottom, a hollow, buttery tunnel inside and soft, chewy bread on top, finished with flaky salt. Eat them warm for breakfast with coffee, or split them for an egg or cucumber sandwich. Proving them somewhere too warm is the classic misstep: above about 28°C the butter leaks out before baking and the rolls lose their crunch. Chef's tip: leave the rolls on the tray for a couple of minutes after baking so they soak the melted butter back up into their bases.

165 min

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Anpan

Tokyo's Ginza district gave Japan its first sweet bun in 1874, when a bakery there wrapped Western-style bread dough around azuki bean paste, the filling of traditional wagashi; a version topped with a salted cherry blossom was presented to the Emperor Meiji the following year. Anpan (あんパン) is still sold in every Japanese bakery and convenience store, eaten with green tea or milk as an afternoon snack and packed in school bags. The bread is soft, faintly sweet and shiny brown, wrapped round a thick layer of smooth, earthy-sweet red bean paste, with sesame seeds or a pink blossom pressed into a dimple on top. A paste that is too soft is the usual cause of trouble: it oozes out of the seam and leaves a hollow bun, so use a stiff koshian you can roll into balls. Chef's tip: roll the filling into balls and freeze them for 15 minutes before wrapping; firm balls are far easier to enclose neatly and keep the dough an even thickness all round.

164 min

Japanese Breads & Parathas

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Fruit sando

Japanese fruit sandwiches started in the fruit parlours of Tokyo and are now sold in every convenience store, but they are just as much a home treat for a sunny weekend or a special after-school snack. Pillowy crustless bread holds a thick layer of barely sweetened whipped cream and whole pieces of fruit arranged so that each cut reveals a neat pattern. It contains gluten and milk (and often egg, in milk bread). Chef's tip: plan the cut before you arrange the fruit, laying the strawberries along the diagonal line you will slice through.

20 min

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Onigirazu with omelette and cucumber

Onigirazu, 'rice balls you don't have to shape', took off in Japanese homes as a quicker way to fill a school bento: a sheet of nori is folded around a flat square of rice and filling like an envelope, wrapped tightly and sliced through the middle. Children love the stripes of yellow omelette and green lettuce and cucumber, and it eats neatly with one hand at lunch or on a picnic. Ham, tuna mayonnaise and fried chicken are popular fillings too; this version is vegetarian. It contains egg, and the mayonnaise is egg-based. Chef's tip: cut through the cling film with a wet, sharp knife and only unwrap after slicing, so the sandwich keeps its shape.

23 min

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Issho mochi (first-birthday rice cake)

In homes all over Japan, a child's first birthday is marked with issho mochi: a single large, round rice cake made from about 1.8 kg of glutinous rice, wrapped in a cloth and strapped to the baby's back. Whether the toddler stands, crawls or plops down laughing, the family cheers, and the mochi is then cut up, grilled and shared by the adults and older children as a wish for a lifetime of plenty. This home version uses glutinous rice flour, so no pounding is needed, and it is free of milk, egg, gluten, nuts and soya. Sticky mochi is a choking risk: the baby only carries it, adults and older children eat it, and small children should only have tiny, soft pieces while an adult watches. Chef's tip: write the child's name on the cloth bundle, not on the cake, so the mochi stays plain and everyone can eat it.

60 min

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Character bento (kyaraben)

All over Japan, parents of nursery and primary-school children make kyaraben, 'character bento', for school trips, sports days and the first lunches of term: rice is pressed into a little bear, nori is snipped into eyes and a smile, and the gaps are filled with omelette, broccoli and tomato. It is mild and simply seasoned, eaten cold at room temperature by midday, and the fun is in the opening of the lid. Many families add a cut-out sausage or a piece of fried chicken; this version keeps it vegetarian. Chef's tip: cut the nori features first and keep them on a dry plate, then press them on with a damp chopstick at the very end so they don't curl.

55 min

Japanese Breakfast & Brunch

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Japanese hotcakes

Hotcakes are the tall, perfectly round pancakes of Japanese kissaten coffee shops and Sunday family breakfasts, and many children ask for them as an after-school treat too. They are thicker and more cake-like than Western pancakes, with an even golden surface and a soft, springy crumb. This batter is only lightly sweetened, so the butter and syrup on top do the work. It contains gluten, milk and egg. Chef's tip: cook them over a low heat with a lid on, so they rise high and cook through before the outside darkens.

30 min

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Hina arare (Girls' Day rice puffs)

On 3 March, Japanese families with daughters set out tiered dolls for Hinamatsuri and fill little bowls with hina arare, crunchy pastel rice puffs whose pink, green and white stand for spring blossom, new leaves and snow. In the Kanto region they are sweet; around Kyoto and Osaka they are bigger and soy-glazed, so this version makes both. Puffing cooked rice at home is easy and children love watching it bloom in the oil. It contains soya and gluten (from the soy sauce) and is otherwise free of the common allergens. Chef's tip: dry the cooked rice until every grain is hard and glassy; damp rice spits and never puffs.

45 min

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Sweet potato simmered with lemon (satsumaimo no lemon-ni)

Satsumaimo no lemon-ni is an autumn favourite in Japanese homes, when sweet potatoes are at their best and bento boxes need a splash of colour. Rounds of purple-skinned sweet potato are gently poached with lemon slices and just a spoonful of sugar until tender and glossy, tasting of honeyed potato with a fresh citrus edge. It is eaten cold, so it is a natural make-ahead for packed lunches, and it contains none of the common allergens. Chef's tip: keep the skins on; the purple ring against the yellow flesh is what makes it look so pretty in a box.

30 min

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Ninjin shirishiri (Okinawan carrot and egg)

In Okinawa, at the southern tip of Japan, ninjin shirishiri is what home cooks make when there is a bag of carrots and a lunchbox to fill. The carrots are grated into fine ribbons on a shirishiri grater, softened in sesame oil and bound with a scrambled egg and a splash of kombu dashi, so they taste sweet and mild enough for small children. It is served warm at dinner and cold in the next day's bento. It contains egg, soya and wheat (soy sauce) and sesame. Chef's tip: cook the carrot until it turns limp and glossy before the egg goes in; that is where its sweetness comes from.

15 min

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Kutakuta udon (soft-simmered baby udon)

Japanese parents call this kutakuta udon, 'floppy udon': thick wheat noodles simmered far longer than usual until they are soft enough to squash between two fingers, then chopped short for babies who are learning to chew, usually from around seven to nine months. The broth is a light kombu stock with sweet grated carrot and daikon and no soy sauce at all, so it tastes gentle and clean. It contains gluten (wheat); the other common allergens (milk, egg, peanut, tree nuts, soya, sesame, fish) are not in it. Chef's tip: kombu is rich in iodine, so use only a small piece, soak it briefly and lift it out before the broth boils.

25 min

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Ten-fold rice porridge (jūbai-gayu)

Across Japan, a baby's first solid food at about five or six months is jūbai-gayu: rice cooked gently in ten times its volume of water until it collapses into a soft, pale porridge, then pressed or blended smooth. It tastes mild and slightly sweet, and parents start with a single spoonful a day before adding mashed vegetables such as pumpkin or carrot. None of the common allergens (milk, egg, gluten, peanut, tree nuts, soya, sesame, fish) are in it, so it is an easy base to build on. Chef's tip: make a full pot and freeze it in ice-cube trays, so one cube can be warmed for each meal.

85 min

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Nyumen (hot somen for toddlers)

Nyumen is the hot, winter way of eating thin somen noodles, loved in Nara and across the Kansai region, and with its gentle broth it is a classic supper for small children and anyone feeling poorly. Fine noodles, soft carrot and spinach and silky ribbons of egg sit in a light stock of kombu and dried shiitake, seasoned for toddlers with only a few drops of low-salt soy sauce. It contains gluten (wheat), egg and soya. Chef's tip: somen dough is salted, so always boil and rinse the noodles separately rather than cooking them in the broth.

25 min

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Japanese strawberry shortcake

In Japan, the 'shortcake' on every birthday table and every Christmas Eve is nothing like the American scone version: it is a tall, cloud-soft sponge filled and covered with lightly sweetened cream and crowned with a ring of strawberries. Children choose it at the cake shop for their birthday, and it is just as good made at home. It contains egg, milk and gluten. Chef's tip: brush each sponge layer with a little plain sugar syrup; it keeps the cake moist without any alcohol.

70 min

Japanese Baking

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Kiriboshi daikon no nimonoSimmered dried daikon

Kiriboshi daikon, radish cut into thin strips and dried in the winter sun, is a pantry staple in Miyazaki, where most of it is made, and in homes all over Japan; simmered with carrot and thin fried tofu it becomes a brown, sweet-savoury side that fills bento boxes and the small plates of a home dinner. The dried strips have a deeper, sweeter flavour than fresh daikon and a pleasant chew. This vegetarian version uses kombu-shiitake dashi. A portion is about 95 kcal. The common mistake is soaking the dried daikon for too long; 10–15 minutes is enough, or it goes limp and loses its sweetness. Chef's tip: keep the soaking water and use a little of it in the broth; it is full of flavour.

30 min

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Gomoku mameSimmered mixed beans

Gomoku mame, "five-ingredient beans", is a pot of soybeans simmered with kombu, carrot, burdock, konnyaku and shiitake that grandmothers across Japan make on a Sunday and keep in the fridge for a week of small side dishes and bento, and it is often part of the New Year spread too. Every piece is cut to the size of a bean, so each spoonful has a little of everything, sweet, savoury and full of protein. This is vegetarian, with no bonito. A portion is about 150 kcal. Using cooked soybeans makes it a 45-minute dish; from dried, soak 150 g overnight and boil for 1 hour first. The usual mistake is cutting the vegetables in large chunks; they should be the size of the beans. Chef's tip: let it cool in its broth; the beans soak up the flavour as the temperature drops.

45 min

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Furofuki daikonSimmered daikon with miso

In the cold months, when the daikon in Kyoto and Nerima are fat and juicy, furofuki daikon is the warming dish that steams on the dinner table: thick rounds of radish simmered slowly in kombu broth until they are almost translucent and so tender they break with chopsticks, then topped with a glossy, sweet miso sauce. It is eaten as a light main or a side with rice. A portion is about 120 kcal. The most common mistake is rushing the simmer: the daikon should be cooked through to the centre, with no white, hard core. Chef's tip: bevel the edges of each round with a peeler and score a cross on the base; the rounds keep their shape and the heat reaches the middle.

60 min

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Tororo gohanMountain yam over barley rice

Tororo gohan is the speciality of Mariko-juku in Shizuoka, a post town on the old Tokaido road where travellers have stopped for bowls of it for four centuries, and it is now a simple, nourishing lunch all over Japan. Raw nagaimo (Chinese yam) is grated into a frothy, slippery purée, thinned with cool seasoned dashi and poured over hot barley rice, then topped with spring onion and nori. It sounds strange and tastes clean and comforting. This version uses vegetarian kombu dashi. A portion is about 330 kcal. Many people add a raw egg yolk: use a pasteurised egg if you do, especially for anyone pregnant, very young, older or with a weakened immune system. The common mistake is letting the dashi go in hot, which cooks the yam and loses its fluffiness; it must be cool. Chef's tip: grate the yam on the fine side of a grater, or the rough side of a suribachi bowl, and wear gloves; the raw sap can make skin itch.

20 min

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Horenso no ohitashiSpinach in dashi

Ohitashi, "the soaked dish", is one of the three small sides of the everyday ichiju-sansai meal, and in Tokyo homes a little mound of spinach steeped in cool seasoned broth turns up beside grilled fish and miso soup most weeks of the year. Usually it is topped with bonito flakes; this vegetarian version uses kombu and shiitake dashi and a sprinkle of toasted sesame instead. It is clean, savoury and barely seasoned, so the sweetness of the spinach comes through. A portion is about 35 kcal. The most common mistake is not squeezing the spinach after blanching, which dilutes the broth into a watery puddle. Chef's tip: blanch the stems for 10 seconds before pushing in the leaves; the stems need longer, and this way the whole bunch is tender at once.

15 min

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Tofu steak

Tofu steak became a family-restaurant and home favourite across Japan in the health-food boom of the 1980s, and it is still how many Tokyo households get a quick, light main dish on the table: thick slabs of firm tofu dusted with potato starch, seared until golden, then glazed in a garlicky soy, mirin and sugar sauce until sticky. Serve with rice, shredded cabbage and miso soup. A portion is about 260 kcal. The common mistake is skipping the pressing, so the tofu spits in the pan and won't brown; press it for 10 minutes first. Chef's tip: add the sauce only once both sides are golden, and let it bubble down for just a minute so it coats rather than soaks.

20 min

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Nasu no nibitashiAubergine in cold dashi

On a sticky summer evening in Osaka or Tokyo, a chilled dish of nibitashi is one of the nicest things to find in the fridge: Japanese eggplant cut into pieces, cooked in a little oil until silky, then left to soak in cold, lightly sweet soy dashi with grated ginger. It is served cool beside rice and grilled fish or tofu. This version uses vegetarian kombu-shiitake dashi. A portion is about 80 kcal. The most common mistake is frying the eggplant in lots of oil; it drinks it all up and turns heavy. Brush it lightly and cook it covered so it steams soft. Chef's tip: score the skin in fine diagonal lines before cooking; the broth soaks in faster and the purple skin stays bright.

25 min

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Satoimo no nikkorogashiGlazed simmered taro

Satoimo, small hairy taro, are dug in autumn across the farmland of Chiba and Saitama, and nikkorogashi, "simmered and rolled", is the most homely way to eat them: the peeled taro are simmered in a little dashi, sugar and soy, then rolled around the pan as the liquid boils down until each one is coated in a sticky, glossy glaze. The inside stays creamy and slightly slippery. This version uses vegetarian kombu-shiitake dashi. A portion is about 130 kcal. The common mistake is not rinsing off the sliminess after peeling, which makes the sauce gloopy; rub them with salt and rinse well. Chef's tip: peel taro with dry hands, or wear gloves; the raw sap can make skin itch.

40 min

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Yasai itameVegetable stir-fry

Yasai itame is the dish on every teishoku menu in Tokyo's cheap lunch counters and the default weeknight vegetable in Japanese homes: cabbage, bean sprouts, carrot, peppers and onion tossed fast over a high flame with salt, pepper and a splash of soy until glossy and still crunchy. Many homes add a few slices of pork; this is the vegetable-only version, with shiitake for savouriness. Eat it with rice and miso soup. A portion is about 110 kcal. The most common mistake is crowding a cool pan, which stews the vegetables in their own water; get the pan very hot and cook in two batches if your pan is small. Chef's tip: add the bean sprouts last and cook them for only 30 seconds; they should still snap.

16 min

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Nanakusa-gayuSeven-herb rice porridge

On the morning of 7 January, after days of rich New Year food, families all over Japan eat a bowl of nanakusa-gayu, rice porridge with seven young spring herbs, to rest the stomach and wish for good health in the year ahead. Supermarkets sell little packs of the seven herbs (seri, nazuna, gogyo, hakobera, hotokenoza, suzuna and suzushiro), but turnip, radish and their tops with watercress and spinach make a good stand-in. The porridge is plain, soft and seasoned only with salt. A portion is about 130 kcal. The most common mistake is adding the greens too early, which turns them grey and bitter; add them in the last minute. Chef's tip: don't stir the rice while it simmers; stirring breaks the grains and makes the porridge sticky instead of soft and clean.

50 min

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UnohanaSimmered okara with vegetables

Okara, the soft white pulp left after making soy milk and tofu, is sold for pennies in Kyoto tofu shops, and grandmothers turn it into unohana, named after the white deutzia flowers that bloom in early summer: the pulp is simmered with carrot, shiitake, fried tofu, konnyaku and spring onion in sweet soy dashi until moist and fluffy. It is a side dish for rice and a classic of frugal, high-fibre home cooking. Many homes add a little chicken; this version is vegetarian, with kombu-shiitake dashi. A portion is about 140 kcal. The most common mistake is cooking it dry and crumbly; it should be moist enough to hold together when pressed with chopsticks, so don't skimp on the broth. Chef's tip: dry-fry the okara in the pan for a few minutes first; it loses its beany smell and absorbs the seasoning better.

35 min

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KakitamajiruEgg drop soup

When the miso pot is empty, or someone in a Japanese home is feeling poorly, kakitamajiru is the soup that comes out: a clear, gently seasoned dashi thickened very slightly with potato starch so that a stream of beaten egg sets into soft, floating ribbons. It is served in lacquer bowls alongside rice and a main dish at an ordinary dinner anywhere in Japan. This version uses vegetarian kombu-shiitake dashi. Eggs are an allergen. A bowl is about 55 kcal. The most common mistake is pouring the egg into soup that is not quite boiling, which makes it cloudy; the broth must be bubbling when the egg goes in. Chef's tip: pour the egg through the tines of a fork in a thin stream, moving round the pan; it gives the finest, fluffiest strands.

17 min

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Yaki atsuageGrilled thick fried tofu

Atsuage, thick blocks of tofu deep-fried on the outside and soft and white within, sit in every supermarket chiller in Japan, and grilling them until crisp is one of the fastest dinners there is: an izakaya favourite in Tokyo and an easy dish at home when there is nothing else in. The block is grilled until the skin crackles, cut into cubes and topped with grated ginger, spring onion and a few drops of soy. A portion is about 190 kcal. The common mistake is grilling it in oil; atsuage is already fried, so a dry pan is all it needs. Chef's tip: pour boiling water over the block and pat it dry before grilling; it removes stale oil and the skin crisps up much better.

15 min

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ZosuiRice and vegetable soup

In Japan, zosui is what happens to the last of the hotpot broth: when the nabe is nearly finished, leftover rice goes into the pot with beaten egg, and everyone shares the soft, savoury porridge at the end. It is also the light dish made at home for upset stomachs and cold nights, using any rice from the cooker. This version uses kombu-shiitake dashi, mushrooms and greens. Eggs are an allergen. A portion is about 260 kcal. The common mistake is stirring the rice too much, which turns it gluey like okayu; zosui should be loose, with separate grains in clear broth. Chef's tip: rinse the cooked rice briefly in a sieve before adding it; it washes off surface starch and keeps the broth clear.

20 min

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GanmodokiTofu and vegetable fritters

The name means 'mock goose', a hint that these fritters were invented by Buddhist monks who wanted something rich and satisfying without meat; in Kyoto they are called hiryōzu. Firm tofu is pressed, mashed with grated yam, carrot, hijiki and sesame, then fried into golden discs that are crisp outside and soft and springy within. Eat them hot with ginger and soy, or simmer them in oden or sweet dashi on cold days. The common mistake is not pressing the tofu enough; wet tofu makes fritters that split and spit in the oil. Chef's tip: a little grated Japanese mountain yam (nagaimo) binds the mix without egg and makes it fluffier; potato starch alone gives a denser fritter.

45 min

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Japanese potato salad

Every konbini, school lunch tray and izakaya menu in Japan seems to have its own potato salad, a Western-born dish the Japanese have made entirely theirs. The potatoes are half-mashed so the salad is creamy with chunks, then folded with salted cucumber, carrot, onion and a rich, slightly tangy Japanese-style mayonnaise; it is often served as a side to tonkatsu or packed in a bento. Japanese mayonnaise is made with egg yolk, so this contains egg. The common mistake is mixing in the mayonnaise while the potatoes are hot, which makes it oily and gluey; season with vinegar while hot, then cool before the mayo goes in. Chef's tip: salt the cucumber and onion and squeeze them hard, so they stay crisp and don't water down the salad.

30 min

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Yamitsuki cabbageSesame cabbage salad

Yamitsuki means 'addictive', and this bowl of raw cabbage is what many Tokyo yakitori bars put down free the moment you sit, to nibble while the grill heats up. The leaves are torn rather than cut, tossed with sesame oil, garlic, salt and a little stock powder or soy, and finished with crumbled nori and sesame: crunchy, salty and hard to stop eating. The common mistake is dressing it too early; after ten minutes the salt draws out water and it goes limp. Chef's tip: tear the cabbage with your hands into bite-size pieces, because the ragged edges hold far more dressing than a knife-cut slice.

5 min

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Hijiki no nimonoSimmered hijiki seaweed

This is the quiet, dark heap of seaweed that turns up next to rice in set lunches all over Japan, and it is a staple of home bento boxes because it tastes just as good cold. Tiny black hijiki strands are simmered with carrot, thin fried tofu (aburaage) and soybeans in a sweet soy broth until the liquid is nearly gone. It is savoury, faintly of the sea and rich in fibre. Mirin contains alcohol; the note gives an alcohol-free swap, and this version uses fish-free kombu–shiitake dashi. A common mistake is skipping the rinse after soaking: dried hijiki carries sand, so swish it in fresh water twice. Because hijiki can hold inorganic arsenic, soak it well, discard the soaking water and eat it as a small side rather than daily in large amounts. Chef's tip: pour boiling water over the aburaage first to remove excess frying oil, so it soaks up the broth.

45 min

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Kabocha no nimonoSimmered Japanese pumpkin

In Japanese homes kabocha nimono is autumn and winter comfort, and it is traditionally eaten on the winter solstice (tōji) for good health; the wedges also travel well in a lunchbox. The dense, chestnut-sweet pumpkin is simmered skin-side down in a little dashi with sugar, mirin and soy until a skewer slides in, and the flesh turns fluffy while the dark green skin holds the shape. This version uses kombu–shiitake dashi so it is fully vegan; mirin contains alcohol and the note gives a swap. The usual mistake is stirring: it breaks the pumpkin into mash, so just shake the pan. Chef's tip: trim the sharp edges of each wedge (mentori) with a peeler so they don't crumble into the broth.

28 min

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Shojin dashiKombu and shiitake stock

Zen temples in Kyoto and Kamakura build their whole cuisine on this stock: kombu kelp and dried shiitake soaked in cold water until the liquid turns golden and deeply savoury, with no bonito at all. It is the vegan dashi for miso soup, simmered vegetables, noodle broths and dipping sauces, and every vegetarian Japanese recipe on this site can use it. The common mistake is boiling the kombu, which releases slime and bitterness; it should never go beyond a gentle simmer, and taking it out just before boiling gives the cleanest flavour. Chef's tip: soak overnight in the fridge (mizudashi) for the best, roundest flavour with no effort, then keep the softened shiitake for a simmered dish.

20 min

Japanese Basics

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Koya dofu no nimonoSimmered freeze-dried tofu

Kōya-dōfu takes its name from Mount Kōya, where monks discovered that tofu left out in the winter frost dried into light, spongy blocks that would keep for months. Rehydrated and simmered in sweet dashi, it soaks up broth like a sponge, so every bite releases a mouthful of savoury-sweet liquid. It is a regular in bento boxes, osechi and temple meals across Japan. Mirin contains alcohol but simmers away; see the note for an alcohol-free swap. The common mistake is boiling it hard, which makes it crumble; keep the pan at a lazy simmer. Chef's tip: after soaking, press each block between your palms in fresh water until the water runs clear, or it tastes faintly of the packet.

35 min

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Goma dofuSesame tofu

Despite its name, goma dofu contains no soybeans: it is a pale, wobbly block of ground sesame and water, set with kudzu starch, and it is the signature dish of the temple lodgings on Mount Kōya in Wakayama, served at breakfast and at the start of shojin ryori meals. It has a bouncy, almost mochi-like texture and a deep, toasty sesame flavour, eaten with a dab of wasabi and soy. The common mistake is stopping the stirring too soon: it must be beaten hard over the heat for a full 15 minutes, or it sets soft and pasty instead of springy. Chef's tip: use pure white sesame paste (neri goma) rather than tahini if you can; it is more roasted and gives a richer, creamier flavour.

30 min

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Yaki nasuGrilled aubergine

Summer evenings in Japanese homes and izakaya often bring a plate of yaki nasu: whole aubergines blackened over a flame until the skin is burnt and the inside collapses into smoky, silky strands. Peeled while hot, they are served chilled or warm with grated ginger, soy and spring onion. The classic topping is bonito flakes; this vegetarian version uses toasted sesame and a kombu–shiitake dashi in the dressing instead. The common mistake is pulling the aubergine off the flame too early, leaving a firm, bitter centre; it should feel completely floppy. Chef's tip: plunge the charred aubergines into iced water for a few seconds only, which makes them easy to peel without washing away the smoky flavour.

25 min

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InarizushiTofu pouch sushi

Named after the Inari shrines, whose fox messengers are said to love fried tofu, inarizushi are sold by the dozen in Tokyo department-store food halls and packed for school sports days, picnics and long train rides. Thin aburaage pouches are simmered in a sweet soy broth, then filled with vinegared rice and sesame, giving a juicy, sweet-salty bite. Mirin contains alcohol; see the note for an alcohol-free swap. The common mistake is squeezing the pouches dry after simmering; leave them moist so they stay juicy, but drain them enough that they don't drip. Chef's tip: roll a chopstick firmly over each sheet before cutting it, which loosens the layers so the pouch opens without tearing.

70 min

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Nasu dengakuMiso-glazed aubergine

Dengaku began in Kyoto as tofu on skewers brushed with miso and grilled at temple festivals; today the aubergine version is a favourite izakaya plate across Japan, best in late summer when Japanese aubergines are at their sweetest. The halves are scored, cooked until the flesh is custard-soft, then spread with a glossy sweet miso and grilled until it bubbles and blisters. The mirin and sake contain alcohol but simmer away in the glaze; the notes give alcohol-free swaps. The usual mistake is grilling the miso before the aubergine is fully soft: it burns while the inside stays spongy. Chef's tip: score the cut side in a deep criss-cross, almost to the skin, so the heat and the glaze both get right in.

32 min

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Kinpira goboBurdock and carrot stir-fry

Open almost any home-packed bento in Tokyo or Osaka and there is a small heap of kinpira tucked into a corner: burdock root and carrot cut into matchsticks, fried in sesame oil, then cooked down with soy, mirin and a little chilli until glossy and almost dry. It is earthy, sweet-salty and crunchy, and it keeps for four days in the fridge, which is exactly why mothers make a big pan on Sunday. The mirin and sake both contain alcohol; the ingredient notes give alcohol-free swaps. The most common mistake is soaking the cut burdock for too long, which washes away its flavour; five minutes in water is plenty. Chef's tip: leave a little skin on the burdock by scrubbing with the back of a knife rather than peeling, because most of the aroma sits just under it.

27 min

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Kenchin jiruRoot vegetable and tofu soup

This hearty, clear soup is said to have been created at Kenchō-ji, the great Zen temple in Kamakura, where monks fried scraps of root vegetables and crumbled tofu in sesame oil before simmering them, so nothing was wasted. Today it is a winter staple in Kanto homes, especially in Ibaraki and Kanagawa: soft daikon, carrot, burdock, taro and konnyaku in a soy-seasoned kombu broth, nutty with sesame. A spoon of sake goes in at the end and simmers off; the note gives an alcohol-free swap. The common mistake is skipping the frying stage; it is the sesame oil that gives kenchin its richness. Chef's tip: tear the konnyaku and tofu with your hands instead of cutting, so the rough surfaces catch more broth.

40 min

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ShiraaeVegetables in tofu dressing

Shiraae, 'white dressing', is one of the oldest dishes of Japanese temple cooking and still a gentle home side today, especially in the Kyoto area: blanched spinach, carrot and konnyaku folded into a creamy paste of tofu, ground sesame and a touch of white miso. It tastes mild, nutty and lightly sweet, rather like a Japanese answer to a dip-dressed salad. The common mistake is leaving the vegetables wet, which turns the dressing grey and runny; squeeze them well and dress just before serving. Chef's tip: for the silkiest dressing, grind the toasted sesame in a suribachi (or mortar) until it starts to turn oily, then mash the tofu straight into it.

28 min

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Korokke (Japanese potato croquettes)

On Tokyo's covered shopping streets, from Togoshi Ginza to Sunamachi, butcher and deli counters fry korokke all afternoon and sell them in paper sleeves to children on their way home from school. This vegetarian version keeps the soft, slightly sweet filling of buttery mashed potato with onion and carrot, wrapped in a jagged panko crust that shatters when you bite it. Eat them hot with a drizzle of thick sweet-savoury sauce and a pile of shredded cabbage, or tuck one cold into a bento. The usual mistake is a wet mash: steam-dry the potatoes well and let the filling cool completely, or the croquettes split open in the oil. Chef's tip: chill the shaped, crumbed croquettes for 30 minutes before frying so the coating sets firm.

60 min

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KuromameSweet black soybeans

No osechi box, the lacquered stack of cold dishes Japanese families share over the first three days of January, is complete without kuromame: plump black soybeans simmered so slowly in syrup that they stay whole, wrinkle-free and shining like jet. The word 'mame' also means hard work and good health, so eating them wishes for a diligent year. They are soft, sweet and gently savoury, with a deep bean flavour. The common mistake is letting the beans touch the air while cooking, which wrinkles their skins; keep them submerged under a drop-lid the whole time and top up with water. Chef's tip: soak the dry beans directly in the hot seasoned syrup overnight rather than in plain water, which seasons them from the inside and keeps the skins smooth.

250 min