Below is a list of dishes found in Japanese cuisine. Apart from rice, staples in Japanese cuisine include noodles, such as soba and udon. Japan has many simmered dishes such as fish products in broth called oden, or beef in sukiyaki and nikujaga. Foreign food, in particular Chinese food in the form of noodles in soup called ramen and fried dumplings, gyoza, and other food such as curry and hamburger steaks are commonly found in Japan. Historically, the Japanese shunned meat, but with the modernization of Japan in the 1860s, meat-based dishes such as tonkatsu became more common.

Rice dishes (ご飯物)

Rice porridge (お粥)

Rice bowls (どんぶり)

A one-bowl dish, consisting of a donburi (どんぶり, 丼, big bowl) full of hot steamed rice with various savory toppings:

Sushi (寿司)

Sushi (寿司, 鮨, 鮓) is a vinegared rice topped or mixed with various fresh ingredients, usually seafood or vegetables.

Other staples

Noodles (men-rui, 麺類)

Noodles (麺類) often take the place of rice in a meal. However, the Japanese appetite for rice is so strong that many restaurants even serve noodles-rice combination sets.

Bread (pan, パン)

Bread (the word "pan" (パン) is derived from the Portuguese pão) is not native to Japan and is not considered traditional Japanese food, but since its introduction in the 16th century it has become common.

Common Japanese main and side dishes (okazu, おかず)

Deep-fried dishes (agemono, 揚げ物)

Grilled and pan-fried dishes (yakimono, 焼き物)

Nabemono (one pot cooking, 鍋物)

Nabemono (鍋物) includes:

Nimono (stewed dishes, 煮物)

Nimono (煮物) is a stewed or simmered dish. A base ingredient is simmered in shiru stock flavored with sake, soy sauce, and a small amount of sweetening.

Itamemono (stir-fried dishes, 炒め物)

Stir-frying (炒め物) is not a native method of cooking in Japan, however mock-Chinese stir fries such as yasai itame (野菜炒め, stir fried vegetables) have been a staple in homes and canteens across Japan since the 1950s. Home grown stir fries include:

Sashimi (刺身)

Sashimi (刺身) is raw, thinly sliced foods served with a dipping sauce and simple garnishes; usually fish or shellfish served with soy sauce and wasabi. Less common variations include:

Soups (suimono (吸い物) and shirumono (汁物))

The soups (suimono (吸い物) and shirumono (汁物)) include:

Pickled or salted foods (tsukemono, 漬け物)

These foods are usually served in tiny portions, as a side dish to be eaten with white rice, to accompany sake or as a topping for rice porridges.

Side dishes (惣菜)

Chinmi (珍味)

Chinmi (珍味) are regional delicacies, and include: Although most Japanese eschew eating insects, in some regions, locust (inago, イナゴ) and bee larvae (hachinoko, 蜂の子) are not uncommon dishes. The larvae of species of caddisflies and stoneflies (zaza-mushi, ざざむし), harvested from the Tenryū river as it flows through Ina, Nagano, is also boiled and canned, or boiled and then sautéed in soy sauce and sugar. Japanese clawed salamander (ハコネサンショウウオ)) is eaten as well in Hinoemata, Fukushima in early summer.

Sweets and snacks (okashi (おかし), oyatsu (おやつ))

Japanese-style sweets (wagashi, 和菓子)

Wagashi include:

Old-fashioned Japanese-style sweets (dagashi, 駄菓子)

Dagashi include:

Western-style sweets (yōgashi, 洋菓子)

Yōgashi are Western-style sweets, but in Japan are typically very light or spongy.

Sweets bread (kashi pan, 菓子パン)

Kashi pan include:

Other snacks

Snacks include:

Tea and other drinks

Tea and non-alcoholic beverages

Soft drinks

Alcoholic beverages

Sake (酒) is a rice wine that typically contains 12–20% alcohol and is made by a double fermentation of rice. Kōji fungus is first used to ferment the rice starch into sugar. Regular brewing yeast is used in the second fermentation to make alcohol. At traditional meals, it is considered an equivalent to rice and is not simultaneously taken with other rice-based dishes. Side dishes for sake is particularly called sakana (肴, 酒菜), or otsumami おつまみ or ate あて. Shōchū is a distilled beverage, most commonly made from barley, sweet potatoes, or rice. Typically, it contains 25% alcohol by volume.

Imported and adapted foods

Japan has incorporated imported food from across the world (mostly from Asia, Europe and to a lesser extent the Americas), and have historically adapted many to make them their own.

Foods imported from Portugal in the 16th century

Yōshoku

Yōshoku (洋食) is a style of Western-influenced food. Other items were popularized after the war:

Other homegrown cuisine of foreign origin

Adaptations

Seasonings

Lots of Japanese foods are prepared using one or more of the following: Less traditional, but widely used ingredients include: