The Journal
From the Kitchen
Short reads on how the food is made, and on ordering well across a menu that runs from the sushi bar to the hot kitchen.
Combos and Plates: Ordering a Whole Meal
À la carte gives you control and hands you the quantity problem. A combo hands back a finished meal, with the sides already decided.
Why Sushi Comes in Six or Eight Pieces
Eight is a cylinder halved three times. Five means no rice. Two means nigiri. Piece counts are geometry, and they tell you what to expect.
Karaage, Katsu and Popcorn Chicken
Three fried chicken dishes on one menu. The differences are in the coating and the cut, and only one of them is a plate.
Edamame: Why It Is Always the First Thing You Order
The same bean that becomes tofu and soy sauce, picked months early. Why it comes in a pod you are not meant to eat, and plain versus garlic.
Gyoza: Fried and Steamed in the Same Pan
Crisp underneath, soft on top, and both from one pan. Why the pleats exist, how gyoza differ from every other dumpling, and how to dip them.
Ordering Japanese for an Office Lunch
Food that has to travel, wait, and suit people who did not choose it. Platters or boxes, how much, and the timing that trips people up.
Imitation Crab: What Kanikama Actually Is
Cooked white fish, washed to a paste, bound and painted. Not crab, not vegetarian, and in more rolls than any ingredient but rice.
Avocado: The Ingredient That Is Not Japanese
On more rolls than any fish. Where it came from, why fat and vinegared rice work together, and why ripeness is the whole game.
Soy Sauce: What It Is and How Much to Use
Soybeans, wheat, salt and months of fermentation. The five types, the brewed-versus-chemical distinction, and why you are pouring too much.
Allergens on a Japanese Menu
Soy, wheat, fish and sesame are structural rather than occasional, and they arrive through sauces and stocks a dish name never mentions.
Restaurant Ramen vs Instant Ramen
One noodle is fried and dried, the other is not. One broth is powder, the other took hours. What that changes, and how to improve the packet.