Japanese cuisine has always revolved around shun (seasonality), and winter is the moment for deep broths, slow cooking and meals meant to warm the body from the inside. Ramen and tempura might be reliable favorites, but the true heart of Japanese comfort food beats loudest when it’s cold outside. Here are the dishes that bring winter in Japan to life.
Nabe Hot Pot
First, there’s nabe, the undisputed winter food king in Japan. While nabe means “pot” and encompasses the broad sphere of hot pot dishes, it usually consists of a clay pot sitting at the center of the table on a portable burner, bubbling with broth while everyone adds their favorite ingredients such as Chinese cabbage, mushrooms, tofu, green onion and thinly sliced pork or chicken.
There are endless regional variations, from soy milk-based broth to hearty miso versions. The most well-known varieties include sukiyaki (pictured above with sliced beef), the sumo wrestler staple chankonabe and shabu-shabu. There’s also the Fukuoka specialties of motsunabe (offal hot pot) and mizutaki (a water-broth hot pot). And just when you think you’ve eaten enough, it’s time for shime; adding rice or noodles to soak up the leftover soup for a hearty finish to the meal.
Oden
Anyone who has walked into a Japanese convenience store in the wintertime will recognize the smell of oden almost instantly. Oden is a slow-simmered stew filled with skewers, fish cakes, konjac, boiled eggs, kinchaku (fried tofu skin wrapped like a pouch) and thick slices of daikon that soaks in all the broth.
It started as a humble street food, but now it’s everywhere in winter, from the covered containers at convenience store cash registers to small stalls or carts pushed around town. Cheap and filling, it’s the perfect comfort food.
Nikuman
For commuters and students rushing on icy mornings, nikuman is the ultimate pocket-sized go-to food. These steamed buns are filled with a savory mix of pork, onions and mushrooms. They are soft, fluffy and hot enough to double as hand warmers.
Convenience stores keep them stacked in glass cases all winter, usually right next to the bubbling container of oden. Along with the classic pork version, you’ll also spot fun flavors such as pizzaman or curryman.
Yakiimo Sweet Potato
If you had to pick a single food item that feels like winter in Japan, it would be yakiimo, which appears everywhere once the temperature drops. You’ll find it at convenience stores, supermarkets, weekend markets and even old-fashioned trucks that crawl through neighborhoods, playing a nostalgic tune to announce fresh batches.
The magic is in the texture. The purple-skinned satsumaimo roast slowly until their insides turn golden, creamy and caramel-sweet, almost like custard. Eating one outside on a cold day is practically a seasonal ritual.
Zosui Rice Soup
This Japanese rice soup is the ultimate gentle meal. It’s something people eat when they’re feeling cold, tired, or generally under the weather. Similar to the shime we mentioned earlier, it’s often made from the leftover broth of a hot pot, which means every spoonful carries the flavors of whatever was cooked earlier.
The rice is simmered until it softens into a porridge-like texture, then mixed with beaten egg that turns silky in the heat, and finished with a sprinkle of spring onion or a bit of yuzu citrus zest that brightens everything up.
Kaki Oysters
Winter is oyster season in Japan, with kaki at their absolute best. They are plump, briny and full of flavor. Regions like Hiroshima and Miyagi are famous for them, and winter menus across the country are suddenly filled with oyster dishes.
There’s kaki-fry, where oysters are breaded and deep-fried until crispy on the outside and buttery on the inside. There’s kaki–nabe, a hot pot that simmers oysters with vegetables in miso or soy-based broth. And then there’s the simple pleasure of yaki-gaki, grilled oysters eaten with just a squeeze of lemon.
Oshiruko Red Bean Soup
Winter isn’t just about savory things. Japan’s cold-weather sweets are just as comforting. Oshiruko, a warm azuki bean soup served with toasted mochi, is a classic.
The beans can be chunky or smooth, mixed in with a piping-hot chunk of mochi rice cake that is chewy, stretchy and slightly crisp on the outside. It’s the kind of dessert that will warm both your hands and your mood.
Mikan
Finally, winter food in Japan wouldn’t be complete without eating mikan mandarins over the kotatsu, a Japanese low table with a heater and a heavy blanket draped over it.
Families tuck their legs underneath, peel bright orange mikan, sip some hot tea and slowly warm up on chilly afternoons.
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