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Tokyo is famous these days as one of the world’s international food capital, with many foods from all over Japan and the world collecting there. However, only one city has the nickname of ‘Japan’s Kitchen’, and that city is Osaka. People in Osaka are serious about their food, with there even being a phrase called kui-daore, which means ‘to eat yourself broke’.

Japan has plenty of foods that seem to be fun for adventurous foodies. For some, it’s yakiniku, with its unique cuts of beef and pork. For others, the adventure may be hakozushi with its unique take on sushi. However, for many daring foodies, fugu is the ultimate test of courage.

Japan loves to adopt fun things from other countries and make them their own. We see it most commonly in food, with examples like ramen and castella going from a foreign creation to a Japanese classic. We also see it in holidays like Christmas and Valentine’s Day.

Humans have been putting meat over fire for a long time to create, and there’s no wonder why. It tastes delicious, fills you up and is relatively easy to do (but hard to master). Maybe that’s why Japan does it so well.

Have you ever been to a Japanese ramen shop or beef bowl shop and seen those reddish-pinkish pickles? Have you ever thought, “What is that?” Well, we’ve got an answer for you. That is beni shoga, a Kansai creation that is all over Japanese cuisine as both a topping and as a fried treat.

Japanese has a unique culture around food, but street food and Kyoto’s gourmet Kaiseki cuisine tend to dominate the conversation. However, Osaka has made a unique and fun contribution to Japan’s food culture. That contribution is Kappo cuisine...