What Living in Japan Taught Me about Food

Food—oh, I tell you, Japan opened my eyes. When I first arrived and saw the ingredients people used and how meals came together, it changed my cooking style for good.

The thing that really stuck with me was the side dishes. There was more to think about than one big thing in the middle of the plate. Different flavours, different textures, a little variety. That was the lesson I brought into my own kitchen.

One soup, three dishes

One traditional Japanese meal format is ichijū-sansai (一汁三菜), meaning “one soup, three dishes.” Alongside rice, you have soup, a main dish and two side dishes. It’s a useful example of how several smaller parts can make up a meal. Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture explains the format here.

What caught my attention was the variety. You could have rice and soup, fish or meat, and other dishes to enjoy alongside them. Each part brought something different to the table.

How Japan changed my spaghetti dinner

Before Japan, I might cook spaghetti for dinner and call it finished. Spaghetti. Done. Everybody fed.

After Japan, I’d think: okay, I’m making spaghetti—let’s have Caesar salad and garlic bread with it.

Same main dish, but now there’s more going on: warm pasta, a crisp salad, and that garlicky bread you keep reaching for. The spaghetti hasn’t lost its job. It’s just got a couple of good mates at the table.

Variety earns its place

For me, a satisfying meal isn’t only about quality or how big the portion is. It’s about variety as well—from sweet to spicy and salty, with different textures and temperatures along the way.

That’s what living in Japan changed for me. I started thinking about what could go alongside the main dish and make the whole meal more enjoyable.

You don’t always need a bigger plate of the same thing. Sometimes you need a good side dish.

Both images are illustrations created for this story.