A matcha shortage is brewing. Here’s where to get the best tea while you can
Plus an edit of quality matcha powders to try.
A sommelier’s guide to new Japanese drinks to try
Sommelier SAMANTHA PAYNE raises a glass to the new wave of Japanese drinks coming to the fore. Kanpai!
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Yoshii’s Omakase
Annual Restaurant Guide: NSW top 25
30 Japanese recipes to try at home
All your favourites from the land of the rising sun.
Cocktail hour: Ante’s House Whisky Highball cocktail
Mirin gives an interesting depth of flavour to the classic whisky Highball cocktail
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Spiced eggplant katsu sandos
This Japanese-inspired eggplant sandwich recipe makes for a great vegetarian lunch.
What is umami?
Umami is more than just a culinary buzzword. We take a deep-dive into what umami means, our “fifth taste”, and how best to achieve it.
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Sweet tofu doughnuts with yuzu salted caramel
Soft, sweet and too easy to eat.
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Komeyui Brisbane: Restaurant Review
Melbourne’s Komeyui has a slick new Brisbane outpost and it’s bringing a little Zen interconnection to the everyday.
Crisp eggplant schnitzel with yasai itame
Crisp, panko-crumbed eggplants are perfectly paired with a Japanese yasai itame.
Crisp pork and ginger gyozas with sesame rayu
Crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside - these pork and ginger gyozas always delight.
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Slow-cooked teriyaki beef ribs
Comfort food doesn't get better than these fall-off-the-bone, slow-cooked teriyaki beef ribs.
Grilled salmon tataki with lime and jalapeño ponzu
Salmon tataki served with diced cucumber, jalapeño slices and chilli oil for an extra kick of heat.
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Soba noodles with nori sesame butter and sake-grilled prawns
An easy, everyday Japanese-inspired soba noodle recipe that requires little time and effort.
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Mirin-glazed pork belly, ginger rice and pickled shiitake mushrooms
Pork belly gets a Japanese-inspired makeover with a sweet mirin glaze.
Okra with ponzu and bonito flakes
A quick and easy Japanese okra recipe to make on the hibachi or barbecue.
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Kare pan toasties (Japanese curry bread)
The famous Japanese curry bread gets a fast makeover in this easy toastie recipe.
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Yakitori Yurippi’s scallops in half shell
Served with melted butter and purple shiso leaves.
Yakitori Yurippi’s onigiri
Master one of Japan's most famous street food snacks - Japanese rice balls.
Yakitori Yurippi’s zucchini skewers
Make these simple zucchini skewers the next time you're planning a gathering.
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Five of a Kind: Miso
The fermented soybean and paste is fundamental to Japanese cuisine.
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Ramen secrets: Inside the Tokyo ramen scene
Guided by a local ramen head, we hit the streets of Tokyo in pursuit of the best bowls.
Léonie Upstairs: Restaurant review
This serene eatery is a lesson in temaki sushi and female-brewed sake.
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Ruby, My Dear: Restaurant review
Good times (and good tunes) are in abundance at this Brisbane newcomer.
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Japanese Drams: What makes Japanese whisky unique
With its more delicate, approachable styles, over the past decade demand for Japanese whisky has outstripped supply. Here are the Japanese whisky bottles to know about.
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How to make okonomiyaki
Made with tempura flour, this grilled Japanese pancake snack can be dressed up or down with your favourite toppings.
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Steak with caramelised onion and ginger ponzu
A quick and easy steak recipe that goes beyond a charred barbecued rump.
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Yakitori Yurippi’s chicken and spring onion skewers
A simple side dish or starter that requires a handful of ingredients.
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Slurp through the week: Ramen recipes that are great for weekdays
Turn to these ramen recipes when the weather gets cooler.
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How to host a hibachi party
Fire up the coals and put the playlist on repeat. Backyard get-togethers are taking on a Japanese flavour and we’ve got the prep – and the grills – sorted.
Japanese egg cups with miso dressing
Packed with crunch and flavour, these egg cups are infinitely versatile; serve as an entrée or a light lunch.
22 of the best places to visit in Tokyo
Explore 22 of the essential places to go in Tokyo, Japan, with Lee Tran Lam.
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Now open in Melbourne: A multi-faceted restaurant with serious grandeur and a world class sushi chef
Yūgen Restaurant has lured Alex Yu from Sydney’s Sokyo, and will be doing a six-person omakase, alongside a pan-Asian subterranean snack and dinner den.
Beef taco rice
Beef taco rice is an Okinawan specialty that is an example of how fusion is by no means a dirty word.
Tonkatsu with curry sauce
It's made for cold nights and second helpings.
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Opening soon in Brisbane: Sushi Room, a luxe seafood showcase at the Calile Hotel
No prizes for guessing the focus of the latest addition to Simon Gloftis’ restaurant portfolio. Come for a sushi and a beer, or push the boat out with an 18-course omakase.
Beef short ribs in miso and beer
In this recipe, we've combined red miso and Guinness to create an umami-rich sauce.
Now open: Chase Kojima mixes ramen and omakase at his fun new neon-lit diner
At night, it's a set-menu experience with ramen and snacks to try (with PS40-designed cocktails). At lunch, it's a classic ramen shop.
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First verdict: Ante, Sydney
There’s an impressive menu by a former Billy Kwong and Lankan Filling Station chef. Plus, personalized sake flights and a vinyl collection that’s 2500 LPs strong. This is an opening to get jazzed about.
Kazuki’s beef tataki with anchovy dressing and potato chips
This recipe from Melbourne restaurant Kazuki's is a delicate and flavourful take on beef tataki.
Chaco Ramen’s fat soy ramen and kaeshi
The staple bowl of noodles from the Sydney ramen house.
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Chaco Bar
To have the complete Chaco Bar experience one must surrender all inhibitions at the fabric-draped door.
Kazuki’s
Behind a monochrome shopfront is Kazuki's, an oasis of minimalist, mustard-carpeted calm, where Japanese and European flavours are fused brilliantly.
Minamishima
The Japanese notion of "ichigyo zammai" – doing one thing excessively well – is on vivid display at this backstreet Richmond sushi temple.
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Provenance
The elegantly refreshed Provenance has never shone brighter, promising diners a riot of colour, slow food and ceramics.
Shōbōsho
A space that channels Tokyo's jumble of cheap grills and thrills, with a dash of Korea and kitsch.
Raku
An extensive drinks offering and clockwork service equals a leisurely dining experience at this Japanese diner.
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Kazuki’s prawn and chive dumplings, sake butter and ponzu
Plump prawn parcels, enriched with that sake butter, and balanced with that citrus-y ponzu.
Kazuki’s cucumber, two ways (with almond miso, and horeseradish cream)
An elegant starter.
Yoko Dining’s mochi ice-cream
Come for the mochi, stay for the ice-cream. This dessert creation is a one-two hit of chewy and creamy textures.
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Pork belly donburi
An all-in-one rice bowl.
Nakano Darling’s guide to making gyoza
The Sydney izakaya is renowned for its crisp, golden pork dumplings. Here's how to make them, step by step.
Where Japanese Australians go for a taste of home
Across Australia, there are plenty of spots to experience the food and culture of Japan. And for these chefs, restaurateurs and producers, it's just a matter of knowing where to look.
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Wafu pasta: Fettuccine with prawns, tomato and sake-soy butter
An umami-packed combination that just works.
How Australia fell in love with Japanese food
Exorbitant Kewpie mayonnaise prices, yakisoba made with spaghetti, and fish without the fat. Australians may have a love affair with Japanese cuisine but for the chefs who were first on the scene, it wasn't always easy.
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Watch: how to make okonomiyaki with Sokyo’s Chase Kojima
The Sokyo chef puts his Osaka okonomiyaki down, flips it and reverses it.
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How to make dashi (and chawanmushi)
Chef Michael Ryan shows how to make the kombu-based stock, a cornerstone of Japanese cooking, and how to use it in chawanmushi.
Brunswick Heads’ Fleet is taking a sabbatical and transforming into a ramen bar
And its incoming Tokyo-born head chef has no qualms about charging $40 per person for the Japanese noodle soup experience.
Mark Best’s Japanese savoury custard
A dish that's both delicate and impressive.
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Coming soon to Sydney: Simulation Senpai, a permanent sashimi and chirashizushi stand by Sokyo’s Chase Kojima
This time, it’s here to stay.
Chaco Bar’s chicken thigh skewers
A must for your at-home yakitori.
Yoko Dining’s mushroom gyoza
A vegetarian-friendly take on the Japanese dumplings
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Soba noodle soup with egg, tofu and broccolini
A quick and easy noodle soup for cold winter nights.
Yaki udon with mushrooms
This combination of wok-tossed pork, mushrooms, udon and soy is simple, but effective.
Chaco Bar’s chicken wing “gyoza”
A must-try snack from the Sydney yakitori restaurant.
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Chaco Bar’s Chaco cheesecake
The yakitori eatery's take on Basque cheesecake, with a lick of Japanese whisky.
Carbonara, Japanese-style
From the world of wafu pasta comes this umami-rich take on carbonara.
Tetsuya Wakuda’s shabu shabu
Gather around the table and dip in.
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Nobu is coming to Sydney
A sushi master, a film producer and Robert De Niro walk into a Sydney casino, and get set to open the 43rd Nobu restaurant in the world.
Yoko Dining’s okonomiyaki
A recipe for the umami-rich Japanese pancake from Brisbane's contemporary izakaya.
Ochazuke
Japanese comfort food at its best.
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Navy curry
Japan's take on curry delivers spice, a little sweetness, and all-round comfort.
Braised tofu and winter melon
A humble, soul-warming dish.
Okonomiyaki with sticky soy pork belly
The best pancake ever.
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Sokyo’s guide to making nigiri
Executive chef Chase Kojima talks us through the precise art of draping finely cut slices of seafood over hand-pressed rice.
On the pass with Kitak Lee, Yoko Dining
The chef on making the move to Brisbane, the best variety of Japanese noodles and the hardest dish to master in his kitchen.
Takashi Murakami: how I eat
The Japanese artist on finishing art during a typhoon, working with Marc Jacobs and decorated burgers.
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Japanese egg sandwiches
The perfect companion for a summer picnic.
Udon with pipis and sake
A simple dish that's rich, savoury and made special by the inclusion of pipis.
Sokyo’s guide to making chirashi zushi
Sushi master Chase Kojima of Sydney’s Sokyo restaurant reveals the key steps to this freewheeling deconstructed sushi.
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Wasabi
Visiting Wasabi – which is cantilevered over the Noosa River – is almost like entering the mythical Japanese floating world of Ukiyo.
Japanese (and Japanese-inspired) ways with chicken
The land of the rising sun has some winning chicken recipes.
How to make nukazuke (bran-fermented Japanese pickles) with Rough Rice
Master fermenter Adam James, of Hobart’s Rough Rice, on how to make crisp and refreshing nukazuke pickles.
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Miso recipes that we keep coming back to
Sure, the Japanese soy bean paste packs an umami punch, but it also works wonders in desserts.
A quiet place to experience a Japanese-style tea ceremony in inner-city Melbourne
In a city known for its boutique coffee, there's a place that's offering specialty green tea sourced from a seventh-generation plantation near Kyoto.
Pork and spring onion yakiton with tare
These barbecued Japanese pork skewers will keep you coming back for more, especially when glazed with the sweet and sticky tare sauce.
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Sokyo and Lee Ho Fook chefs to collaborate on a new Japanese-Chinese restaurant
And they’ve nabbed a beautiful waterfront location.
Trout and daikon rice bowl
Part chirashizushi, part poke bowl, all-round fresh and fast flavour.
What are Hida Beni?
It's vividly scarlet on the outside, and beautifully streaked with red and white on the inside. Quay chef Peter Gilmore explains the history of the unique Japanese vegetable.
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Kazuki’s, Melbourne review
A one-time Daylesford favourite, Kazuki’s is bringing small-town charm to Carlton with clever cooking and no shortage of technical prowess.
Hartsyard re-opens with new owners
With a new look, new cheese puffs, and a kind-of new menu.
Kisumé
REVIEW When restaurateur Chris Lucas puts his stamp on a cuisine, you can expect his take to be bold. And much like its raucous siblings Chin Chin and Hawker Hall, Kisumé is a Japanese restaurant with the volume turned up. Here, though, that energy doesn’t come via music ricocheting off concrete, but rather three levels […]
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Hong Kong’s edgiest omakase sushi chef, Max Levy, is coming to Australia
The chef at from cult Hong Kong izakaya and sushi bar Okra makes his first ever Australian appearance this month with a one-off dinner.
Melbourne’s Kappo gives way to Japanese hotpot restaurant, Master Den’s Poppu Uppu
Omakase-style dining at Kappo may be gone, but in its place is a pop-up restaurant specialising in comforting Japanese hotpots.
What is yuzu kosho?
A punchy paste packing citrus and chilli, yuzu kosho is the kind of versatile flavour bomb that’ll spice up pretty much anything. Get the lowdown on this Japanese condiment.
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Team Noma to open in Japan – permanently
René Redzepi’s right-hand man to head Noma’s first restaurant outside Scandinavia.
Gourmet Institute: Chase Kojima
Chase Kojima reveals his recipes for a perfect picnic, blending Japanese aesthetics and Australians love of the outdoors.
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Anatomy of a dish: the katsu sando
The katsu sando is turning up on menus everywhere. But what are its essential elements? We take it apart.
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Silken tofu in a dashi broth with mushrooms and broccolini
Build a rich and nourishing broth with minimum fuss thanks to the power of dashi.
Charred miso eggplant with nori and sesame
Nasu dengaku is one of Japan's most popular exports for a reason. Get ready to fire up that grill.