15 Must-Have Japanese Pantry Staples For Everyday Cooking

Japanese cuisine is loved around the world. If you are a seasoned cook, you will know that the unique flavors of Japanese cuisine do not come from typical herbs and spices. Instead, the subtle and interesting flavors of Japanese food rely more on the use of various types of soy sauce, fish stocks, umami-rich seasonings, unique citrus flavors, rice wines, and vinegars.

Therefore, to try your hand at Japanese cooking, you’ll need to stock a small Japanese pantry at home. We detail five essential Japanese pantry staples for beginners, with insights for more expert cooks too. Learn about different types of soy sauce, miso pastes, sweet mirin rice wine, and how they differ from sake.

We also list over 15 items you can add to your Japanese pantry as your cooking skills level up. You can buy the recommended top-quality pantry items here at Japanese Taste, or find out where to buy Japanese groceries locally.

Stock up today so you can start making your very own miso soup, sushi rolls, rice bowls, broths for udon and ramen, dipping sauces, and more.

The 5 Basic Essentials

1. Japanese Short-Grain Rice

Many Japanese dishes would simply not taste authentic without true Japanese short-grained rice. Known as Uruchimai, this rice has a high concentration of a starch called amylopectin, making it moist, tender, and sticky when cooked.

Whether you’re making sushi, donburi rice bowls, onigiri rice balls, omelet rice, or just rice steamed on the side, you’ll be needing this essential for your Japanese pantry.

If you cannot get hold of Japanese rice, a good substitute is Korean rice. Calrose rice, a type of medium-grain japonica developed and grown in California, or a good Italian risotto rice are other alternatives. If you have a rice cooker, make sure you know how to cook Japanese rice correctly.

2. Soy Sauce

The second most important Japanese pantry staple is soy sauce or ‘shoyu’. Most Asian cuisines use soy sauce that is peculiar to the region and its preferred flavors. Japan is no different, and knowing which Japanese soy sauce to use can be tricky. Broadly speaking, there are 4 types of commonly used soy sauces in Japan:

1. Koikuchi, meaning full-flavored or dark soy sauce, is the most common soy sauce in a Japanese pantry. These often include barrel-aged premium varieties such as Teraoka soy sauce from Hiroshima.

2. Usuguchi is a light soy sauce, although higher in sodium content. It’s best used in clear soups, vegetable and fish dishes, or to keep the original color and vibrancy of ingredients.

3. Shiro shoyu or white soy sauce is even lighter than usuguchi and used in much the same way. The wheat content is significantly higher with a distinctly sweet, mild, and clean flavor.

4. Tamari is a type of thick soy sauce typically preferred for sashimi, drizzled over tofu, or for glazing grilled foods like yakitori (fried chicken) or unagi (eel). It has a more intense and rich flavor.

Yamaroku Tsurubishio soy sauce has recently made a name for itself, but learn about five of the best Japanese soy sauces that are even better!

3. Miso Paste

Like soy sauce, miso paste also comes in distinctive types with various regional preferences. Shinshu miso from Nagano is the most broadly used, and it has a yellowish-brown color with a well-balanced flavor.

1. Shiro miso or white miso paste is the most beginner-friendly with a light color, mild flavor, and subtle sweetness. It works well with different types of fusion cuisine recipes. Kyoto is famous for its sweet and creamy white miso.

2. Aka miso or red miso paste has a distinctly dark or red color with a bold and deep flavor. Miso pastes from Sendai and Hokkaido are popular varieties. Red miso is used in rich stews, marinades, miso ramen, and of course, akadashi, which is typically served with donburi rice bowls.

3. Awase miso is basically a blend of two or more types of miso paste. It combines the mild, sweet notes of white miso with the rich, umami depth of red miso. You can use it in many types of dishes.

4. Mugi miso is made with barley koji instead of rice koji. It ranges from a light yellow to a reddish-brown. It’s generally sweet and less salty than red miso, but with more depth than white miso. This miso is a staple in the Kyushu and Shikoku regions.

4. Mirin

Japanese mirin is a fermented cooking wine made from a mixture of glutinous rice, rice koji, and a distilled alcohol like shochu. It adds a complex sweetness, balances salt and acidity, adds gloss, reduces strong odors, enhances flavors, and holds texture together during simmering. The key to mirin is the alcohol content:

1. Hon-mirin is the traditional standard and has around 14% alcohol. It’s best for all-around cooking purposes, and the alcohol content helps with tenderizing, limiting strong smells, and mellowing flavors.

2. Aji-mirin has an alcohol content of less than 1% with added sugars and salt to mimic the flavor of hon-mirin. It is classified as a seasoning and not a liquor, making it cheaper and easier to sell.

3. Kotteri-mirin by Kikkoman or Aji Fu mirin is a mirin-like substitute that contains little to no alcohol and is primarily made from sugar, rice, salt, and fermented rice seasoning. It has the sweetness and glaze of mirin but lacks depth.

5. Cooking Sake

Cooking sake and mirin are both cooking alcohols, but they have distinct differences. Essentially, mirin adds sweetness with a rounding of umami, while cooking sake (or ryorishu) is much richer in umami with a hint of acidity.

Both cooking sake and hon-mirin have a similarly high alcohol content. Cooking sake has added salt to make it more suitable for cooking, and unsuitable for drinking. Sake masks odors better and tenderizes better. Mirin adds additional ‘gloss’ and sweetness.

Cooking sake is not as specialized as mirin; however, brands like Takara are good because they combine two different types of rice with no artificial additives. An organic sake is a perfect choice for making sushi rice.

Seasonings & Broths

6. Dashi Powder

Dashi is another Japanese pantry essential. It’s a stock that can come in the form of dissolvable granules, whole ingredients in a soaking bag, or bottled as a liquid. Dashi is an essential for flavoring miso soups (if not already added to the paste), udon broth, simmered dishes, oden hotpot, and it can be used in dressings or mixed with water used to cook rice in dishes like takikomi gohan.

Hondashi by Ajimoto is a general staple, easily available in many countries. It’s a dried bonito tuna stock with added MSG, sugar, yeast extract, maltose, dextrose and other additives. You can of course, get organic dashi stock with no artificial ingredients.

Not all dashi are tuna-based, others use ago (flying fish) or saba (mackerel), while konbu dashi (kelp) and shitake dashi (mushroom) can be used in vegetarian dishes and clear soups. Another essential dashi is shirodashi, which is a fish-based clear dashi that comes in liquid form.

Japanese people love their dashi and if traveling in Japan you can easily come across dashi specialty stores. Department stores often sell select, high-quality dashi while supermarkets stock essential types.

7. Rice Vinegar

Compared to other vinegars like apple vinegar, Japanese rice vinegar is milder in flavor, lower in acidity, with a subtle sweetness. Pure, junmai rice vinegar is the standard type used for dressings, marinades, pickles, and simmering sauces. Seasoned rice vinegar or awasezu has added salt and sugar and is typically used when making sushi. Rice sake is usually added to the water before cooking rice.

8. Dried Kombu Kelp

Konbu or dried kelp comes in either granular form or as dried out kelp sticks. It’s often included in various types of dashi mixtures, or you can use it as it is. Konbu is an ‘umami powerhouse’ and is usually added to simmering dishes, clear soups, and hot pots. Konbu can also be used in fusion dishes like consommés, in bean stews, meat marinades, water for steaming fish, or in konbu sourdough bread!

9. Bonito Flakes

Bonito flakes, known as katsuobushi, are a staple Japanese pantry item that provides a deep, smoky, and savory umami flavor to a wide range of dishes. Bonito tuna flakes are a standard topping for takoyaki, okonomiyaki, as well as for sprinkling on tofu and rice dishes. Although people typically buy ready-shaved flakes, you can make bonito at home if you have a bonito shaver and a solid block of Japanese katsuobushi. Bonito is also used and sold as a dashi mix and is often an ingredient in furikake seasoning mixes.

Japanese Condiments

10. Japanese Mayonnaise

Japanese mayonnaise, especially the well-known Kewpie brand, is slightly different from typical Western-style mayonnaise. Japanese mayonnaise generally uses only the egg yolk, which makes it darker and more creamy. It uses rice vinegar so it has a sweeter and less acidic or tangy flavor profile. Its deeper flavor makes it a good match to dishes like takoyaki, okonomiyaki, potato salad, and fried foods. Kewpie also makes an egg-free vegan version.

11. Ponzu Sauce

Japanese ponzu is a unique and very tasty citrus-based sauce. It’s typically made from a combination of yuzu, sudachi, or kabosu. These three types of citrus fruits are uniquely Asian and Japanese. Yuzu originates from China, and sudachi and kabosu are best described as cousins to lime, but not the same. Their refreshing and different taste profiles are blended with a light soy sauce, mirin, rice vinegar and usually a konbu dashi. Some ponzu sauces contain bonito so are not vegetarian.

Ponzu makes for a great dipping sauce or salad dressing. It can be used in marinades (especially for fish) drizzled as a finishing sauce (much like a lemon), or even added to hot pot servings.

12. Sesame Oil

Sesame oil is used in many types of Asian cuisine, including Japanese, but it is best known for its ubiquitous use in Korean food. Japanese sesame oil is generally used more as a finishing oil, for adding flavor to marinades, dipping sauces, dressings, or stir-fries.

Sesame is called goma in Japanese, and goma salad dressing is very popular. Chili sesame oil is often added to ramen soup as a condiment, and sesame oil is used in dips for gyoza dumplings.

Noodles & Dry Goods

13. Dried Ramen or Soba Noodles

Dried ramen noodles and soba noodles are quite different, but both are great for making fast and easy dishes and well worth having in your Japanese pantry.

Soba noodles are gluten-free and can be eaten hot or cold, or used in stir fries like yakisoba. Soba salad is a popular summer dish that combines other Japanese pantry staples like soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil.

Dried ramen noodles can be added to salads, soups, stir fries, lightly toasted in oil and with seasoning, or you can use them as a pizza base. Other fusion creations use dried ramen noodles in casseroles, burger patties, and no-bake desserts.

14. Dried Nori Seaweed

Dried nori seaweed sheets are an essential item for home-made makizushi, or rolled sushi. You will also need nori sheets to make onigiri rice balls and you can cut up the nori into small pieces and use it to garnish many types of dishes. Typically, you sprinkle nori on takoyaki, yakisoba, tofu, or miso soup. Nori adds an extra depth of umami, and you can use it in omelettes or finer types as a popcorn garnish.

15. Furikake Seasoning

Furikake is a type of mixed dried seasoning. It comes in all sorts of flavors, either vegetarian or typically fish-based flavors like bonito, salmon, and also dried egg. Vegetarian options include unique Japanese flavors like shiso, ume plum, and nori with sesame seeds. Furikake is generally used to flavor onigiri rice balls or plain rice, as in furikake gohan. Wasabi furikake is a great choice to use in fusion oil-based spaghetti dishes.

5 Next-Level Staples to Boost Your Japanese Pantry

Once you have your Japanese pantry staples sorted, these five items can bring even more variety onto your kitchen table:

1. Umeboshi, or salty-sour pickled plums, give digestive support and you can eat them as they are or put them into onigiri rice balls.

2. Yuzu paste is a tarty citrus paste made from yuzu peel, chili, and other ingredients. It’s excellent for basting grilled meats, in hot pots, mixing into sashimi sauce, as a sushi topping, or add it to roast vegetables or pasta.

3. Japanese curry roux, available in blocks of mild, medium, or hot curry flavors, have made a name for themselves around the world. Japanese curry makes for the perfect comfort food and goes well with Japanese rice.

4. Shichimi togarashi is a mixture of seven spices, including chili. It goes well sprinkled over udon, rice bowls, or grilled meats. You can also get yuzu flavor.

5. Mentsuyu is a versatile fish-based dipping sauce for cold soba, udon, or tempura. It can also be used in stews, on meats, or for making pickles.

Where to Buy Japanese Pantry Items

One of the best places to Japanese pantry staples is right here online at Japanese Taste. For people in North America, ‘The Japanese Pantry’ is another good option for Japanese groceries.

Other places to get Japanese pantry essentials depend on where you live. You should be able to find Japanese groceries in any Asian-style supermarket. Korean supermarkets often stock the basics, or international import food shops are another good option. If you are living in the Southeast Asian region, local supermarkets may very well have what you are looking for.

Bringing Japanese Flavor to Everyday Meals

If you are not Japanese, you are probably not going to be eating Japanese food every day. Japanese pantry essentials, however, can be used in a wide range of dishes.

Japanese soy sauce, for example, is typically lighter in taste than other soy sauces, which is something you may prefer. Ponzu can be paired with many types of foods, while nori and furikake seasoning are very versatile. You can also experiment with Japanese dashi, rice vinegar, cooking sake, and white miso paste in various fusion dishes.

Explore our recipes and start cooking with authentic Japanese ingredients today!