Can I travel to Japan as a vegan?
Photo: Japan | Vegan Travel | Image by David Mark from Pixabay
Japanese cuisine is known for its heavy use of meat and fish, and even stocks and sauces usually have some ingredients containing meat. Vegetarianism and veganism is not as popular in Japan as it is in the West, so you'll find there's often some confusion as to what you can and can't eat. However, with a little planning, it's possible to navigate Japan and even sample vegetarian or vegan Japanese food, without compromising your diet. If you're a little adventurous, you may even discover some new ingredients to add to your vegan cooking arsenal when you go back home.
The elegant and artfully prepared cuisine, served on beautiful plates and dishes of Kamakura lacquerware, tends to be made up of soybean-based foods, such as tofu, along with seasonal vegetables. It is believed to bring balance to mind, body, and spirit. Great care is taken to avoid waste in preparing this cuisine, and even the tops of vegetables are used for stock.
Being a vegetarian or vegan in Japan is a challenge, but veggie travellers shouldn't be deterred because there is plenty to keep you well-fed.
In theory, Japanese food can be delicious and wholesome for both vegans and vegetarians. Rice and vegan-friendly noodles make up the base of most dishes. Tofu is available in a staggering variety of shapes and textures. Miso, a seasoning made of fermented soybeans and koji (a fungus) is in many dishes. Natto, fermented soybeans, are a staple of the cuisine and fresh or pickled seasonal veggies are easy to find. However, even when meat or fish isn't immediately evident in a dish, there's often hidden ingredients such as meat stock, dashi (fish stock) or bonito flakes that render a dish vegan unfriendly. Communication and understanding barriers can further add to frustrations; the concept of vegetarian or vegan diets isn't well-understood, and English isn't widely spoken, so simply requesting vegetarian cuisine may not be effective. Additionally, menus and ingredients lists are often written in Japanese, making it hard to ascertain for yourself whether or not a dish is vegetarian.
For more inspiring Japanese cuisine, there are a few dishes you can try, such as vegetable tempura, tsukemono (pickled vegetables), tofu and tofu skin, nasu dengaku (miso-marinated grilled eggplant), zaru soba (boiled and chilled buckwheat noodles), kappa maki (seaweed sushi rolls with cucumber), takuan maki (daikon sushi rolls).
The word "bejitarian" (vegetarian) is widely understood but can be a little more flexible in definition than you might appreciate. Since chicken, fish, and stock may be considered "bejitarian," you may want to find a way to explain your diet that's more all-encompassing. This is particularly true if you're a strict vegan or vegetarian who won't consume dashi that is found in nearly every dish. Vegetarians and vegans should consider learning a few Japanese phrases or bringing a card with key phrases written in Japanese. Google Translate is also a helpful tool for reading menus.