Christmas cake reservations are underway across Japan on the approach to Christmas in late December, yet the familiar holiday treat is once again becoming more expensive as rising ingredient costs push prices higher, prompting shops to introduce smaller, more affordable options and even cakes without Santa decorations.
As Matcha’s popularity continues to climb, with overseas shipments expanding sharply and exports increasing more than tenfold over the past 15 years as global demand strengthens. Japan is encouraging tea growers to shift production to tencha, the raw material used to make matcha. While it may seem logical that farmers should simply increase production if matcha is selling so well, growers say the reality is far more complex.
This is Mochiyori PAN Samba, a small bakery in Oshiage near the Tokyo Skytree that creates its own Japanese deli style baked bread. What makes it special is that it is helped run by three 80 year old grandmas who are at the heart of the shop. (Paolo fromTOKYO)
Nagoya welcomed one of Japan's largest wine sales floors on November 24th as JR Nagoya Takashimaya opened “Wine Maison” on its second basement level, creating a new destination for wine enthusiasts with a selection of roughly 2,600 varieties and 15,000 bottles sourced from around the world.
Japan byFood and Shizuka are going inside a bento factory in Japan, where we are discovering all the processes that make the famous train station “ekiben” bento so special. (Japan by Food)
Japan byFood and Shizuka are eating through the season! Autumn in Japan is more than just red leaves – it’s also a celebration of seasonal flavor. (Japan by Food)
November 11th marks “Sake Day,” a date chosen because the kanji for salmon (鮭) contains the characters for “eleven” side by side. Although Japan’s wild salmon catch has fallen due to rising sea temperatures and shifting ocean currents, the popularity of farmed salmon is growing rapidly across the country, including in Fukuoka.
A wave of hit ramen shops and bakeries across Kansai owes much of its pulling power to little-seen specialists who tailor ingredients to each store’s recipe, with a Kyoto noodle maker growing annual sales from 70 million yen to 1.3 billion yen by supplying made-to-order noodles and a Kobe bean-paste producer developing more than 500 varieties of anko.