The Surprising History of Yoshoku: Japanese Western Food

You may have heard of washoku, or “Japanese cuisine,” but what about yoshoku?

Literally “Western cuisine,” yoshoku is a particular kind of Japanese Western food. Although yoshoku dishes were originally based on foods from England, France, America, and other Western countries, yoshoku has since taken on a Japanese character all its own. Omurice, naporitan, korokke—you would be hard-pressed to find these exact dishes on any American or European menu. And yet they’re common and well-loved in Japan. Read on for a sampling of this classic fare, served with tidbits of the histories behind them.

Food culture tends to follow behind world affairs. One of the most striking examples of this is the sudden Westernization Japan underwent after being forcefully opened to the West with the arrival of the United States’ Commodore Perry in 1853 CE. This and the Meiji Restoration (1868 CE) unleashed unprecedentedly rapid political change, cultural change, and ultimately changes to the ways food was eaten across Japan.

The influx of foreign foods and Japan’s adoption of foreign cuisines is what led to the creation of yoshoku, as newly introduced Western menu items were adapted with Japanese ingredients and techniques. During the Meiji era (1868–1912 CE), Western-style restaurants cropped up in cities like Tokyo. European-inspired dishes started out as a luxury for those who could afford them, but as the Meiji era progressed, yoshoku trickled down to the working classes as well.

It wasn’t the first time Japan adopted food from other countries. Ramen, for instance, was brought from China, while tempura was influenced by Portuguese food, brought by traders alongside guns. Unlike ramen and tempura, you would be hard-pressed to find yoshoku on the menu of a Japanese restaurant abroad. And yet these dishes have fully entered the Japanese consciousness, appearing in home cooking, restaurants, and kissaten—Japanese cafes known for their coffee, retro vibes, and comforting yoshoku.

Discover five of the most well-known and well-loved yoshoku dishes, and learn the surprising history behind this unique fare.

Curry rice, like the name implies, is half saucy curry, half fluffy white rice. A staple of home cooking, cafe restaurants, and meals for large groups of people, Japanese curry rice is typically made with curry powder or curry roux, simmered with meat and vegetables, and flour as a thickening agent. Carrot and onion almost always make an appearance, and potatoes and beef are common additions. Spice levels range from amakuchi, “sweet,” i.e., not spicy, to karakuchi, “spicy,” but all levels tend to contain a signature sweetness. Served on a big plate and eaten with a spoon, curry rice is stomach-warming and hearty, perfect for when you need a cozy pick-me-up.

But as you might notice from the description, curry rice is quite distinct from Indian curries. So, where did it come from, and how did it get to Japan?

The British colonization of India brought curry to England, which put its own spin on the dish, developing curry powder and adding flour. After Japan opened to the West, Japanese envoys, samurai, and researchers began encountering this Anglicized variety of curry on ships traveling between Europe and America. But the main spark for its widespread adoption in Japan came with Japan’s efforts to rapidly modernize its military by studying the practices of Western powers.

This included what Western soldiers ate. The Japanese navy, in particular, played a large role here as naval cooks discovered that curry made a good mess hall food on ships. With long days and weeks spent at sea, nutritional balance was especially important, yet space for supplies was limited. Curry’s small number of ingredients still gave sailors enough nutrients to keep them healthy, while curry powder made it easy to make the dish in large quantities.

Curry rice began appearing in casual eateries, cafeterias, and student dorms by the early 1900s, and members of the military also brought their knowledge of the dish home with them. It became a common school lunch menu item after World War II, and innovations in cooking products, such as instant curry roux in the 1960s, made it easy to make quickly at home.

Curry rice is still commonly served today at modern shokudo (cafeterias), family restaurants, some kissaten, and specialty curry shops. Variations include curry udon and curry soba—these classic Japanese soups flavored with a generous ladleful of curry. Similar in appearance to curry rice is hayashi rice, which typically pairs fluffy white rice with stewed meat and vegetables in a demi-glace or similar sauce.

So if you get the chance, give Japanese curry rice a try. You’ll get a full spoonful of culinary history!

Next up in iconic yoshoku menu items is omurice. A portmanteau of “omelette” and “rice,” it’s made up of fluffy ketchup-fried rice draped or wrapped in a thin layer of omelette, and often topped with ketchup or demi-glace sauce.

You read that right: ketchup is a key ingredient. The rice is fried with ketchup and the vegetables and meat of your choice. Then, a thin layer of plain omelette is either placed over top or used to wrap the fried rice.

Omurice is a favorite of Japanese home cooking. You’ll often see it created by the romantic interest in Japanese dramas, decorated on top with cute designs in ketchup and green peas. Something about homemade, fluffy omurice just says love and care!

To discover how this dish developed in Japan, it helps to look at its constituent parts. First is the omelet, which appears to have come to Japan through its contact with England in the late 1800s. But next is the more interesting part: the rice.

The rice of omurice started out as chicken rice: a stir-fried rice with chicken added. Its English-influenced name in Japanese, chiken raisu, suggests its origin: this dish, too, was influenced by British recipes. But where does the ketchup come in?

Saffron-flavored pilaf or paella had already been introduced to Japan in the early Edo period (1603–1868 CE). But chicken pilaf was introduced by Britain in the early Meiji era. These British recipes sometimes swapped the more expensive saffron for tomatoes. Japanese yoshoku cookbooks in the early 1900s spread recipes for chicken rice that included tomatoes, and finally a recipe suggesting ketchup as a substitute for tomatoes was circulated by popular Japanese women’s magazines in the late 1920s.

At some point around the 1920s, a precursor dish of white rice wrapped in an omelet seems to have combined with this version of ketchup-fried chicken rice, thus creating what we know of today as omurice.

Incidentally, two different restaurants in Tokyo and Osaka both claim to have invented the dish. But in any case, we can say that omurice was firmly established in yoshoku cookbooks in Japan by the latter half of the 1920s.

The next dish takes us to the other side of the Pacific. Japanese hamburger steak, often referred to as Japanese Hamburg steak, is known in Japan as hanbāgu. It’s very similar to a hamburger or American-style Hamburg steak, except that it is served without a bun, and with rice. Topped with a demi-glace or similar sauce—often a combination of ketchup and Worcestershire sauce—Japanese hamburger steak is yet another kissaten classic and home-cooking favorite.

Japanese hamburger steak was brought to Japan by Americans, who in turn got it from German immigrants. But unlike curry rice and omurice, it wasn’t until after World War II that hamburger steak caught on in Japan. Before that, minced meat was seen in balls, similar to meatballs. But post-war, American soldiers stationed in Japan as part of the Allied occupation brought with them their love of hamburgers and Hamburg steak. This, according to Japanese writers at the time, was picked up by chefs in Japan.

The unique Japanese flair of hambag is the fluffy white Japanese rice that comes with the hamburger steak. It soaks up the juices and sauces, making for a delicious and filling meal. Like many yoshoku creations, the rice is just as key as the meat. Also unique to Japan, the meat of the modern Japanese hamburger steak is usually a combination of ground beef and pork.

Naporitan, also known as spaghetti napolitan or spaghetti Neapolitan, is almost a typical spaghetti with tomato sauce—but not quite. The ingredient that sets this dish’s sauce apart is ketchup.

Like hamburger steak, spaghetti naporitan was actually introduced to Japan by American soldiers after World War II. The origin story traces back to Yokohama’s New Grand Hotel. The hotel was commandeered by GHQ and used as officers’ quarters until 1952. During that time, the head chefs noticed that the American soldiers would eat spaghetti flavored with salt, pepper, and tomato ketchup—easily preserved foods that kept well, making them perfect as military supplies. But when GHQ returned the hotel to Japan, the kitchen was left with a lot of extra spaghetti on its hands. The chefs copied the spaghetti recipe they saw the Americans make, but dressed it up with real tomatoes and tomato paste, in keeping with their status as a high-end hotel.

Hotel New Grand’s yoshoku tended to spread and become popular around Japan, but tomatoes weren’t yet easy to come by, making it difficult for chefs at regular yoshoku restaurants to mimic the hotel’s recipe. For this reason, restaurants like Yokohama’s Center Grill and others debuted a version of naporitan that used ketchup instead.

This is the version that has entered the hearts of Japanese people. It continues to be popular across the country, distinguished by the sweetness of ketchup and its quick and easy cooking style. Although it might look familiar to Westerners at first glance, it has a flavor and character all its own.

As a staple of kissaten cafes, pair naporitan with a melon cream soda for a truly Japanese experience.

And that brings us to our final menu item: korokke, or the Japanese croquette. Korokke fillings vary, but the most common one is a combination of potato, minced beef or pork, and onion. These ingredients are mashed together, shaped into a patty, breaded with panko breadcrumbs, and fried to golden perfection. Korokke are often served with a dark and sweet-salty sauce, such as tonkatsu sauce, but preferences differ.

So those are five famous yoshoku foods, and the world affairs that buoyed them into Japan’s unique food culture. If you visit Japan, give them a taste, or try making them at home for a fusion of a culinary experience!