Foods in Japanese – List of Words and Vocabulary

Today you will learn how to pronounce foods and write fruits, vegetables, meats, drinks, and sweets in Japanese [日本語]. In this organized list, you will learn various words and expand your vocabulary.

The Japanese language is quite complex, and it borrows various words from other languages and writes them using Katakana (the script used for foreign words). We recommend having some knowledge of the language.

Kudamono [果物] – Fruits in Japanese

Japanese	Romanization	Translation
りんご	ringo	apple
ぶどう	budou	grapes
なし	nashi	Japanese pear
ようなし	younashi	pear
かき	kaki	persimmon
オレンジ	orenji	orange
レモン	Remon	lemon
ライム	raimu	lime
グレープフルーツ	gureepufuruutsu	grapefruit
バナナ	banana	banana
いちご	ichigo	strawberry
ブルーベリー	buruuberii	blueberry
さくらんぼ	sakuranbo	cherry
メロン	meron	melon
すいか	Suika	watermelon

Curiosities: Japanese apples are much larger than Western apples, while watermelons are quite small.

Yasai [やさい] – Vegetables in Japanese

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
にんじん	ninjin	carrots
セロリ	serori	celery
レタス	Retasu	lettuce
キャベツ	kyabetsu	cabbage
トマト	tomato	tomato
ねぎ	negi	green onion
たまねぎ	Tamanegi	onion
ポテト	Poteto	potatoes
ブロッコリー	burokkorii	broccoli
ピーマン	piiman	bell pepper
まめ	mame	beans (in general)
ピース	piisu	peas
コーン	koon	corn

Japanese cuisine uses a lot of vegetables, including many that are unknown in the West. One example of a Japanese vegetable is daikon, which is a giant white radish.

Meats and Fish in Japanese

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
牛肉	gyuuniku	beef
豚肉	butaniku	pork
ハム	hamu	ham
鶏肉	toriniku	chicken
卵	tamago	egg
魚	sakana	fish
エビ	ebi	shrimp
カニ	kani	crab
たこ	tako	octopus

Tori “bird” is used to refer to chicken in the context of food products, as turkey and other birds are rarely found in Japan. Similarly, niku “meat” without other specifications usually refers to beef, although butaniku (pork) is cheaper and consumed in larger quantities.

Nyuuseihin [乳製品] – Dairy Products in Japanese

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
牛乳	gyuunyuu	milk
ミルク	miruku	milk
チーズ	chiizu	cheese
ヨーグルト	yooguruto	yogurt
アイスクリーム	aisukuriimu	ice cream

Dairy products are not used in traditional Japanese cuisine, but they can still be found in Japanese supermarkets and Western foods. Both Gyuunyuu and Miruku are common words for milk.

GRAINS and Pasta in Japanese

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
米	kome	rice (uncooked)
ご飯	gohan	rice (cooked)
玄米	genmai	brown rice
うどん	udon	wheat noodles
そうめん	soumen	thin noodles
そば	soba	buckwheat noodles
ラーメン	Raamen	ramen (Chinese noodles)
パン	Pan	bread, rolls, pastries
菓子パン	kashipan	sweet bread, cakes
ピザ	piza	pizza

Other notes:

Japanese rice is short-grain, unlike the long-grain rice commonly used in the West. Short-grain rice is a bit sticky and clumps together, making it easier to eat with chopsticks, but it is not fluffy.

Japanese noodles – especially somen and soba, can be served hot or in a cold soup with a sauce. Noodles are a popular dish in Japanese cuisine.

True ramen is a style of Chinese noodle soup that became popular in Japan with its enormous fame. Bread in Japanese can refer to any type of bread or pastry.

Nomimono [飲み物] – Drinks in Japanese

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
水	mizu	water
お茶	ocha	green tea, tea in general
日本茶	nihoncha	Japanese green tea
麦茶	mugicha	Japanese barley tea
紅茶	koucha	black tea (lit. “crimson tea”)
コーヒー	koohii	coffee
ジュース	juusu	juice
オレンジジュース	orenjijuusu	orange juice
レモネード	remoneedo	lemonade
ソーダ	sooda	soda, pop
お酒	Osake	sake (rice) and alcohol in general
日本酒	nihonshu	Japanese sake
ワイン	Wain	wine
ビール	biiru	beer

Spices and Condiments in Japanese

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
醤油	Shouyu	soy sauce
油	abura	oil
酢	su	vinegar
味醂	mirin	cooking rice wine
塩	shio	salt
コショウ	Koshou	pepper
砂糖	satou	sugar
わさび	wasabi	wasabi (“Japanese radish”)
ごま	Goma	sesame seeds
バター	bataa	butter
ケチャップ	kechappu	ketchup

The real wasabi is a grated root. The green paste found outside of Japan is a cheaper substitute made from horseradish and mustard, two spicy plants. Also, read our article on Japanese spices.

Washoku [和食] – Japanese Food in nihongo

Below we will see how to write traditional and Japanese-origin foods. We will also quickly understand what each Japanese food is.

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
寿司	sushi	rice wrapped in seaweed
刺身	sashimi	sliced raw fish
天ぷら	tenpura	battered and fried vegetables and seafood
焼き鳥	yakitori	chicken skewer
焼肉	yakiniku	Japanese barbecue
焼き魚	yakizakana	grilled fish
焼きそば	yakisoba	fried noodles with vegetables and meats
すき焼き	sukiyaki	traditional Japanese stew
お好み焼き	okonomiyaki	Japanese pancake
とんかつ	tonkatsu	fried pork cutlet
カレー	karee	curry usually served with rice
コロッケ	kurokke	fried croquette, usually made from mashed potatoes
餃子	Gyouza	Chinese dumpling
味噌汁	misoshiru	miso soup (soy-based)
漬物	tsukemono	Japanese pickled salad

Yaki [焼き] can mean fried, grilled, baked, and similar. The word comes from the verb yaku [焼く] which means to fry, grill, and bake. Although not strictly native to Japan, Japanese curry is completely different from Indian curry.

Youshoku [養殖] – Western Food in Japanese

Kana	Romaji	Translation
スープ	suupu	soup (any type)
サラダ	sarada	salad
サンドイッチ	sandoitchi	sandwich
ハンバーガー	hanbaagaa	hamburger
ホットドッグ	hottodoggu	hot dog
フライドポテト	furaidopoteto	fried potatoes, fries
フライドチキン	furaidochikin	fried chicken
ステーキ	suteeki	steak
スパゲッティー	supgettii	spaghetti

Note that despite the similar names, Japanese versions of Western foods are usually adapted to Japanese tastes.

We also recommend reading: The 100 most popular Japanese foods in Japan

Snacks and Sweets in Japanese

Japanese	Romaji	Translation
チップ	chippu	potato chips
ポップコーン	poppukoon	popcorn
クッキー	kukkii	cookies
ケーキ	keeki	cake
パイ	pai	pie
アイスクリーム	aisukuriimu	ice cream
チョコレート	chokoreeto	chocolate
ゼリー	zerii	jelly (gelatin and similar desserts)
わがし	wagashi	traditional Japanese sweets (many are cookies)

Dessert is not traditionally served after meals in Japan (except fresh fruits), but sweet foods are consumed as snacks or all the time haha.

I hope you enjoyed the article. We thank “japaneseprofessor” for sharing some information from the article. I hope you enjoyed the article. If you liked it, share and leave your comments.