Japanese Food in San Antonio

From LoveToKnow Recipes

When looking for Japanese food in San Antonio, you will find that you have several very tasty options. From sushi to fun desserts, Japanese food is plentiful in San Antonio.

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Appetizers

Tempura, which is like a fritter, is a typical appetizer offering, but look for dumplings as well. When going out for Japanese food in San Antonio, you will find that the usual appetizers such as edamame (soybeans that have been steamed and lightly salted) or gyoza are in ample supply. Some places, like the Fujiya Japanese Garden will also offer soups or aged tofu as an appetizer option.

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Noodles

Noodles are very popular worldwide and Japan is no exception. You will usually find udon, somen, ramen, and soba on the menu. These are the most popular noodles and will usually be found in soups.

Udon – This is a thick wheat based noodle. Often served in kake udon or su udon, there are countless hot udon soups that can be found when looking for Japanese food in San Antonio. When served cold, look for zaru udon which is udon topped with nori. Godai Sushi Bar & Restaurant offers a highly recommended nabeyaki udon.

Somen – Made from wheat flour but very thin, these noodles are usually served cold. Somen are served with a dipping sauce rather than having the sauce poured over them. In colder weather, somen are served in a hot soup called nyumen.

Ramen – These noodles originally came from China and differ from other Japanese noodles in the fact that the broth used to cook ramen usually contains meat like poultry or pork while other noodle dishes in Japan are vegetable or fish based. Ramen are made from wheat flour and, although we may be used to seeing the wavy style of ramen noodle, they can come in several shapes and sizes, including ribbon style.

Soba – Soba is made with buckwheat and the more buckwheat in the noodle recipe the more desirable the noodle. Soba is served both hot and cold and it is not considered impolite to slurp while drawing the noodle into your mouth. Although there are several kinds of soba dishes, the basic cold soba dish is called mori soba. Hot soba served with scallions is called kake soba.

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Yakitori

Yakitori is made with chicken that is skewered and grilled just like a satay. Yakitori is usually served with tare sauce, which is brushed onto the chicken before grilling, and is also offered as a dipping sauce on the side. If the skewers have meat such as beef or pork, it is called kushiyaki. Yakitori can be found easily when looking for Japanese food in San Antonio.

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Kushiage

While yakitori is rather common, it is more difficult to find kushiage offered, although Sushi Zushi does have it on the menu. Kushiage is similar to yakitori in that it is meat on a stick but it is different in the way it is cooked. Rather than grilling the meat to make kushiage, the meat is coated in breadcrumbs and deep-fried.

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Sushi

By far, the first kind of food that comes to mind when thinking of Japanese food is sushi. Sushi and shashimi are wildly popular and generally what people are looking for when they go out for Japanese food. Sushi can be made with fish, which could be:

amberjack
salmon
snapper
tuna

Other seafood used includes:

octopus
squid
shrimp
urchin
fish roe

Sushi can also be made with vegetables and red meat including beef, ham or horse meat.

You will find these condiments offered with sushi

Gari – Pickled ginger that you eat between dishes to cleanse the palette.
Ocha – Green tea. Look for Mecha on the menu, a sure sign that you are in a good restaurant.
Shoyu – Soy sauce for dipping.
Wasabi – A green paste made from the horseradish-like wasabi plant. Very hot, use with caution.

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