I remember that before coming to Japan, I saw some videos of foreigners living here and they talked about this curious dish. They said that with the arrival of winter, oden begins to be sold in konbini or restaurants and it could become your ally on very cold days.
What is oden?
It is a Japanese dish where various ingredients are cooked in a broth. Some of the ingredients you can find are egg, daikon, konnyaku and chikuwa, cooked in a broth of mainly konbu and katsuobushi(dashi). The above are the classic components of oden, but you can also find tofu (and its fried version), mochi, mini sausages and I have even seen onion in oden!
What can it be served with?
You can simply eat it plain, but to give it a spicy touch you can add some Japanese ‘karashi’ mustard and even wasabi (be careful with these two! Add in moderation if you don’t want to burn your mouth).
Where can you find it?
As I mentioned before, with the arrival of winter, many establishments start to prepare oden and serve them in oden stalls. After you order the ingredients you want, they will open the stall and take out the ingredients you ordered. They will also add broth to your dish so you can savor the flavor of the soup that accompanies the ingredients.
One of my favorite Japanese winter dishes
I hate the cold, but I must admit that I love that time of the year when oden starts selling. For me, any izakaya where oden is prepared is a ‘must go’. Also, my favorite ingredient in oden is daikon: daikon cooked in oden has a very special taste and texture, as it stays soaked in the soup and is very tender and tasty. Also, I really like chikuwa, even though I was not sure what it was in the beginning. (Chikuwa is a Japanese fish cake with a chewy texture, shaped like a tube and grilled or steamed.)
If you pass through Japan in winter, don’t forget to try oden, and as I said before, add karashi in moderation!
