Finding a Japanese cookbook online could be easy but when we talk about finding the best ones, then we might not get them all in one platform.
This is for what I am here to help you. In fact, a lot of Japanese e-cookbooks are available online to download for free, I suggest you not to rely on them. Most of them are not written in details from A to Z. A very few such e-books were published which are very hard to find online.
A well written recipe book is the one that has many pictures and description. This kind of cookbook can save your time and money.
My mother is a good cook who does not like to learn new recipes from e-book but she likes to have real cookbooks to learn from. She believes, a paperback can be stored as a collectible. Indeed, she collects them! Though, she has a recipe book of her own.
However, just to help you I have brought to you the top 10 Japanese cook books here in this article. I wanted to focus on various types of cookbooks based on traditional Japanese dishes for beginners and experts. I hope you enjoy reading it.
1) Japanese Soul Cooking: Ramen, Tonkatsu, Tempura, and More from the Streets and Kitchens of Tokyo and Beyond:
I saw this Japanese comfort food cooking book in a public library in Tokyo. The first time I saw it, I just loved it. So, I decided to have my own copy. Even though most of the recipes were known to me since we traditionally know them.
In fact, those who are looking for a good Japanese cookbook then I highly recommend this one. There are more than 100 recipes you could find in this book.
Apart from that, the authors Tadashi One and Harris Salat have descried every recipe chapter in an easy way with photographs.
You will be learning how to cook Japanese curry, tempura, Sushi, ramen, gyoza, tonkatsu, wafu pasta, furai, tatsuta-age, mentaiko spaghetti and so on. While reading these kinds of popular Japanese dishes you would get hungry! Wont’ you be hungry? So, why are you waiting for?
Get this well presented useful Japanese cook book right now! Buy it here.
2) Sushi: Taste and Techniques:
This is the best sushi recipe book you would ever find. I have read so many sushi making cookbooks but this one was just unique and easy to understand everything else.
I can guess one thing for sure that after reading all these recipes you will be heading toward supermarket to buy some ingredients making some sushi recipes. I bet you would do it! Whenever, I think of the word “Sushi” I first remind of Tsukiji Fish Market Sushi Bar.
I have tasted their sushi dishes many times and they were very delicious! However, this book is illustrated well with useful photographs.
If you want to learn different sushi dishes then this book is the perfect one for you. Make any kind of sushi dishes you wish to.
Start making sushi at home for your family members and friends on various occasions such as on Christmas, New Year, Easter, Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day, Birthday and etc. Sushi and seafood lovers, collect this one. I know it is a treasure for you. Get this book right away!
3) Japanese Farm Food:
I always love farm life, I did not grow up in such environment but I used to visit our village twice in a year. Whenever I went to village life, I never forgot to taste its fresh vegetables recipes cooked by my aunt.
She is such a wonderful cook who can cook almost everything that we find in the village. Organic foods always draw my attention, I never overrated them. Rather, I was inspired seeing the farmers who cultivated fresh vegetables in an open field.
As a result, once in my garden, I grow up red tomatoes. It was very fun! Japanese farm life is wonderful; I can’t erase my experience that I got from there.
Well, this cookbook covers the simple recipes such as soup, rice, pickles, vegetables, dipping sauces and etc. It will also show you the type of ingredients and equipment you need to make traditional Japanese farm foods. You will fully understand everything I just said when you start reading this book.
4) The Just Bento Cookbook: Everyday Lunches To Go:
If you are looking for a book which has everything else about Bento then I first pull out this book from my mind. It includes practical bento making techniques, recipes, the equipments you need to make a complete bento box and so on.
The author of this book Makiko Itoh who has a popular blog called “Just Bento” – has written this informative book for you who are curious of bento.
This book can be divided into two broad sections Japanese and No-so-Japanese. In fact, this book contains 25 popular bento menus with more than 150 recipes.
A bento box looks cute when you make and organize it seriously. Every Japanese love to have lunch from a bento box. Nowadays, western people find this as a very useful item and art.
They want to learn how to make a bento box that’s for what Makiko Itoh’s blog “Just Bento” is so popular now! Want to read this book? Then visit here.
5) Japanese Cooking: Contemporary & Traditional [Simple, Delicious, and Vegan]:
I like eating vegetables, what about you? Japanese don’t just eat seafood rather we eat green vegetables in our daily life. There are number of vegan recipes we have in our culture.
In fact, having vegetables everyday makes your body healthy and fresh. To those who are searching for Japanese vegan recipe books I can recommend this cookbook.
All the recipes are so simple and easy to understand. You would like to read this even when you are not a vegetarian. Who knows it might be going to your best vegetarian Japanese cookbook you have ever come across.
Learn all the recipes presented by Miyoko Nishimoto Schinner, and get the taste of Japanese vegan recipes. Are you interested in it, then check this out here.
6) The Japanese Grill: From Classic Yakitori to Steak, Seafood, and Vegetables:
If you grill a lot then there is no choice than this book. Having delicious Japanese grilled recipes will make a new hope for you to make it better and better. I know, American grill a lot but Japanese don’t.
This does not prove that we can’t make delicious grilled foods! Often you can taste our grilling recipes. Our unique ingredients add a unique value to our traditional style grilling recipes.
The authors of this book show you step by step techniques so that you could be a good cook in Japanese grilling recipes.
This book reveals how to grill tomatoes, eggplant, onigiri, salmon, yaki, whole chicken, yakitori, salt picked fish and more. I can’t teach you much but this book surly could!
7) Japanese Hot Pots: Comforting One-Pot Meals:
Raw foods are ready to be cooked by someone else. Is it you who will cook them all? In fact, you could be one if you know Japanese hot pots cooking techniques and a portable butane stove.
Hot pot dishes are very popular in among East Asian countries such as in China, Korea and in Japan. In order to cook food in this traditional way, you require thinly sliced foods.
It can be vegetables, noodles, fishes, beef, mushroom and etc. Learn all the techniques and tips from this book. They are quite simple and fast recipes to try for different festivals.
Inside the book you will discover amazing recipe photographs. To cook traditional Japanese hot pot recipe you need ingredients. You may not find them where you stay at, so this book reveals the substitutes of those ingredients you don’t get easily. Learn more here.
8) Takashi’s Noodles:
Japanese sophisticated recipes that are very easy to make within a moment are published here in this book. It is written by James Beard Award-winning chef Takashi Yagihashi.
This book was written specially for noodles lover who would be willing to make various types of noodles recipes at home. There are about 75 noodles recipes with colorful photographs.
My youngest brother is a noodles lover; as a result my mother cooks noodles for him almost every day. I think you will be a winner of any noodles cooking contest in the future only if you read this book and learn the recipes seriously.
9) Izakaya: The Japanese Pub Cookbook:
Have you ever heard of the word “Izakaya?” Well, it refers a Japanese pub. Usually in a pub, we drink beer, wine or other alcoholic drinks but Izakaya offers both drinking and eating.
One can eat foods with drink at a cheap price in an izakaya in Japan. Various types of simple traditional Japanese dishes are served over there. If you ever visit Japan then you should go to an Izakaya.
In this cookbook you will be learning how to make traditional Izakaya dishes such as Sashimi, Yakatori, simmered kamo eggplant with pork loin, Tsukune, soy-flavored spare ribs, Karaage, summer scallop salad, Kushiyaki and so on.
Izakaya cooking is very simple to make and learn. If you like Japanese culinary then why not give a try? Learn more about this book over here. This book is surly a reflection of a unique Japanese culture!
Remember, this is a beautifully photographed book with delicious Izakaya style recipes throughout.
10) Harumi’s Japanese Cooking: More than 75 Authentic and Contemporary Recipes from Japan’s Most Popular Cooking Expert:
Harumi is really an expert cook, no doubt about that. I like reading her recipe books. She writes in a simple way so that everyone can enjoy while reading her books.
This is not the end, her recipes sounds delicious and very easy to prepare for a person.
This cookbook includes almost every popular Japanese recipe from Sushi to Miso Soup. If you wish to make warm eggplant salad then I welcome you to read this classic recipe book.
Japanese eggplants are very delicious and you can eat them raw! Harumi will also teach you how to make carrot and tuna salad very easily. So, it is your time to pick this book and apply all the techniques she teaches you.
I have reviewed and explained you the above 10 best Japanese cookbooks. Now, it is your turn which one you would like to choose to start learning the unique Japanese cuisine.
Once you learn them, you will never forget them, and they will stay with you for a long time.
