Vegan & Vegetarian — Japanese Dishes That Never Needed the Fish

The vegetables were never the problem. A Japanese table is already full of them — tofu, kombu, sesame, mushrooms, rice, pickles. The problem is the dashi, which carries dried fish quietly into soups and dressings that look entirely plant-based. Japan worked this out a long time ago, in temple kitchens where nothing from an animal was allowed: dashi made from kombu and dried shiitake instead. These are the recipes on our site that already cook that way — and the ones that need a single change.

Vegan as they are

Nothing to leave out, nothing to swap.

Kenchin-jiru — The Soup That Starts the Night Before

Kombu and dried shiitake soaked overnight, then root vegetables and tofu — temple cooking, at home.

Vegan Miso Ramen — Where the Sesame Oil Goes First

The bowl most people assume is off the table: kombu dashi, red miso, and sesame oil in the pot first.

Kombu Tsukudani — What's Left After the Dashi

What is left after the dashi, simmered down with soy sauce and sugar into something that keeps.

Asazuke — Quick Pickles from Whatever's in the Fridge

Whatever is in the fridge, salted and dressed with rice vinegar. Ten minutes, no stove.

Hiyayakko — The Dinner You Don't Cook

Cold tofu and a few drops of good soy sauce. Leave off the optional bonito flakes and it is done.

Soy-Marinated Shiso — The Leaf That Waits for Warm Rice

Twenty leaves in soy sauce and sesame oil, waiting in the fridge for a bowl of warm rice.

Tokyo Corn Rice — Donabe-Steamed, Finished with Soy & Butter

Sweet corn steamed into rice in a donabe. Finish it with soy sauce rather than butter.

Hojicha in a Frying Pan — A Few Quiet Minutes Before Tea

Green tea leaves in a dry pan. Two minutes, and the whole room smells toasted.

Vegetarian as they are

Egg, dairy or honey — and nothing from the sea.

Tofu Matcha Shiratama — Chewy Dumplings over Ice Cream

Chewy matcha dumplings made with silken tofu. Vegan if you serve them with kuromitsu and kinako instead of ice cream.

Kurozu Soda — The Vinegar You Drink on Ice

Black vinegar, honey and cold sparkling water over ice. Maple syrup in place of the honey makes it vegan.

Kinako Butter — A Nut-Free Spread from the Japanese Pantry

Roasted soybean flour, honey and soy milk — a nut-free spread for toast and morning rice.

Hojicha Overnight Oats — Set It Sunday, Eat It All Week

Oats, soy milk and roasted tea, set on Sunday and eaten all week.

Miso Honey Butter — Make It Once, Spread It All Week

Miso, honey and butter in one bowl, then on bread every morning until it is gone.

Sesame Dressing — The Bottle That Starts as Seeds

Ground sesame, mayonnaise, soy sauce and vinegar — the supermarket bottle, made in ten minutes.

Hamanatto and Mixed Nut Biscotti

Egg and milk in the dough, and the savoury note comes from fermented soybeans, not anchovy.

One swap away

These are the ones where the fish is hiding in the dashi. Each needs one change, and then it belongs on this page too.

• Miso Soup — use a kombu, or kombu-and-shiitake, dashi in place of the bonito pack.
• Spinach Goma-ae — leave out the shiro-dashi, which is made with bonito; a little more soy sauce carries it.
• Sunomono — the recipe already offers 2 tsp soy sauce in place of the shiro-dashi. Skip the imitation crab.
• Yakibitashi — swap the shiro-dashi for kombu dashi. Everything sitting in the bath is vegetables already.
• Chilled Himokawa Udon — build the tsuyu on kombu and dried shiitake rather than the dashi pack.
• Onigiri — choose the ume, shiso and sesame filling, or the kombu tsukudani.
• Temaki Sushi — cucumber, avocado, pickles and tamago roll just as happily as fish.
• Ochazuke — pour green tea over the rice rather than dashi, and leave out the salmon.
• Chawanmushi — the custard is already built on kombu and shiitake dashi — leave out the chicken and the crab sticks.
• Tamagoyaki — the sweet roll and the thin roll need no dashi at all.

If you are new to any of this, three of our guides go deeper: What is dashi?, Is ramen vegan?, and How to read a Japanese food label — the last one is how you find the bonito that is not named in English on the back of a bottle.