Midnight Diner: Comfort Food from Japan

To mark the recent addition of The Japanese Cookbook to ckbk’s Japanese bookshelf, ckbk co-founder Matthew Cockerill looks at the Japanese comfort foods that are showcased in the cult TV series Midnight Diner (available to stream on Netflix).

By Matthew Cockerill

Midnight Diner (深夜食堂, Shinya shokudō) is a Japanese TV series adapted from the manga (comic book series) of the same name. The fictional restaurant featured in the show is in Kabukichō (Tokyo’s red light district) and opens only from midnight to 7am. It has a very short menu, but the enigmatic chef (known only as ‘Master’ ) offers to cook anything that a customer requests – as long as he has the ingredients.

Most episodes revolve around a particular character’s favourite dish — typically a simple Japanese comfort food. Here are a selection of dishes taken from the original three seasons of the show, with recipes from ckbk to help you recreate them at home.

Ochazuke お茶漬け (S1E3) Green tea over rice

The Ochazuke Sisters are recurring characters in the series. When they are first introduced they ask for ochazuke, a simple dish in which hot green tea is poured over rice with various accompaniments, such as pickled plum, cod roe, or salmon (as in this version from Japanese Food Made Easy). Ochazuke is widely recommended in Japan as a hangover cure (which may be why the sisters enjoy it for breakfast), or as a pick-me-up for someone feeling under the weather.

Katsudon カツ丼 (S1 E6) Rice bowl with breaded pork cutlet

In the introduction to the Katsudon recipe in her book Donburi, Aki Watanabe writes “This is a typical donburi dish that is popular because deep-fried breaded pork tastes so good with eggs”. Fried pork’s affinity for eggs is something the Spanish and British have also discovered!

Aji no hiraki  鯵の開き (S1E9) Grilled sun-dried horse mackerel

This is a traditional breakfast dish - a Japanese answer to the kipper, perhaps… After removing the guts, the fish is brined in salt water and dried in the sun for several days. The delicious Japanese horse mackerel (Trachurus japonicus) is known in Japan as Aji, and is part of the jack or scad family, but mackerel is a reasonable substitute.

Elizabeth Andoh’s recipe for Broiled, air dried mackerel involves “allow[ing] the fish to air-dry for at least 3 hours and up to 7 or 8 hours, until the surface of the fish is dry to the touch and no longer sticky. For a Western chef’s take, try Alastair Little’s Japanese-style grilled mackerel while for a step-by-step guide to reproducing the exact dish served in Midnight Diner. See this fan blog or the video below:

Ramen 拉麺 (S1E9) Noodle soup

Ramen is a wildly popular Japanese dish in which Chinese-style wheat noodles are served in broth with various additions. It’s the ultimate quick (and cheap!) meal. Instant ramen noodles were invented by Momofuku Ando in 1958 and quickly became a huge success — today more than 120 billion(!) portions are consumed annually.

There are endless variations on the basic ramen concept. The Japanese Cookbook gives a recipe for Tokyo-style Ramen, while noting “that there are many regional variations featuring local specialities”. Heather Whinney’s book Ramen offers many more,  including Beef ramen with oyster mushrooms.

Karaage 唐揚げ (S2E2) Fried chicken

Karaage is made by marinating meat (most commonly chicken thighs) or fish, and then lightly coating with flour and starch before deep frying. Sound familiar? ckbk has a variety of recipes for Karaage, Southern Fried Chicken and Korean Fried Chicken so you can compare each cuisine’s interpretation of this international classic.

Alternatively, for something very different try Tako no kara age from Tokyo Cult Recipes. Made with tako (octopus), this is a close cousin of fried calamari.

Hakusaizuke キャベツの浅漬け (S2E7) Pickled cabbage
Japanese pickles (tsukemono) play an important role in almost every Japanese meals, and there are many different types described in The Japanese Cookbook.

In her recipe for Hakusaizuke, Elizabeth Andoh notes that it is “a delightfully crisp and fresh-scented pickle with just a hint of fire”. So somewhere between Korean kimchi and German sauerkraut, though unlike either of those, Hakusaizuke is ready within just a day or two. It is often served with braised, simmered or barbecued meats.

Ideally to make this style of pickle you need a special press called a tsukemonoki, but if you don’t have one, Andoh’s recipe offers tips on how to improvise.

Nikujaga 肉じゃが (S2E9) Beef and potato stew

Another soothing comfort food standard in Japan, this dish can be simmered slowly, as in this recipe from Dashi and Umami, or if you are in a hurry try this pressure-cooker/Instant Pot version by Patricia Tanumihardja.

Gyoza  餃子 (S2E10) Japanese dumplings

Like most of us, Master tends to buy his gyoza in, but in one episode of Midnight Diner he is taught to make gyoza himself. If you’d like to try, ckbk has plenty of gyoza recipes including these Pan-fried Pork Gyoza from Tokyo Cult Recipes or Prawn and Savoy Cabbage Gyoza from My Street Food Kitchen. You can buy gyoza wrappers from most Asian supermarkets. If you plan to make them in large numbers, consider getting a gyoza maker.

Harusame salad 春雨サラダ (S3E5) Glass Noodle Salad

In The Japanese Cookbook, Emi Kazuko writes that glass noodles , made from mung bean starch, need only to be “soaked in tepid water for 5 minutes and used for salads or soups.” Served chilled from the refrigerator, they are extremely refreshing in hot weather. Try this recipe for Shrimp and Avocado Glass Noodle Salad from An Ocean of Flavor by Elizabeth Andoh.

Roll Kyabetsu ロールキャベツ (S3E6) Japanese Stuffed Cabbage

Roll Kyabetsu (stuffed cabbage leaves cooked in sauce) is an example of a Western-style dish which Japan has adopted and made its own. It’s a great comfort food as the weather turns cooler in the autumn. Maori Murota offers this recipe for Roll Kyabetsu in Tokyo Cult Recipes. Caroline Conran’s Sud de France meanwhile includes a traditional French version. Stuffed cabbage leaves  are very popular in the Middle East and Central Asia where they are one of popular type of dolma, for example this Uzbek recipe from Silk Road Vegetarian.

Another good example of a Western dish that has evolved a distinctive Japanese form is omuraisu (オムライス), (omelette with rice), which appears in a later season of Midnight Diner. You can find a recipe for Omuraisu in Tokyo Cult Recipes.

Ozoni お雑煮 (S3E10) Mochi soup

The concluding episode of each season of Midnight Diner takes place during the New Year celebrations, which involve a number of traditional dishes such as Ozoni, a soup which includes chewy mochi (glutinous rice cakes) in a light broth.

Introducing her recipe for New Year’s Day soup with mochi, Yasuko Fukuoka writes “the elaborate New Year’s Day celebration brunch starts with a tiny glass of spiced warm sake, o-toso. Then, this New Year’s soup, O-zoni, and other festive dishes are served.”

Watch the introduction to Midnight Diner

Note for trivia fans: The theme song from Midnight Diner, Omoide (Memories), uses the melody of an old Irish folk ballad with new Japanese lyrics written and performed by the late Tsunekichi Suzuki.

Matt Cockerill is ckbk’s co-founder and CEO. In what spare time he had, he is working on his Japanese language and culinary skills – in part by watching Midnight Diner.

A selection of dishes featured in Midnight Diner

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