So my mom will be visiting me in Japan in May 2023 and she’s been a little anxious about the food and how she might react to it. She loves sushi/sashimi so worst case we’re good there, but she’s gluten-free (but can eat rice), is allergic to onions, garlic etc. and allergic to pork as well and she may or may not have autoimmune issues that affect her stomach.
I’m not nervous about finding restaurants and/or cooking meals for her while she’s here but I was wondering if any other Japanlifers who may have had stomach issues in the past found them clear up a bit after living in Japan, or did they get worse? What might be some foods you recommend to alleviate those symptoms or to avoid beyond obvious allergen triggers?
Full disclosure she’s coming from America. Excited to hear other’s stories.
5 comments
I know it may not be completely related to the subject here but…
From my own experience and my friends and family visiting me, the food quality in Japan is pretty good and I’ve never heard a friend complaining about bad stomach pain during the stay. However they were complaining about stomach pain back in their home country (France). The quality there is also pretty good but use a lot more fat making it harder to digest.
Edit : My bad, I had one complaint, but it was after a Argentinian restaurant in Japan (so a LOT of fat meat) but that’s all.
> She loves sushi/sashimi so worst case we’re good there, but she’s gluten-free (but can eat rice)
Rice never has any gluten, but soy sauce does
I have IBS and cannot eat garlic, onions, cow milk and other well-known irritating food and although I have to stay away from specific food in restaurants (like gyōza for example), it’s actually really easy to find substitutes that are tummy-friendly.
I would highly suggest your mom to take her time when choosing what to eat and ask the staff about the ingredients beforehand (I’m always relieved when they ask even before handing the menu over, as it’s not common practice in my home country -France-).
There might be some bumps on the way but overall, I’m sure she will have a great experience with the food here, given the wide choice! (and kaiten-zushi restaurants sometimes have gluten-free soy sauce on demand!)
Soba and harusame are gluten-free (if it’s completely buckwheat/potato. Obviously can’t speak for what Ingredients individual restaurants use for broths. The mentsuyu should typically be mirin, dashi, and soy sauce.
Other than that, those are tough allergies to avoid here. Mmm Various types of seafood like kaisendon, ikuradon, unagi, oyster huts, spice curry (definitely ask before), Nabe/shabu-shabu (again, ask to not place green onion which is common), yakitori (possibly avoid meats as they will be marinated with garlic and onion usually).
Let her know to bring her own medicine that she’s used to, even if it’s over the counter like Pepto, as Japan’s OTC is relatively “weak”.
Japan is one of the worst countries to be in if you have gluten sensitivities. Celiacs disease not being recognized by the medical community means that food manufacturers don’t always take the right precautions to avoid cross contamination. Restaurant staff definitely don’t. In addition, getting restaurant staff to add or subtract ingredients is generally not an easy task even if you speak Japanese.