Food Chronicles

5 Best Convenience Store Foods in Japan

Japan Has The Best Convenience Stores in the World

Convenience stores are an integral part of every day Japanese life. It is the go-to place for convenient and surprisingly delicious food that you can have 24 hours a day. The major store brands are 7-Eleven, Lawsons, and Family Mart. These are the 5 best convenience store foods in Japan:

1. Hard-Boiled Eggs

Japan as a whole has an incredible cooking ability to produce the world’s most delicious eggs – whether in a ramen bowl or for less than a dollar at the nearest convenience store. Convenience store hard-boiled eggs are a must get when you are looking for a tasty and healthy breakfast.

Look at that amazing orange egg yolk! It is not only the color but the seasoned taste and smooth texture of the yolk and whole egg. On the packaging, you will see the price, 68 yen or $0.60 cents, and even the number of calories

 

2. Onigiri

For something a little more filling, yet still convenient to buy, bring, and eat onigiri (also known as omusubi) is a must purchase at Japanese convenience stores. Onigiri is a rice roll filled with various savory ingredients and wrapped in seaweed. You can tell it is one of the most popular items because of how it dominates the fridge space in the store.

The onigiri package explains how to properly open the rice ball in a 3-step process. First, open it from the middle, and then you pull the two sides for the seaweed to be freshly wrapped around the rice. This ensures that the seaweed stays crisp for when you are ready to eat
Ikura, or salmon. The onigiri can contain premium fillings like this ikura or even cooked salmon fillet, salted plum, braised pork belly and more. The fillings available depends on what is more per each local convenience store

 

3. Fresh Salads & Vegetables

When you travel, it is harder to maintain balanced and healthy meals from eating out all the time. While you can make healthier choices when ordering food, there is a lack of your daily quota of fruits and vegetables. To make up for that, you can easily find fresh and tasty salads and vegetable sticks at the nearest convenience store. Be sure to buy the dressing separately as most salad packs only contain the plain vegetables.

 

4. Soba Noodles

The refrigerator shelves of convenience stores also contain rice bowls, bento boxes, pasta, and soba noodles (typically during summer and warmer months). For the pasta, you can have it microwaved in the store. But, if you want to take home a convenient meal, soba noodles are the easiest as you can keep it in your minibar fridge and slurp it up for breakfast or a late night snack.

 

5. Soups

During winter months, you sometimes crave for something hot in your stomach that isn’t coffee or tea. Most hotels have hot water pots or machines, so instant soups are perfect for you. At convenience stores, you can buy powder packs of corn soup or even instant cup packs of miso soup that have vacuum-packed clams.

 

Bonus: Chocolates & Snacks

Aside from savory foods, indulge a little with the wide selection of chocolates and snacks. These also make for great souvenir gifts to bring home.
 
 
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Angela

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Angela

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