Yakitori Special Feature

“Yakitori” is a popular Japanese dish that goes well with beer and a typical snack that is loved by children and adults.

Yakitori, savory and juicy, has bite-sized chicken on placed on skewers, is not only delicious, but its aroma and the appearance of the yakitori chef on the grill is also appealing.

Yakitori is not about just cooking chicken, but it uses all parts of chicken, such as the “breast,” “thigh,” “liver,” “cartilage,” “skin,” “gizzard,” and “wings.”

All the parts have their own unique taste, so you can enjoy chicken without getting bored.

Yakitori shop’s popular menu is not only chicken, but there are also skewers of vegetables such as “shiitake,” “green onion,” “shishito hot peppers,” and “asparagus.”
Vegetables that are carefully grilled to retain their “umami (flavor)” are also wonderfully delicious.

In some areas, you can also enjoy pork and seafood at yakitori shops.

There are two main seasonings: salt and sauce.
You can simply taste the flavor of various ingredients with salt,
or taste the sweet and sour sauce in harmony with the chicken.

Yakitori is a healthy and nutritious food that you can easily eat at a low price. And foreigners who eat for the first time will be instantly fantasized.

History of Yakitori

Yakitori seems to have appeared in the Heian period, but at that time, eating livestock was forbidden or abstained, so and wild animals and birds caught through hunting were eaten.

Therefore, what was called “yakitori” by the Meiji period appears to be skewers of quail and sparrows.

Afterward, a variety of yakitori appeared in the Edo period when food culture significantly flourished.

In the Edo period, mainly quails, sparrows, thrushes, larks, and pigeons were common.

It is said that yakitori shop stalls lined up on both sides along the trail leading to shrines that attracted visitors.

It seems that “Negima,” which skewers green onions and chicken alternately, appeared in the Edo period, but chicken was still a luxury meat, so it seems that wild bird skewers were common.

Yakitori using current day chicken appeared only in the post-war period, and not only the meat but various other parts such as liver and skin became common due to the food shortage during the times.

Thanks to that, today, we can enjoy various parts of yakitori.

Various types of yakitori in the respective local regions

Even though it is uniformly called “yakitori,” it is also interesting to note that the types and flavors of meat used differ depending on the region.

In general, Yakitori is prepared by piercing a single type of ingredient on a single skewer. However, in Bibai, Hokkaido, you can enjoy a variety of flavors on one skewer with authentic meat, several internal organs, and onions, a local specialty called “Bibai Yakitori.”

In Ueda City, Nagano Prefecture, the method of eating with “soy sauce-based garlic sauce” has been popular since the Showa era.

Some Hokkaido and Tohoku regions use pork instead of chicken, which is still called yakitori. In Higashimatsuyama City, Saitama Prefecture, there is a “yakitori” with “pork chili meat” with miso paste and hot peppers.

In Kurume City, Fukuoka Prefecture, where there are many food stands, that are skewers with chicken, pork, beef, pork mushrooms, vegetables, and seafood such as squid, scallop, and shishamo smelt.