Eat Like Your Faves: Recreating Dishes from Anime and Asian Dramas

Picture this: you’re binge-watching your favorite anime at midnight and suddenly, the characters are eating an incredibly vibrant and appetizing dish that stirs your food cravings, you can almost taste and smell the dish from your screens. Is your pantry ready for when these cravings kick in? We’ve compiled 5 dishes you can recreate with Asian ingredients from Karman Foods so you can eat like your faves!

1. Brock’s Onigiri from Pokemon

Brock from Pokemon often makes onigiri-- a Japanese snack made from seasoned sticky rice held together by nori seaweed. It’s a famous fixture in Japanese convenience stores but you can also make it at home!

Cook 3 cups of Japanese Rice according to package instructions Once cooked, sprinkle your desired amount of Bibigo Premium Roasted Seaweed Snack and mix well. Shape the rice into triangular shapes by pressing gently. Sprinkle salt on the outside, then grab a piece of Nori Komi Furikake Rice Seasoning and wrap it around the onigiri. Oishi!

2. Toyo’s Udon from Kimetsu no Yaiba

In one episode of Kimetsu no Yaiba, Tanjiro ends up ordering two bowls deliciously topped with eggs from Toyo, a passionate udon street vendor.

No need to go outside for your udon fix. Get the Koyo Organic Udon Noodle for thick and bouncy wheat noodles that rival those served in the streets, boil it with some savory vegetable broth in a matter of minutes, add some scallions, and top it with one large egg! Slurp away and you might end up downing two bowls just like Tanjiro.

3. Japchae from Reply 1994

Reply 1994 features plenty of Korean soul food throughout its episodes but one of the easiest dishes to make is japchae, a Korean stir-fried dish made from vermicelli noodles. Soak your Sempio Sweet Potato Glass Noodles in warm water for 20 minutes and then bring it to a boil for 6-7 minutes. Drain it well then add a few drops of soy sauce, salt, sesame oil, and toss, giving it that darker color and salty flavor. Bring your noodles to a pan, saute it with shrimp, squid, meat, and other vegetables. From way before 1994 until now, japchae is here to stay for the long run.

4. Tonkatsu from Shokugeki no Sama

Food Wars or Shokugeki no Sama can take the cake for animating Japanese dishes in its most appetizing form. One of the dishes features is tonkatsu, a Japanese pork cutlet dish with a crispiness that’s only achievable with high-quality panko. Moisten your Kikkoman Panko with a little bit of water and set it aside while you pound and season your pork cutlet. Mix ½ tablespoon of oil with 1 egg in a large bowl. Dredge your pork cutlet in flour, dip it in the egg mixture, then dredge it in panko. Deep fry it until golden brown, top it with some Bull Dog Tonkatsu Sauce, and serve it with shredded cabbage.

5. Hot and Sour Soup from Eat Drink Man Woman

For the Asian movie geeks out there, we all know that it’s difficult to prepare the dishes in the iconic opening scene of Ang Lee’s Eat Drink Man Woman but to cheer you up a little, you can try microwaving a bowl of Annie Chun’s Hot and Sour Soup Bowl and find instant happiness with a sip of its flavorful soup. 

Make Your Pantry Crave-Ready For Your Treasured Anime or Asian Drama Dishes

Whether it's Brock's Onigiri from Pokemon, Toyo’s Udon from Kimetsu no Yaiba, Japchae from Reply 1994, Tonkatsu from Shokugeki no Sama, or the Hot and Sour Soup from Eat Drink Man Woman, you should be prepared for your ultimate binge-watching food crave.

Worry no more because Karman Foods' collection of high-quality and authentic Asian food ingredients is just one click away! From Korean noodles to Japanese seasonings, they got you covered.

For more of our authentic Asian products, visit our online Asian supermarket.