Are you looking for Japanese breakfast ideas here? We’ve gathered 21 of our top Japanese breakfast recipe ideas that you can make at home.
Beginning your day with a yummy breakfast is a (not so) secret way to get your day started on a good note.
This collection of Japanese breakfast ideas will have you waking up feeling like you’re in Tokyo.
Whether you are preparing yourself a meal for a busy day ahead, feeding a family of picky eaters, or having a culturally inspired breakfast with friends, this collection of recipes has something to please all types of eaters.
A traditional Japanese breakfast consists of white rice or brown rice, miso soup, protein, and side dishes.
This may sound like a full meal for lunch or dinner, but it comprises many staple Japanese breakfast foods such as #21.
Don’t worry.
This list also includes more Western-style breakfast meals like Souffle Pancakes and Avocado Toast with Japanese inspiration for those who seek a sense of familiarity with their breakfast.
Enjoy reading these recipes that are sure to inspire you to step away from your everyday breakfast meals and spice things up!
Take 15 minutes out of your night to prepare this simple but satisfying breakfast, and you’re setting your morning up for success!
This simple Japanese breakfast is designed to satisfy all types of eaters.
Using a bento box to prevent the food from touching, combine with your choice of cheese, deli meat, crackers, fruit, eggs, and olives.
Whether you’re preparing for a picky eater, are always on the go, or don’t want to think too hard first thing in the morning, this breakfast is sure to be a hit.
For those searching for a more traditional Japanese breakfast, this is for you.
Don’t worry. This will hold you over well until lunchtime.
Featuring rice, miso soup, salmon, and green beans, you’ll feel satisfied all morning.
Remember, whenever possible, use the freshest ingredients you can.
This is key for elevating your Japanese breakfast to the next level.
What is better than warm miso soup and hot rice on a cold day?
Throw in a Tamagoyaki, and you have a winning combo of Japanese breakfast foods.
For those who are unfamiliar, Tamagoyaki refers to the Japanese breakfast staple of a rolled egg omelet.
You can also top it with some chopped green onions to give it more color and taste!
It may take a few tries to get the Tamagoyaki to look as great as a native Japanese chef can, but that just gives you another excuse to prepare this recipe as often as you want!
This vegan smoothie fits into our busy daily lives as an easy Japanese breakfast.
This matcha smoothie will wake you up and fill your stomach after a restful (or restless) night of sleep.
Feel free to adjust the level of matcha and the ingredients to your liking.
There are so many options of customizations to make this recipe your own.
The choices are endless!
Here is another traditional Japanese breakfast that is super easy to make.
The name “Tamago Gohan” literally translates to “egg rice.”
While recipes call for a raw egg mixed into rice, don’t fret.
You can start your Tamago Kake Gohan journey with hot rice, which will cook the egg as you stir it into the rice.
In search of a comforting, hearty, and savory Japanese breakfast recipe?
Look no further.
This breakfast is perfect for vegetarians and easy to adjust to accommodate vegans.
This recipe calls for a miso soup base, a staple for Japanese breakfast.
Don’t forget that the wakame seaweed will rehydrate to about 5x the size, so a little will go a long way.
For the days we wake up craving sushi, this traditional Japanese breakfast is what we need to fulfill our cravings.
This plant-based porridge bowl is like a sushi bowl, but for breakfast!
It’s a part of Japanese custom to have savory foods for breakfast, so this Okayu (rice porridge) is not unlike something you would eat in Kyoto.
This recipe is colorful, vegan, and DELICIOUS.
Well worth giving this recipe a go if you’re in search of Japanese breakfast ideas!
This simple Japanese breakfast is just two ingredients!
Don’t be fooled.
Although this breakfast doesn’t require a lot of ingredients, it’s a tasty dish.
The Shio koji is a seasoning that, when used as an overnight marinade, enhances the salmon flavors!
Pro-tip: You can use this salmon recipe for lunch or dinner too!
Just add veggies, rice, or miso soup.
Nothing says traditional Japanese breakfast like Japanese soup.
From Shirumono soup to ramen to miso, one thing these all have in common is the special ingredient of dashi.
Typically, dashi is made by combining water with dried kelp and dried bonito flakes.
This is the secret to the umami flavor present in many Japanese soups and dishes.
Dashi is a crucial ingredient in countless meals.
Getting familiar with dashi is key to navigating the delicious world of Japanese foods.
If you’re looking for Japanese breakfast ideas, you can’t forget to include yaki onigiri!
This simple Japanese breakfast item is versatile, easy to cook, and delicious.
Although onigiri refers to rice “balls,” these are triangular.
Simply cook the rice, mix your miso paste, brush the paste onto your onigiri, and sear!
The great thing about this recipe is that it’s super easy to take with you on the go for your busy mornings where you don’t have time to sit to eat!
This Japanese breakfast recipe is great for those looking for a lower-carb option!
Although Ochazuke is typically made with rice, you can easily substitute cauliflower rice to lower the carb level.
As if you needed another reason to give this delicious recipe a try, it is worth mentioning that it is swift to prepare; less than 10 minutes in the kitchen gives you a flavorful Ochazuke.
Starting your morning with a twist on this traditional Japanese breakfast will be sure to fuel you to take on the day!
12. Taiyaki
This Taiyaki Japanese breakfast recipe is a fun way to start your morning- for both children and adults!
Traditionally, people created Taiyaki in the shape of Tai (sea bream), which they believed to bring good fortune and filled with a red bean paste.
Feel free to tease children by filling your Taiyaki with “fish guts” such as fresh fruit and crushed nuts.
Keep in mind, to get the fish shape; you will need a Taiyakipan.
But once you have your pan, you can create your traditions of cooking up Taiyaki for your children, friends, and loved ones!
If you want some Japanese breakfast foods that have taken over social media, check out #soufflépancakes.
These are very similar to traditional American pancakes, but the meringue is the key to getting the lift and airiness that sets these apart is the meringue.
The thicker the meringue, the more stable the pancakes will be.
These soufflé pancakes aren’t too sweet, so feel free to add whipped cream or fruit toppings!
It may take a few attempts to get these to look good for the ‘gram, but soufflé pancakes aren’t just a passing trend.
This traditional Japanese breakfast is trendy street food in Japan.
It’s very similar to a savory pancake with this vegan alternative using yams, rice flour, mushrooms, and Tenkasu, to name a few ingredients.
There are endless options for items you can add to your okonomiyaki!
The name translates as Okonomi, meaning “what you like,” and yaki meaning “grilled.”
Don’t forget to include the okonomiyaki sauce!
This recipe also includes the option to create your okonomiyaki sauce.
How can you elevate your avocado toast?
Make it into a simple Japanese breakfast by creating a California roll of avocado toast!
With your favorite California roll ingredients, you can upgrade your traditional avocado toast to the next level.
This recipe takes no time and allows for customizations for personal tastes.
Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t have sushi for breakfast!
This twist on avocado toast proves them wrong!
Anpan, or Japanese red bean buns, is a well-loved favorite of Japanese breakfast foods.
While you could quickly go to a Japanese bakery to pick these up, there’s nothing quite like creating them yourself!
Not to mention the wonderful smell of homemade buns filling your kitchen!
You also have the option of including either chunky or smooth bean paste.
Combining these with a hot cup of coffee is such a great way to start your day.
These are best eaten warm, so be sure to serve them fresh!
Here’s a win for an easy Japanese breakfast.
Putting these overnight oats together takes less than five minutes but be mindful you do need to refrigerate and cover it overnight (hence the name).
The author of this recipe prefers steel-cut oats, but quick or rolled oats work too!
The matcha added into these oats adds a little kick that can help wake you up.
You can add all types of toppings such as berries and fresh fruit, granola, and nut butter and enjoy it right out of the jar.
When you come across Japanese breakfast foods that look as amazing as they taste, they are worth trying.
Enter Fruit Sando!
You have the freedom to choose your favorite fruits to add to this Japanese favorite.
It is simple to put together this Japanese fruit sandwich, but it does require some waiting as you refrigerate it after preparing.
As the sandwich chills in the fridge, the cream and fruits will settle in, making the sandwich easier to cut.
This Fruit Sando recipe is well worth the wait as it chills in the fridge.
Japanese breakfast ideas aren’t always savory dishes with rice and soup.
Using a crepe as a cone for ice cream is an ingenious way to satisfy your sweet tooth first thing in the morning!
Now, you no longer have to wait until the evening to enjoy an ice cream cone!
Make it a breakfast sundae by topping with strawberries, chocolate, or even icing sugar.
This recipe is straightforward and requires very little time aside from refrigerating your batter for an hour.
While this is not necessarily a traditional Japanese breakfast, it is delicious, simple, and inspired by the Japanese Ogura toast.
All it takes is combining three ingredients: Shokupan bread, Anko paste, and butter.
After toasting your Shokupan, you spread the butter and Anko on top, and your breakfast is ready!
You also have the option to add whipped cream on top to add a sweet touch to your morning meal.
This Japanese breakfast recipe for Dorayaki is sure to become a family favorite.
Dorayaki has gained popularity from the manga/anime character Doraemon stating that it is his favorite food.
This is essentially red bean paste sandwiched between two pancakes.
This recipe also includes instructions on making Anko (red bean paste) at home!
If red bean paste isn’t your favorite, you can substitute it with flavored jam or Nutella.
The bottom line
There are worlds of options of Japanese breakfast ideas for all tastes and cravings.
This list uses traditional and Americanized recipes, some are quick and simple to make, and some require preparation and practice.
No matter which Japanese breakfast foods you decide to start your day with, all of these choices are sure to be flavorful and a nice change of pace from the typical cereal and coffee that many of us have daily.
Craving more Japanese food? Why not try these Japanese appetizers that will curb your cravings in no time!
How To Make Japanese Breakfast
Here's a compilation of Japanese breakfast that will surely make you fall in love with all of these famous Japanese breakfast foods.
Ingredients
- Breakfast Bento Box
- Healthy Japanese Breakfast
- Tamagoyaki & Miso Soup
- Matcha Green Tea Rejuvenating Smoothie
- Tamago Kake Gohan
- Miso Soup With Tofu, Wakame Seaweed, Rice & Egg
- Japanese Breakfast Porridge Bowl
- Shio Koji Salmon
- Japanese Broth
- Yaki Onigiri Japanese Rice Balls
- Japanese Salmon Breakfast Soup - Ochazuke
- Taiyaki
- Japanese Souffle Pancakes
- Vegan Okonomiyaki
- California Roll Avocado Toast
- Japanese Red Bean Buns
- Matcha Overnight Oats
- Fruit Sando - Japanese Fruit Sandwich
- Japanese Crepe Cone With Vanilla Ice Cream
- Anko Butter Toast
- Japanese Red Bean Pancake (Dorayaki)
Instructions
- Pick one or more options from our Japanese breakfast ideas list!
- Combine them to make your new favorite dish.
- Enjoy your homecooked meal!
- Share your thoughts on our Facebook page!