20 Best Japanese Snacks You Can't Stop Eating
When you think of Japan, a few things may spring to mind. Experimentation with the cool, tradition combined with modern twists, and mouth-watering food. The best Japanese snacks are all this and much more!
In our opinion, there's a perfect Japanese snack for every situation. There's the snack to get you through the morning, that tea-time treat, or the snack to get you over a bad day,
In this article, we'll share our top 20 Japanese snacks including many favourites that we discovered on a recent visit to Japan. Read on to discover the perfect Japanese snacks you won't stop eating!
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#1 Pocky
Pocky is an iconic Asian Snack and Japanese Snack Hall of Famer. It blends a winning combination of crunchy Japanese biscuit stick and creamy chocolate. Pocky has a fun history reigning as a family favourite for over five decades. It gets its name from the snapping sound the biscuit makes when it’s bitten into. Pocky comes in a variety of flavours including chocolate, cookies and cream, strawberry and our favourite, matcha.
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#2 Kit Kat
Japan is great at making Western snacks and drinks its own. Japanese ingenuity in Kit Kat bars is a marvel in its own right. Innovating on Kit Kat’s classic chocolate wafer fingers, Japan has produced over 300 different Kit Kat flavours. They include cherry blossom, passion fruit and red bean. If you are stuck, and can't decide which flavour to try first, We strongly recommend sampling a green tea Kit Kat.
In Japan, giving Kit Kats to students about to sit for their exams is customary. This is because "Kit Kat" sounds similar to "Kitto Katsu", a phrase that translates to "you will surely win"!
#3 Dream Animals
Ginbis’s Dream Animals – or "Tabekko Doubutsu", as it’s known in Japan – are light, buttery biscuits in the shape of animals. Each animal is labelled with its name in English. This ensures eating is not only a delicious experience but also an educational one for children. Dream Animals come in several yummy flavours such as butter, nori and coconut.
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#4 Koala’s March
We all know that koalas are cute and cuddly but do you know that they’re also delicious? No, not real koalas, we’re talking about Koala’s March cookies! This delicious snack by Lotte consists of soft, crunchy biscuits in the shape of koalas, filled with sweet crème. They come in a variety of flavours such as chocolate, cocoa vanilla and strawberry.
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#5 Hello Panda
Rounding up our group of adorable animal snacks is none other than the Japanese heavyweight, Hello Panda! Hello Panda was first launched in Japan in the 1970s when this fun-filled biscuit treat became an instant hit. Crunchy on the outside and creamy on the inside, this panda-shaped snack is available in many flavours. They include chocolate, caramel, strawberry, and vanilla.
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#6 Caramel Corn Snacks
This best-selling Japanese snack was first introduced in the 1970s by Tohato Inc. Caramel Corn Snacks consist of light airy corn puffs glazed with a layer of sweet caramel and mixed with roasted peanuts for a hint of umami flavour. Caramel Corn’s iconic red packaging and cartoon mascot make it recognisable on supermarket shelves!
#7 Kinoko No Yama
In Japanese "kinoko no yama" literally means mushroom mountain. It’s a popular snack by Meiji that is shaped like a little mushroom, with a crunchy Japanese biscuit stem and a chocolate mushroom cap. This addictive snack also comes in other delicious flavours such as white chocolate, caramel and sweet potato.
#8 Shiroi Koibito
Shiroi Koibito or "white lovers" is one of the best Japanese sweet snacks originating from Hokkaido, Japan. It is made up of a layer of delicious white chocolate sandwiched between two pieces of melt-in-your-mouth biscuits. It is one of the most famous souvenirs for visitors to bring home from Japan. There’s even a Shiroi Koibito theme park in Hokkaido!
#9 Cartoon-themed Snacks
The Japanese love a good collaboration with snack brands often teaming up with popular anime. The result is unique cartoon-themed snacks with sweets, chocolates, biscuits and more. Often these snacks will also contain cards, stickers and other collectibles for anime lovers to rack up and build a prized collection. Popular cartoons with themed snacks include Ultraman, Pokemon, Dragonball, Hello Kitty, and more.
#10 Dorayaki
Dorayaki is a well-known traditional Japanese snack. It is made by sandwiching sweet red bean paste between two honey pancakes. This delicately sweet snack is miniature and is popular with the young and old alike. It’s even the snack of choice and a featured plot device for Doraemon, the cartoon robot cat from one of Japan’s most famous mangas.
#11 Taiyaki
Taiyaki is a Japanese snack that is golden and crispy on the outside and subtly sweet on the inside! Taiyaki is uniquely shaped like a fish (as "tai" refers to a type of Japanese seabream) and is a well-loved Japanese street food. It is made with a waffle-like exterior and is traditionally filled with sweet azuki red bean paste. Modern versions also include fillings such as strawberry, custard or chocolate. We are always on the lookout for Samanco ice cream Taiyaki when we are looking for a cold, sweet treat.
#12 Daifuku Mochi
Hailing from Japan, daifuku mochis are small, round glutinous rice cakes stuffed with a sweet filling and are one of our favourite types of mochi. Fillings include red bean, cream cheese, chestnuts and even ice cream! The combination of a soft, chewy outer layer and cold, creamy ice cream on the inside has proven a hit for brands like Yukimi Daifuku. This delicious dessert is also given as gifts as the name "daifuku mochi" literally means "great luck rice cake".
#13 Dried Seaweed
Dried seaweed is one of the most popular Japanese snacks. When considered alongside many types of Japanese seaweed, it features prominently in a Japanese diet. Rich in vitamins and minerals, these healthy Japanese snacks are often roasted and lightly salted. They also have a crispy texture and savoury, umami flavour. These days, dried seaweed snacks also come in different flavours such as wasabi and sesame. We love these as a snack when we are looking to diet or eat healthily.
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#14 Instant Ramen
Nothing screams top Japanese snacks to us more than instant ramen! Whether in a cup or a bowl, this blend of springy chewy noodles and hot broth is the ultimate comfort food. Instant ramen noodles are available in a wide variety of flavours such as shrimp, tonkotsu and shoyu. Popular ramen brands include Nissin and Ichiran, our favourite when in Japan.
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#15 Calbee Chips
If you’ve ever tried to order Japanese snacks online, chances are you’ve come across Calbee chips. Calbee is a top snack manufacturer from Japan famous for its range of snackable potato chips. Calbee chips come in a dizzying array of flavours such as soy sauce mayo, seaweed salt and Hokkaido butter.
#16 Jagabee Potato Sticks
To all the french fries lovers out there, what if we told you there are french fries that never go soggy? Well, they exist in the form of Jagabee potato sticks! These addictive potato sticks are baked, not fried and always crunchy. Jagabee potato sticks include flavours such as original, buttery soy sauce and black pepper. It even comes in small resealable packs which makes it perfect for snacking on the go.
#17 Spicy Rice Crackers and Peanuts
Japanese spicy rice crackers with peanuts are otherwise known as "kaki no tane". They are a mix of small, orange rice crackers flavoured with soy, mild chilli pepper and crispy peanuts. This snack has long been a favourite with children and at bars. It is a favourite with astronauts and was certified as a "Japanese space food" by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
#18 Japanese Rice Crackers
Rice crackers in Japan are known as "senbei" and are recognised by their circular shape. One of our favourite types of Japanese rice crackers is thick soy sauce rice crackers. These are thicker than your regular rice crackers and layered with a dark soy sauce for a rich, umami flavour. With its crisp, hard texture these chunky senbei rice crackers will be a sure favourite for an afternoon snack.
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#19 Hi-Chew Candy
No list of the best Japanese snacks would be complete without mentioning Hi-Chew. These fruit-flavoured, smooth and chewy sweets have the texture of chewing gum but can be swallowed too. The story of Hi-Chew goes back many decades to 1970s Japan. It has since gone on to become a global phenomenon with around 200 different flavours to choose from.
#20 Whipped Cream Sandwiches
We love Japanese convenience stores such as 7-Eleven, FamilyMart and Lawsons. This holds especially true for their unique and delicious snacks. On a recent trip to 7-Eleven, we came across a selection of Whipped Cream Sandwiches. The standout flavour was whipped cream sandwiches with strawberries.
This combination contains luscious whipped cream with fresh, juicy strawberries. These are sandwiched between two slices of soft, fluffy bread. This treat creates a perfect balance of sweet and creamy, making it irresistible and ideal for a quick snack or dessert.
Final Word
Got the munchies yet?
Grab any one of these best Japanese snacks and you can’t go wrong! These yummy, delicious snacks will be a surefire hit with your tastebuds. However, a word of warning from our personal experience: once you start, you might find it hard to stop!
