Rice bowls, donburi, ramen and matcha bowls — the pieces the Japanese table is built around. Honest guides to the sizes, shapes and materials that matter, and which bowl to actually buy. Written from Japan.
The first time most people use a suribachi, they lift the pestle, bring it down, and almost nothing happens. The sesame skitters up the side of the bowl and sits there, whole. Nothing is wrong with the bowl. You are simply using the wrong half of the tool. In a stone mortar the pestle does…
They look similar in a photo, but a ramen bowl and a donburi bowl are built for two different jobs. A ramen bowl is wide and roomy, made to hold a lot of broth with noodles and toppings floating in it. A donburi bowl is deeper and more compact, made to cradle a mound of…
What makes a good donburi bowl? A practical guide to the Japanese rice-bowl vessel — size, lidded vs open, porcelain vs stoneware — for gyudon, katsudon, oyakodon and more, with picks by how you eat.
How big should a ramen bowl really be? A practical guide to size, material and shape — donburi vs chawan, porcelain vs stoneware, and the raimon pattern — with picks for every table.
Ramen, udon, soba, somen and tsukemen each want a different vessel. A practical guide to hot noodle bowls, cold-noodle zaru trays and the versatile soba choko dipping cup — with picks by how you eat.
Which Japanese rice bowl should you buy? A calm, practical guide to sizes, materials and regional ware — Hasami, Mino, Arita and more — with picks for every table.