The presence of gluten in most dishes

Although Japanese cuisine predominantly relies on rice as a staple food, which is naturally gluten-free, gluten can still be found in various dishes due to its use as a thickening agent or in sauces, broth or even marinated meat.

Soy sauce, which is widely used in Japanese cuisine, often contains wheat, making it unsuitable for those with gluten sensitivity. In most cases, soy sauce is incorporated into the dish making impossible to eliminate the source of contamination without removing the entire content of your plate.

The breadcrumbs is another practice that will impact your experience. Contrary to what one might think, fried food is very popular either in stalls or in restaurants. Tempura are wetherr made with vegetables or meat and is a potential source for cross-contamination.

Japenese curry and tempura contain gluten unless othewise specified

(Photo: Curry Koisus)

The lack of awareness about celiac disease

Japan is part of those countries where restaurant staff and shopkeeper often have a limited knowledge about gluten and the ingredients that contain it.

However, it seems important to understand the context in which Japan fits in.
Japan reports about 0.2% of its population affected by celiac disease which is relatively low. In comparison, Western countries display around 1% of its population touched by the disease.
Researchers comes with several hypothesis to explain those figures.
Firstly, low level of person asking for medical diagnosis is reported and unlike Western countries, few scientific studies have been conducted leading to unreliable statistics. It is thought that the reported figure is below the real number of people affected by celiac disease.
Apart from the fact that the 0.2% communicated is under-estimating the reality, the authors still believe that Japenese lifestyle could explain a lower likelihood to develop the disease. In fact, some studies try to examine the impact of the diet during childhood on the onset of celiac disease. While studies draw contradictory conclusions, the question remains: do the contradictory findings arise because this parameter does not influence the onset of the disease, or is it due to the complexity of implementing such studies that leads to biases in the conclusions?
Finally genetic differences might partially explain the observed differences.
A separate article that will provide a more in-depth analysis of the studies will be published soon. So stay connected if you are interested in this topic.

You should now be best placed to understand why Japenese does not have the answer to »what contains gluten » and this is simply because they are not subjected to this question.
Knowing this, it is essencial that you do your own research before leaving. You will need to know among other things the products to avoid and culinary practices that can lead to cross-contamination. This will be further discussed in the trip preparation section.

Your understanding of the topic will be even more important knowing that wheat allergy is known in Japan. If you are not vigilant, your case could be associated to a « simple » elimination of the wheat by Japenese staff. This would be risky knowing that barley is certainly present in their dishes, dishes that you will need to avoid.

A tedious label reading exercice

The labelling is most the time like a lifeline to us, that piece of paper that clearly states the presence or absence of gluten. Overall, this will remain the same in Japan, I just want to draw your attention on 3 points.

The first point regarding labeling is that in most of the case, everything will be written in Japenese and only in Japenese. You will see no trace of English. Hopefully for us, tools such as Google translate are now avaialble to help. Translation from a picture or voice recording translation are two life-saving features.
However, sometimes the translation provided can be confusing leading you to question its reliability: do all the ingredients appear right ? In case of doubt, don’t hesitate to ask someone, he will help you figure out the reality.

On the other hand, sometimes it’s not the translator that raises questions but rather the labels in itself. For example, I have come across Soba noodles in the supermarket. It was in a plastic bow in which regular soy sauce was separated from the noodles wit an individual packet. The translator clearly indicated the presence of wheat in the dish (which is reassuring), but I have never been able to understand if it came from the soy sauce only or also from the noodles. This lack of clarity seems to come from the labelling rather than the translation. From what I have read from different sources, manufacturers are becoming more aware of this and are trying to be more explicit. In this case, it would mean finding an inscription like: « wheat (contained in soy sauce) ».

Finally, allergen labeling is different from what can be found in most Western countries. The regulation only requires listing the 7 main allergens, in which wheat is a part, but not gluten. Barley or rye will be listed as ingredients, but they may not necessarily be included in the allergen list. This makes the task tedious for Japanese people and very complex for foreigners. It becomes a real game of « Where’s Waldo? » and even with a translator, you can waste a lot of time.

Cultural differences

You probably already know that Japanese culture is very different from ours, and that’s what will make your trip even more exotic. However, at times, it can also hinder your search for gluten-free options.

Systematically, I would ask if I could eat all or part of the menu. On several occasions, I was told that I couldn’t eat any item without being able to indicate where the source of contamination came from. I would leave feeling frustrated and wondering if it was to protect a trade secret or if it was to take no risks. By reading articles written by Japanese people, it seems that the latter option is indeed part of their culture and that in doubt, they potentially preferred not to take the risk of me getting sick by asking me to continue on my way. You may say that it is a positive attitude. To that, I would answer yes, without any doubt, but in a country where it is already difficult to eat gluten-free, it adds to the challenge. At certain times, I decided to take the risk of eating in these kinds of restaurants anyway, and I didn’t get sick. I don’t necessarily recommend it to you because each person decides the risk they want to take, but I think it is interesting to keep this aspect of their culture in mind.

As discussed earlier, celiac disease is largely unknown in Japan. However, the concept of gluten-free is not completely unfamiliar to them. It has been brought by lifestyle magazines mentioning this diet as healthy and followed by celebrities. Once you’re there, take the time to observe the gluten-free stores, and you will notice that many of them promote it by saying « It’s gluten-free, it’s good for your health. »
This leads the Japanese to think that your request is just a whim. However, it can be seen as extremely impolite to ask for a dish or even a menu to be adapted just out of desire. It is important to know that Japanese artisans are deeply committed to their craft and often spend their whole lives perfecting it to the extreme, not for money, but to provide the best service to their customers. Therefore, it is very important to explain the reason for your request and how much it is important for you. Personally, I went with a card that explained it clearly, and everyone I met was very kind and receptive (sometimes to the extreme, as mentioned above). So, I only experienced these situations through the readings I did before my departure.

Look for gluten-free options before you leave

This is something I did a lot when I started traveling, but I started neglecting it over time. I picked up this habit again to prepare for my trip to Japan, and I absolutely do not regret it. Preparing your culinary journey will allow you to fully enjoy your travel: it will prevent you from ending up hungry, sick, or frustrated because you couldn’t taste the local cuisine.

The hotels of a certain prestige generally offer gluten-free menus as they are regularly in contact with foreign people. Therefore they know what it involves.
Luxurious Japanese hotels can also adapt, and I was able to have my own experience in a ryokan that adjusted its menu to my dietary needs. I detail my experience below.
In international parks such as Disney and Universal Studio, restaurants have an allergen guide for each of their dishes. You should be able to eat safely without too much difficulty.

Outside of this specific context, it becomes more complicated. You will have to do your own research and sift through the information you find. Despite the fact that the disease is not well-known in Japan, it can be easy to get lost in your research.
So I tried to summarize all the information I could find (Google Maps reviews, Find me Gluten Free, Legal Nomads, establishment websites, Facebook groups…) on a map that I wanted to be a little different from the usual ones. It seemed important to me to include a number of filters so that you don’t have to click on each point one by one to find out if it meets your requirements. This way, you can find filters for the type of food offered, filter by opening day, or filter out establishments that only offer options versus full menus. and many more. The filters are cumulative, and I hope this tool will be useful during the preparation of your trip but also during your trip.
The map is available at the end of the article.

If you want to more address, I recommand you the following websites:

• The Facebook group Gluten-free in Japan! has by far been the most useful source of information for me. The group is very active and quickly answersto everyone’s inquiries. Many restaurants and businesses are already listed there and are regularly updated through the feedback from travelers.
• Find me gluten-free
• The website Legal nomads
• Google maps: I mainly use it to check the current practices of restaurants I have selected by looking at recent reviews. It also allows me to verify if the restaurant is still open! Between my restaurant search and my departure, one and a half months have passed and several of the restaurants on my list had closed in the meantime.

Finally, if you are short on time to plan your trip, do not hesitate to inquire about using the Gluten Free Tours Japan organization. I personally haven’t taken the time to study this solution, but several travelers have used it and come back with very positive reviews about it.

Prepare your allergy card

As mentioned above, it seems essential to have a card explaining precisely what your diet involves.
For my part, I used one shared in the Facebook group Gluten-Free in Japan! If you go to the file tab, you will find different allergy cards and you can select the one that suits you best. Most of them are commented by travelers who already tested it, so feel free to take a look.

For the most sensitive, it can be more reassuring to rely on « official » cards. Legal Nomads offers ones that have received very positive feedback.

Learn the pitfalls to avoid

• Soy sauce: Although gluten is not always present, it is often the case. If you hear about shoyou, it should raise a red flag in your mind. Tamari sauce, on the other hand, represents the traditional method of production and is gluten-free. An entire article explaining the interest of wheat in soy sauce production and the differences between gluten-containing and gluten-free soy sauce will be coming soon.
• Most noodles: You may hear here and there that noodles in Japan are safe because they are made from rice flour. The reality is quite different. Udon, which is one of the most commonly consumed noodles in Japan, is made from wheat; ramen noodles also contain gluten, as do sômen noodles despite their white color. Traditionally, soba noodles do not contain gluten and are made solely from buckwheat, but nowadays they are more and more cut with wheat. In conclusion, be cautious of noodle-based dishes and unless indicated otherwise, assume that they contain gluten.
• Miso is a fermented paste. There are several manufacturing recipes. Mugi miso is made from barley and therefore contains gluten.
• Sushi: In this case, the source of gluten can come from various elements. It can come from the meat, which is sometimes marinated in sauces that contain gluten. The rice can also be prepared with malt vinegar instead of rice vinegar. Be cautious of sushi with surimi as well. This crab-flavored paste is often made with wheat starch and sometimes the restaurant staff will not be aware about it. This is why you need to be cautious when it comes to sushi.
• Wasabi: Cheap wasabi sometimes contains gluten.
• Mugi-cha: This is a tea made from barley, very popular in Japan. Despite its name, it does not contain tea and consists simply of roasted barley grains infused in water. This means you also need to be vigilant about the « tea » that may be served to you. On the other hand, Genmai (roasted rice infusion) and Sobacha (roasted buckwheat) are beverages that can be consumed. There are many variations of mugi-cha, and you can find barley-infused drinks in beverage vending machines. Caution is advised.
• Japanese curries generally contain gluten due to the soy sauce or flour that may have been added to them, unlike Indian curries, which are usually gluten-free.

Learn some basic words

I had skipped this part a bit before leaving, but I had learned a few words like wheat, allergy, soy sauce. I was able to recognize them in some conversations, which reassured me, but it was never critical for me to know them (most of the time, I used Google Translate).

– Wheat : komugi (小麦)

– Barley : oomugi (大麦)

– Soy sauce : shouyu (醤油)

– Gluten : fushitsu (麩質)

– Gluten-free : Guruten Furîグルテンフリー

–I am allergic to … : … ni taishite arerugî ga arimasu. (… に対してアレルギーがあります。)

Bring some gluten-free food

It’s the question I ask myself every time: is it really necessary to bring gluten-free products? Am I being not overreacting? Usually, I decide at the last moment based on the space left in my bag.

Regarding Japan, I advise you to bring some products. It’s a bit like the kitchen: if you don’t do it, you won’t starve and you will always be able to get another onigiri, but having your own little snacks or nibbles will bring you some comfort, it will prevent you from getting hungry, and it will allow you to vary the flavors.

Then if you have a little space left, I recommend it: whether it’s energy bars, cookies, bread that you eat with local jams…everything is good to take.
Also, depending on the itinerary you have chosen, plan for more or less food. In big cities, it will be less critical than in more remote areas.