What is Japanese souzai?
Souzai is essentially any prepared food. It can also mean something that is eaten with ricem like a side dish. The best comparison I can give to someone from America is that it is like going to a deli in a grocery store (similar to Whole Foods or Wegmans or Foodland), or going to a gas station and picking up a hot dog. It can range from the famous bento to little side dishes.
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Breaking down the term
I’m not a language expert, but breaking down the Kanji, or Japanese characters, helps me understand words (it can also explain the history of some words!). Souzai is written as 惣菜. 惣 means “all” and 菜 means “vegetables.” So literally “all vegetables.” Well that doesn’t make much sense. (I suspect there is a historical reason for this term.)
Upon researching, I found out that souzai is also called nakashoku, 中食, Which means “middle food/eat.” It may not make sense on its own, but if you look at the related terms:
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Oh yes, now things are coming together. Souzai is something you buy, then eat at home -- somewhere between a home cooked meal and eating out.
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Despite its popularity, souzai only makes up about 14% of the food market in Japan (by yen in 2019). However, it grew by 20% in the last ten years, outpacing the growth of eating in, eating out, and the market as a whole.
The most popular souzai
The following are some of the most popular kinds of souzai, according to a survey conducted in 2021 by the Japanese Souzai Association (yes, it exists)…
The most frequently purchased souzai according to consumers:
- Bento
- Onigiri
- Karaage (Japanese fried chicken)
- Sushi
- Croquette
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Where Can You Buy Souzai?
Souzai can be purchased almost anywhere. The most common places are the supermarket, convenience stores, specialty souzai stores, and the basement of department stores (don’t let the description fool you: the basements of Japanese department stores are a magical place.)
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Onigiris for sale!
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Why is souzai so popular?
After doing this research, I truly wondered, “Why is souzai so popular in Japan?” Is it the workaholic culture? Is it because there are more women working? Is it because traditional Japanese meals have multiple side dishes and it is a pain to cook them all? I was disappointed by the English search results. Souzai is such a large part of modern Japanese food culture. Why wasn’t anybody talking about this?
Upon some basic research, these were the main findings:
- Busy nature of Japanese work culture
- Increase of women in the labor force
- Increase in the number of single-person households
But I wanted concrete evidence. I came upon an article from the Japan times in 2002 titled “Prepared foods seen growing in popularity.” Interestingly, the souzai culture of Japan had only become more popular in the early 2000s.
Yes, this makes sense, but I wanted data. So I decided to do some basic stats.
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Some basic statics
I found data from the OECD and World Bank on female labor force participation rates and female to male worker ratio. Furthermore, I collected data on the amount of single households from the Official Statistics of Japan. Then, with the data from the souzai association, I ran a regression with the data. Yes, I know it’s not enough data to be statistically significant. I am not claiming causality or any results. Furthermore, I was unable to control for any variables, etc. But, here is the output.
It appears there could be evidence for female workforce participation.
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Whereas the correlation with single-person households is slightly weaker.
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[Disclosure, I am not a statistician, and only have basic statistics experience from a handful of basic classes at university. If there is a flaw, please let me know.]
Final thoughts
I have other questions too. What are the cultural implications? How has health changed? (There is a study published in 2019 that shows decreased quality of diet.) How are women viewed who put souzai on the table on a regular basis?
Souzai is a part of everyday life in Japan. No matter where you go, it is something that you will come across. On a peronsonal note, if you ever travel to Japan, aside from eating at the restaurants, I strongly encourage you to experience the souzai culture of Japan. Go to the store and have yourself a picnic.
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Unsolicited Recommendation #23
Speaking of souzai, here is this post's unsolicited recommendation.
Souzai is made and sold on a daily basis on Japan, (similar to a bakery that bakes bread everyday.) As a result, everything made that day, must be sold. To ensure that all of the souzai is sold that day, any remaining souzai will go on discount once it becomes late in the day (usually around 6:30-7:30pm.)
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Bento that is 20% off
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I was strategic about this and timed my trips to the supermarket in line when the bentos and onigiris went on sale.
Most items start out with a modest 10-20% off. However, the later it gets, the bigger the discount becomes. Finding the right balance between getting a good discount and the souzai you want is a strategic game. Often, I end up buying something I had not originally planned.
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Souzai on sale!
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But sometimes, I get lucky. Like sushi!
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30% off sushi!
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