In an age where cheap, mass-produced plastic encroaches on every aspect of our lives, it seems all the more necessary that we actively seek out well-made objects that will stand the test of time. Ceramics are sturdy and timeless, and they don’t shed microplastics. For those aiming to build a well-rounded Japanese pantry, these are the ceramic tools and utensils you should consider owning.
To paraphrase Soetsu Yanagi, everyday objects should be both functional and aesthetically pleasing. So use your favourite bowls every day. Sip tea from your prettiest matcha bowl. While we’re alive, we may as well surround ourselves with joy and beauty.
Rice bowl
There are two styles of “small” rice bowls — meshiwan and hanki. Meshiwan are basically similar to the rice bowls you get at Chinese restaurants. A hanki, on the other hand, is a rice bowl with a lid to keep the rice warm; these can be ceramic or lacquered wood. Both are used for individual servings of rice. They can also be used as bowls for individual portions of clear broths or soup. Ideally, one would have a set of at least two or four in the kitchen as they’re fairly versatile.
Donburi bowl
If you live alone and have very little space for bowls and plates, I recommend eating everything out of a donburi bowl. Another rice bowl? Yes — but it deserves its own subheading on account of its size and purpose. They’re wide and deep, designed for one-bowl meals of rice topped with meat, fish, and/or vegetables. But in a pinch, they can do double duty as ramen, cereal, or soup bowls.
Ramen bowl
Regular bowls (like the sort you use for cereal) don’t cut the mustard when you’re making soup noodles. They tend not to be wide or deep enough, and the ratio of soup-to-bowl is always too high. Ramen bowls are typically deep and wide, designed to contain noodles and broth with enough space for toppings. It’s also important that there’s enough headspace so that the bowl isn’t brimming with hot liquid. Even if it’s only instant ramen, there’s something special about having a bowl just for your noodles.
Matcha bowl (chawan)
If you’re graduating from sipping matcha lattes to whisking your own, there’s no better vessel than a ceramic chawan. While they were first used in the Japanese tea room, these bowls are ideal for making and drinking matcha thanks to their tactility. They come in a variety of materials, colours, and styles; indeed, tea practitioners will use different ones according to the season or theme of the gathering. For example, one might use a shallow, wide bowl in summer made of a lighter material (like glass or porcelain) for a thin matcha. In colder weather, one might use a more rustic style of tea bowl, such as Raku or Bizen, to evoke the coziness of a warm room. No matter what you choose, it should feel good in your hands.
Japanese teacup (yunomi)
You know me — I like a beautiful tea cup. Jokes aside, yunomi are handleless tea cups for everyday drinking, the kind you might sip your sencha from. They come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and decorative styles; however, they are usually taller than they are wide. White porcelain is an aesthetically pleasing choice for showing off the hue of green teas; however, more rustic ceramic styles like Bizen feel more pleasant to hold.
Yunomi are often sold in sets of two known as “meoto yunomi” or “married couple tea cups.” These make a lovely gift for newly weds. Meoto yunomi are a little archaic, in that one is larger than the other — infuriatingly, the larger one is usually considered to be the man’s cup. (This also happens with sets of chopsticks.)
Japanese teapot (kyusu)
This style of teapot is distinguished by its ergonomic side handle — like a knob rather than a curved C-shaped handle. Many kyusu also have a built-in ceramic strainer at the base of the spout so you don’t need a strainer as you pour the tea. Most kyusu are designed to be poured by right-handers, but lefties needn’t feel left out as left-handed versions exist too. An ideal utensil for your kitchen if your day is powered by green tea rather than coffee.
Sake set (tokkuri and ochoko)
This is essential for anyone even remotely serious about enjoying sake at home. A set consists of a narrow-necked pouring vessel with a bulbous base known as a tokkuri, and small handle-less cups referred to as either ochoko or guinomi. The tokkuri is often referred to as a flask in English.
Drinking cups don’t need to come in a matching set. Building up a collection of gorgeous one-of-a-kind ochoko over a few years is a perk of drinking sake. In fact, some restaurants will bring out a tray of ochoko in a variety of styles so that guests can choose the ones they like.
Donabe (earthenware pot)
A donabe is a thick-walled clay pot typically used for cooking nabemono dishes, such as shabu-shabu, sukiyaki, and hotpot, but they are excellent for soups and braises too. They were traditionally used over an open flame, but some modern donabe can be used on induction stoves as well. The best donabe are said to be Banko ware from Mie Prefecture, followed by Iga ware from Mie and Shigaraki ware from Shiga.
Some donabe are designed specifically for cooking rice; aficionados swear that they are superior to electric rice cookers. It’s true that one rarely achieves the same kind of crusty bottom (okoge) when attempting takikomi gohan in the rice cooker. An electric appliance also lacks elegance and drama. Imagine a chef at a kaiseki restaurant carrying a donabe to the guest, and lifting the lid to release a billowing cloud of steam, revealing a gorgeous tableau of rice dotted with golden chestnuts (or similar.) Now imagine the same scene with a rice cooker; it lacks a certain je ne sais quoi.
Ceramic grater
This small ceramic dish with sharp raised teeth in the center is one of those kitchen tools that punches far above its weight in terms of utility and efficiency. It grates perfectly small amounts of ginger for home cooking, pushing all the paste and juice to the trough while leaving the tough fibres in the teeth. It’s the size of a coaster and therefore takes up very little space in your kitchen. Like the garlic press, a ceramic grater is a single-use kitchen tool — it sucks at grating anything other than ginger or daikon. But there is quite literally no better tool for its purpose. A Microplane zester doesn’t even come close in the ginger grating game.
Suribachi and surikogi
If you love Japanese-style sesame dressings, the suribachi will be an essential tool in your kitchen. This is the Japanese mortar and pestle; the mortar is a ceramic bowl with fine grooves spiralled across its interior, while the pestle is wood — usually sansho wood for its fragrance. The narrowly-spaced ridges aren't just elegant to behold; they also grind ingredients more delicately and efficiently with far less force than a regular stone mortar and pestle. Sesame seeds are a great example: A suribachi quickly transforms them into a creamy paste, with the added bonus of not having tiny seeds leaping out of the bowl onto the floor.
Chawanmushi cup
If you think savoury egg custard is an abomination and that all custards should be sweet, skip this paragraph. For the rest of us, these little pots of hot, silky, perfectly jiggly savoury egg custard represent the apotheosis of comfort food, and as such demand specific vessels for their preparation. You could improvise by stretching plastic wrap over a bowl or cup, but a proper ceramic cup with its own lid is a much more elegant solution and makes chawanmushi feel like the special treat that it is. A little wooden teaspoon for eating is optional but highly desirable.