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Italian Wine Pairings for Japanese Food, Page 2
Pairings at a Glance
Showing 11–20 of 26 dishes
Karaage
Karaage is Japanese fried chicken: bite-sized chicken thigh marinated in soy, sake, ginger, garlic, then dredged in potato starch and double-fried. The crust stays light and shatter-crisp; the interior runs juicy. Italian Franciacorta DOCG handles the fry with bubble texture; Frappato di Vittoria works as a chilled red alternative.
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Prawn Tempura
Prawn tempura (ebi tempura) is the iconic single-protein tempura: a head-on shrimp battered and fried straight, stretched and crisp. The sweet shellfish flesh meets a lean, dry crust. Franciacorta DOCG and Trento DOC handle the salt and crunch with autolytic depth; Vermentino di Sardegna gives a still-wine alternative for casual lunches.
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Sukiyaki
Sukiyaki is sweet-savoury hot pot: thinly sliced beef, tofu, shiitake, scallion, and shungiku simmered in warishita (soy-mirin-sugar-sake reduction), then dipped in beaten raw egg. The dish stacks fat (beef), sugar (mirin), umami (mushroom). Italian Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG (Frappato + Nero d'Avola) delivers light-tannin red with bright acid for the warishita; Etna Rosso also works.
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Temaki
Temaki is hand-rolled cone sushi: a sheet of nori wrapped around vinegared rice, fish, vegetable, and often spicy mayo. The seaweed itself adds toasted umami; the cone format means every bite leads with crisp nori. Italian sparkling wines with a clean dosage (Franciacorta DOCG Brut, Trentodoc) carry the rice acidity and seaweed mineral together. For California-style fillings (avocado, crab), Vermentino di Gallura is the cleaner-acid alternative.
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Udon Noodles
Udon are thick wheat noodles served in dashi-based broth (kake udon), with tempura on top (tempura udon), with fox-shaped tofu (kitsune udon), or chilled with dipping sauce (zaru udon). The broth is the pairing variable: kombu-bonito dashi runs umami-clean. Italian Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi and Soave Superiore (Garganega) match the dashi mineral profile; Franciacorta Satèn for richer udon presentations.
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Yakitori
Yakitori is skewered chicken (thigh, breast, skin, gizzard) grilled over binchotan charcoal and brushed with tare (soy-mirin reduction) or seasoned with salt (shio). The fast-fire char and caramelised glaze read sweet-savoury. Etna Rosso and Frappato di Vittoria deliver light tannin with high acid that handle the char without flattening it. For shio yakitori, Vermentino di Gallura and Falanghina del Sannio are the mineral-white alternatives.
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California Roll
California Roll is the Western-American invented uramaki: rice on the outside, nori inside, with crab (or kanikama), avocado, and cucumber. The avocado fat plus brackish crab sweetness plays best against acid-driven Italian whites. Vermentino di Sardegna and Falanghina del Sannio cut the mayo-dressed crab without competing; Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut works as a casual sparkling pour. Skip aromatic whites with strong elderflower or peach character: they jar with the soy.
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Soba Noodles
Soba are thin buckwheat noodles served hot in broth (kake soba) or cold with tsuyu dipping sauce (zaru soba, mori soba). The buckwheat itself carries earthy depth; the dipping format calls for cleaner pairings than ramen does. Italian Friulano (Friuli) and Vermentino di Gallura handle cold soba; Soave Classico Superiore works for hot soba with broth.
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Takoyaki
Takoyaki is Osaka street food: octopus chunks cooked inside a savoury wheat batter ball, brushed with takoyaki sauce (similar to worcestershire), kewpie mayo, bonito flakes, and aonori. The toppings dance with smoke and sweet-savoury depth. Italian Prosecco Superiore Brut handles the snack format; Vermentino di Gallura cuts the mayo without bullying. Avoid heavy reds.
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Unagi
Unagi is freshwater eel: butterflied, steamed, then grilled over charcoal with kabayaki sauce (soy, mirin, sake, sugar reduction). The fish carries serious fat; the glaze adds sticky sweet-savoury char. Italian Etna Rosso (Nerello Mascalese) and Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG carry the umami and char without competing on tannin. Sweet-vintage Champagne territory translates to Franciacorta DOCG Brut for celebratory contexts.
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