When summer arrives in Japan, people begin talking about Doyo no Ushi no Hi—the Day of the Ox during the midsummer season.
Supermarkets and restaurants fill their shelves and menus with grilled eel, and it is often promoted as a way to help prevent summer fatigue.
Many visitors to Japan wonder,
“Why do Japanese people eat eel in the middle of summer?”
The answer is not only about nutrition.
It is also part of Japan’s unique food culture.
“Doyo” refers to the period between seasons in the traditional Japanese calendar.
Eating eel on the Day of the Ox during this period became a popular custom.
There is a famous story that the Edo-period scholar Hiraga Gennai suggested this idea to help an eel restaurant attract customers.
Although the story is well known, it has not been confirmed as historical fact.
On the other hand, a poem in the Manyoshu, Japan’s oldest poetry collection, recommends eating eel to recover from summer exhaustion.
This suggests that eel has been associated with summertime for well over a thousand years.
So, does eel really help prevent summer fatigue?
Eel contains protein, vitamin A, and several B vitamins, making it a nutritious food that can support your body during the hot season.
However, eating eel once is not a magical cure.
Getting enough sleep, staying hydrated, and eating a balanced diet are just as important.
Japan is not the only country with seasonal food traditions.
In Korea, many people eat Samgyetang, a hot ginseng chicken soup, during the hottest days of the year.
The idea is to fight heat with heat by eating a warm meal and sweating.
In parts of China, herbal dishes and traditional foods are enjoyed to help maintain balance during the summer.
In contrast, many European countries tend to choose lighter meals, such as salads or cold dishes, when temperatures rise.
Unlike Japan, there is generally no nationwide tradition of eating one particular food on a specific summer day.
Every culture has its own way of coping with the heat.
When I was a child, I didn’t like eel.
I simply couldn’t get used to the texture of its skin.
Somewhere along the way, however, I discovered several foods that I had once disliked.
Eel.
Oysters.
Celery.
Perhaps my sense of taste didn’t change as much as the quality of the food I encountered.
Travel often brings unexpected discoveries.
Instead of deciding, “I don’t like this,” it can be worth giving it another chance.
Sometimes, a single meal becomes the beginning of a new favorite.
As I continue my journey, I hope to enjoy not only good health but also those unexpected encounters.
After all, one of the greatest pleasures of travel is simply enjoying good food.
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