Everyday Japan

Here's another look at unusual groceries we find in Japan.



From left to right:

A Yakult "probiotic" drink in a tiny 65ml bottle, which is sold in packs of 6, 8 or more. Google tells me that it's a "fermented milk drink" made by fermenting skim milk powder and sugar with the beneficial bacteria Lactobacillus casei Shirota strain. Lucinda really likes them.

Italian whipped cream in a spray can. It's a much smaller package than a typically mega-American version.

And mayonnaise, which squirts out of this very-thin-plastic bottle, to eliminate bulky trash. A British website called Japan Centre ("Japan delivered to your door"), tells me that it's called "QP Kewpie Mayonnaise." Turns out it's made with rice vinegar instead of distilled vinegar to better match Japanese cuisine. (Which means that my sister, who has a wheat allergy, could maybe eat Japanese mayo?)