Raw Egg
One of the hallmarks of Japanese cuisine is the abundance of fresh ingredients that are often used raw. The best example is seafood in sushi, but there are a couple of other raw foods that appear in Japanese cuisine.
A raw egg, for example, can be found in many dishes. It is usually either served on top of rice or used as a sauce for noodles. This represents one of the great contradictions that Americans experience when they try Japanese food. From an early age, American children are taught to treat eggs with great caution. To prevent food poisoning, Americans always wash their hands after contact with a raw egg, do not mix raw eggs with other foods, keep eggs in the refrigerator, and, of course, never eat eggs raw. Therefore, American tourists in Japan may be shocked to learn that eggs in stores are kept at room temperature and are often served raw in some restaurant dishes.
It is believed that if eggs are laid by healthy chickens, they are perfectly safe to eat. And everyone should try the oyakodon [ang], which consists of cooked chicken and onions that are laid on top of rice with a raw egg on top.
