Why Japanese Soft Serve Has Been The Country's Favorite Dessert For Decades

Japan's culinary scene is world-renowned for foods and ingredients like ramen, sushi, wagyu beef, and even a chef-favorite mayonnaise. There have even been a few distinctive touches in Japanese culinary culture mixed in for good measure, like the surprising trend of drinking mayonnaise. Japanese cuisine gives you plenty of variety, and there is truly something for everyone, but when it comes to dessert, there is one item that has been winning popularity contests for decades — soft serve ice cream, or softcream, for those in the know about Japanese cuisine. 

Soft serve was invented in the United States in the 1930s, and it wasn't long before it helped revolutionize the fast food industry, but in Japan, when soft serve was introduced in 1940s it revolutionized dessert and sparked a nation-wide love that would settle in for the long haul. In 1947, a man named George Tanaka began selling soft serve machines to businesses in Japan. A few years later, he expanded his customer base to include restaurants. Soon, the treat (under the name "softcream") was a household name, and it became widely available around the country.

Softcream is made from high-quality Japanese milk, which gives it an especially rich and creamy taste and texture — more so than the American version. It's the consistency of slightly melted ice cream, but unlike ice cream, which is typically sold in a carton meant to be stored in your freezer, Japanese softcream's silky, melty texture means you've got to eat it as soon as you order it, making it a perfect snack for enjoying during a stroll. Another reason Japanese soft serve is so popular is the interesting variety of flavors it comes in — over 100 — blending unexpected ingredients with Insta-ready aesthetics.

When it comes to Japanese softcream flavors, you've got the standards, like chocolate and vanilla, as well as matcha, which isn't just a quintessential Japanese flavor but one that has gained worldwide popularity. But there are some pretty unique flavors that you'll find in different spots around Japan, and you may or may not be on board with some of them. You can find softcream in flavors like wasabi, cherry blossom, and even soy sauce or scallop.

In some places, the softcream is reflective of the specific region, like the must-have softcream in Kanazawa City, which is covered in edible gold leaf. Gold leaf craftmanship is an art form that Kanazawa is quite famous for, and watching the vendor place it delicately on the softcream is part of the fun of ordering it. Other regions have their own unique softcream flavors, like Hokkaido and its famous Yubari melon, and Okinawa, where beni-imo (purple sweet potato) is popular. These unique flavors are not just a fun way to try something new, they are also a reflection of modern Japanese culture, one that celebrates the country's cuisine and willingness to embrace innovation and creativity.