I’ll be the first to admit that Koufuku Graffiti isn’t that much different from your typical cooking anime like Shokugeki no Soma.

You know, the typical food porn shtick where you see the characters eating food with passion and start commenting on the food like a food critic?

The only difference is that the characters in Koufuku Graffiti still keep their clothes on when they eat.

There’s no such thing as they’re suddenly in their baby suit because of their reaction to the food.

And there’s no such thing as the characters competing with each other who cook the best food either.

The story in Koufuku Graffiti is pretty relaxed compared to the one in Shokugeki no Soma.

Despite that, it’s still a potent anime to watch, especially when you’re watching it on an empty stomach.

What kind of anime is Koufuku Graffiti

Yes, Koufuku Graffiti anime is a cooking anime similar to Shokugeki no Soma.

But unlike Shokugeki no Soma, Koufuku Graffiti tends to focus more on Japanese home cooking and the common food that we all eat.

Yes, I won’t deny that there’s nothing spectacular about those foods.

But then again, it can still trigger a craving if you’re not careful. And it’s a lot easier to trigger such a craving when they’re the foods that are easily available.

Sure, you can argue that there’s no point in developing such cravings when Japanese foods aren’t even available within your vicinity.

The only thing you can get is Japanese snacks since they’re widely available in convenience stores and major grocery chains.

But imagine that you start to crave pizza after watching the anime. I’m sure that you can get that even if you live in the boonies.

There’s no pizza available where you live? Well, you can make one yourself which is what many people tend to do these days.

Think of Koufuku Graffiti like the ‘Tis Time for “Torture,” Princess manga where the sole focus of the story is the food that is easily available as opposed to fine dining.

If you’ve read the manga, then you know how much it can make you crave the said food right after you see the same food in the manga.

The foods that made me want to try after watching the anime

While the anime features many common Japanese foods such as oden and grilled fish, they don’t pique my interest that much.

Do I not find oden and grilled fish fascinating enough?

Sad to say, not really.

Unless you’re cooking deep-sea fish, I don’t fancy eating a fish that comes with small, hard-to-see bones.

So, I tend to avoid that for the most part.

As for oden, I do enjoy eating them. But amazingly enough, it’s not enough to make me crave them that much.

If oden and grilled fish aren’t the ones that make me want to eat it right here and right now, then which Japanese food caught my attention?

They’re none other than the Inari sushi and kitsune udon.

Inari sushi

The funny thing about Inari sushi is that it’s pretty cheap for sushi. But for some reason, I didn’t find anything interesting about it.

That was until I saw Inari sushi in Koufuku Graffiti.

It made me wonder what’s with the fuss about this tofu-coated sushi that makes Kirin sneak into the kitchen to eat the leftover Inari sushi at night.

So, here I am, getting inari sushi for myself when I went to Sushi King.

For those who don’t know, it’s a kaiten sushi restaurant in Malaysia that is halal-certified.

My verdict about the Inari sushi? It’s the same as the one you see in Koufuku Graffiti. You want more of it the moment you eat one.

Can’t say for sure how much it costs now considering that I haven’t been to Sushi King for such a long time.

But even if they have to jack up the price a little bit, it still won’t put a dent in your budget considering that it’s one of the cheapest sushi you can eat while you’re there.

Of course, you can choose to make one yourself if you’d like. But the thing about Inari sushi is that you can only keep it in the fridge for up to two days tops.

Alternatively, you can get the inari sushi in Family Mart if you find it a hassle to make one.

But as always, it tastes better when you make them yourself.

Kitsune udon

According to the anime, Japanese people eat kitsune udon when they’re sick. But I don’t see anything wrong with wanting to eat it even if you’re healthy.

And that’s what I did when I went to Sushi King. I got myself kitsune soba in addition to Inari sushi.

So, why am I getting the Soba one instead of udon?

Do I not like udon that much?

Well, I enjoy eating both. But if I have to choose, I would prefer to eat soba over udon.

Unlike inari sushi where it’s a little hard to make, kitsune udon is more on the easier side.

You can choose to make the broth from scratch. Or you can opt to use mentsuyu instead. That’s noodle soup base in English, in case you’re wondering.

The best part about using mentsuyu is that you only need to add hot water to make a broth for kitsune udon.

You can use the mentsuyu to make a cold broth for zaru soba too. Like making a hot broth, all you need to do is add cold water and you’re pretty much done.

As much as I find making the broth using mentsuyu convenient, I find that the taste isn’t that good compared to making the broth from scratch.

Yes, it requires more work. But the good news is the process isn’t as hard as you thought. And it doesn’t take long to prepare too even if you’re pressed for time.

So, I highly recommend that you try to make the broth from scratch if you can’t get your hands on mentsuyu.

Learn how to cook Japanese food yourself

Let’s be honest here. The food that you see in Shokugeki no Soma can feel out of touch to many of us.

But the food that you see in Koufuku Graffiti? They’re not that hard to make.

If you’re interested in making any of the food that you see in the anime or the manga, then I highly recommend that you have a look at Just One Cookbook.

It’s my favorite place to learn about cooking Japanese food. The website also provides substitutes or how you can make one from scratch if you can’t find those ingredients.

Not sure where to get the condiments used in Japanese cooking? You can get pretty much most of them on Amazon.

And for those who live in Malaysia, you can get them at Lazada or Shopee. My favorite seller to get those condiments is Shojikiya since the items that they sell tend to have longer expiry dates.

It’s no longer a pipedream

Back then, I used to think that you can only get Japanese condiments through a website like Buyee.

But now? You can get them easily on Amazon and other online marketplaces such as Lazada and Shopee in Malaysia.

Cooking Japanese food is no longer a pipedream anymore.

Now you can have the same Japanese food as the ones you see in Koufuku Graffiti.

And that’s a good thing to hear for those who love Japanese food but prefer to cook the food themselves.

P.S. While I admit that none of my books is anything like Koufuku Graffiti, the closest thing you can get is The Diary of Modern Cinderella.

Just to be clear that The Diary of Modern Cinderella is a psychological suspense novel.

But the story does have this one scene where the main character, Risa Akagi, is enjoying her time eating Chinese food with her grandma while they were in Yokohama.

Find the book piques your interest? You can learn more about the story right here on my Payhip store:

The Diary of Modern Cinderella on Payhip

Interested in buying the light novel? Don’t forget to use the coupon code SEKINAMAYUBLOG to receive 25% off on your purchase.

Just to let you know that the book is also available in print and on other retailers such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Apple Books.

But you can only buy the book at a discount if you buy the book on my Payhip store, though.