Hello, I'm Mog.
The other day, my daughter asked me to make her favorite dish from her school lunch days. Her junior high school (ages 13–15) doesn't provide school lunches, so she brings a bento box from home. Every now and then, she finds herself missing the delicious meals she used to enjoy at school.
In this article, I'll share how Japan's school lunch system works, what lunchtime looks like for kids in Japanese schools, and the recipe my daughter requested me to recreate at home.
How Japan's School Lunch System Works
In Japan, school lunches — known as kyushoku (給食) — are provided to students at public elementary and junior high schools. As of 2024, the average monthly cost paid by parents at public schools was around 5,000 yen. However, from April 2026, the Japanese government began covering most of the ingredient costs, making kyushoku even more affordable for families.
No homemade packed lunch could match this level of nutrition at such a low cost. Licensed dietitians carefully plan monthly menus to meet children's daily nutritional needs — a challenging task that requires balancing both health and budget.
With the rise of dual-income households in Japan, preparing a bento box every morning before work can be a real burden. Parents also worry whether their homemade lunches provide all the nutrients their growing children need. Kyushoku takes that pressure off, and families are truly grateful for it.
What School Lunch Looks Like in Japan
A typical kyushoku meal consists of a staple (rice, bread, or noodles), soup, a main dish (fish, meat, or tofu), a side dish, and milk.
My personal favorite was agepan — deep-fried bread coated in sugar. Beyond traditional Japanese dishes, the menu also features internationally inspired options like tandoori chicken and pasta.
Lunchtime is, above all, a joyful time to chat with friends. Since COVID-19, schools have handled mealtimes differently, but when I was a child, we would push our desks together in groups of four. Sometimes our homeroom teacher or AET (Assistant English Teacher) would join our group — that was always a highlight of the day. I still remember trying to ask questions in my broken English 🤭
Kyushoku Toban: The Lunch Duty Rotation
A rotating group of students, called kyushoku toban, is responsible for carrying and serving the lunch each week. Wearing white coats, they head to the kitchen to collect lunch for the entire class. Since they're carrying meals for everyone, the trays and pots are surprisingly heavy — and extra care is needed to avoid spilling the soup.
Once the food arrives in the classroom, the duty students serve it at the front of the room. Dividing the portions equally among everyone is harder than it sounds. Running out of a dish — or ending up with too much — is a universal school lunch experience. When something goes wrong, the kids work together to figure it out.
After serving, each student adjusts their own portion — taking less if it's too much, or adding more if they want it. Learning to gauge how much you can eat also helps reduce food waste. That said, there's usually a rule that you have to eat at least a little of the dishes you don't like. And when a popular dish is left over? It's time for a janken (rock-paper-scissors) battle — one of the small highlights of the school day.
What Children Learn Through Kyushoku
The older students — sixth graders — teach the first graders how to perform lunch duty. Thinking back to their own first days at school, the sixth graders guide the younger ones with patience and care. To a six-year-old, a twelve-year-old must look incredibly cool and reliable.
Kyushoku teaches children so much more than just how to eat. Here are some of the key lessons:
- How to use chopsticks
- Table manners
- Nutritional balance
- Seasonal ingredients
- Local food culture
Itadakimasu and Gochisosama: Japan's Mealtime Greetings
Before eating in Japan, people place their hands together and say "Itadakimasu." This phrase expresses gratitude — to nature, to the living things that became the food, and to all the farmers, fishermen, and cooks involved in bringing the meal to the table. At school, all students say it together at the signal from the lunch duty team. When the meal is finished, everyone says "Gochisosama deshita" — another expression of heartfelt thanks.
Chopstick etiquette is also taught through kyushoku. Children are encouraged to eat a little of every dish on their tray, rather than focusing only on their favorites.
Sometimes a school cook would come to the classroom to talk about seasonal ingredients. I also remember visiting the school kitchen as part of a class activity — seeing the enormous cooking equipment up close for the first time was quite a surprise. My daughter told me she even got to interview one of the cooks for a school project.
Kyushoku also serves as a hands-on opportunity for students to learn about local ingredients and traditional cooking methods from their own region.
What Parents Learn Through Kyushoku
My daughter often came home full of things she had learned at lunch — about traditional Kyoto vegetables, or a dish she had loved that day.
Nutritionists send home monthly newsletters for parents, too. These cover popular recipes, the importance of healthy eating habits for children's physical and mental development, and information about nutrition and seasonal produce. I always stuck the monthly menu on the fridge to make sure I didn't accidentally serve the same thing for dinner that the kids had already eaten at school.
My Daughter's Requested Recipe
Recently, our neighbor kindly gave us some fresh takenoko (bamboo shoots).
If you'd like to learn more about bamboo shoots in Japan, check out these articles:
I was wondering what to make with them when my daughter suggested a dish she remembered fondly from her school lunch days — apparently it was one of the most popular items on the menu.
Source: Kyoto City Board of Education — Past Featured Recipes:
https://share.google/TpoLerPssmfIGuOTj
We found the recipe on the Kyoto City official website and went shopping for ingredients together.
The word "puri-puri" in the dish's name is a Japanese onomatopoeia that describes a springy, satisfying texture with a pleasant chew. The star of that texture is konjac (konnyaku) — a jelly-like ingredient made from the corm of the konjac plant, widely used in Japanese cooking.
The recipe, published by the Kyoto City Board of Education, is written in Japanese, but the steps are clear and detailed.
Reading through such a carefully written recipe reminded me just how much love and care goes into feeding children through kyushoku.
I gave it a try, following the recipe step by step!
My daughter was so happy — she even went back for seconds 🤗
Final Thoughts
In Kyoto's junior high schools, students currently have the option to purchase a bento box if they wish, but a full school lunch program for all students is scheduled to launch in August 2028.
I truly believe kyushoku is a wonderful part of Japanese culture — one that nourishes both body and mind. Just as the spirit of "itadakimasu" reminds us, school lunch teaches children gratitude, cooperation, and the importance of eating well. It's a model that has drawn international attention, and I look forward to the day when every student can enjoy a warm, nutritious meal at school.
Have a wonderful day 💕
