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Finding Lawson's Best Kept Secret?
ngl it's probably the shio kombu they mix into the rice. a lot of those tiny lawson locations near residential areas get their stock from smaller local distributors, so the rice seasoning is a bit different. i've seen staff at the one near nakano broadway toss in a pinch of that stuff while prepping. look for shio kombu at any grocery store here, it's cheap and lasts forever
It's not a secret ingredient, it's the love. Seriously. Those tiny Lawson's often have staff who've been there for ages, they really care about what they're making. Think about the rice, probably freshly cooked, perfectly seasoned, and the fillings are probably higher quality than in the bigger stores. It's the attention to detail, the pride in their work, that makes all the difference. You won't find a magic spice on the shelf, you'll find it in the dedication of the people making it.
honestly it's probably the nori. those tiny lawson stores get fresh batches way more often than the big ones, so the seaweed is still super crispy and flavorful. that makes a huge diff
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Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.