With winter having firmly arrived, it is time to spend some ample time inside warming up. Whether you prefer a cup of green tea, hot chocolate, or a hot bowl of ramen, Japan has plenty of ways to keep you warm and your belly full. Thus the word of the month is a winter staple!

Oden! If you've been to Japan in winter you've most likely encountered oden at either restaurants or at the convenient store. Let's go over what oden is, and even some of the most popular dishes comprising it.

In Japanese, oden is written as おでん. There are kanji characters that you can use to represent the word, but they are rather uncommon. The dish is commonly kept warm in a dashi broth and you can order multiple pieces at a time. Ordering oden can be a daunting task at times, as there are so many different dishes that you can choose from, and sometimes the characters are hard to read. Nevertheless, here's a few popular oden dishes that you can give a try the next time you are in Japan.

One popular dish is egg, or たまご, also written as 卵. As part of oden, the egg is usually soft or hard boiled.

Daikon, a type of radish, is another popular dish in oden. Written as 大根, and made of the characters for 'big' and 'root', in oden, daikon is soft and flavourful. 

Chikuwa, or ちくわ in Japanese, is a type of fishcake that is usually shaped as a cylinder. Slightly chewy, it is a common order for anyone enjoying oden! 

Konjac, or コンニャク, is a root vegetable, commonly eaten in Japan as a either a jelly like solid or noodles. 

Oden is a popular winter dish, one that can be enjoyed both alone or with company. There are many regional varieties across Japan, so make sure to get out and about to try them all!