Teppanyaki Table | Hibachi Grill | Teppanyaki and Hibachi

Teppanyaki is a popular Japanese cooking style that includes cooking on the teppanyaki table. More than just a cooking style, teppanyaki is a performing culinary art that contains all the best cooking techniques.

However, many people often associate teppanyaki with hibachi. This confusion is due to the fact that both cooking methods involve cooking on the teppanyaki grill table. This may be because of their similarities, because in fact, they are really very different!

If you want to know more about the difference between teppanyaki and hibachi, please continue reading below.

What is teppanyaki?

Teppanyaki is a Japanese cooking method that requires grilling on a large steel hot plate. In fact, this is also reflected in the name itself, where "iron plate" means iron plate, and "yaki" means barbecue.

Teppanyaki first appeared in Japan in 1945. It originated from a local steak house, which combines Western and Asian dishes, and quickly became popular throughout the country.

Teppanyaki is unique because of its performance. Many teppanyaki chefs have been skilled in training and learned techniques such as cooking onion volcanoes or throwing shrimp tails into their pockets. Common foods on the Teppanyaki menu include shrimp, beef, chicken or tofu. The siding includes grilled vegetables, fried rice or noodles.

What is HIBACHI?

It is believed that hibachi originated in the Heian period of Japan around 794 AD. This is a Japanese style of cooking where meat, vegetables and seafood are cooked on a high-calorie metal cooking plate.

Under the cooking plate is a wooden or ceramic container with burning wood or charcoal inside. In fact, hibachi literally means "fire bowl", which refers to a round open-top container with wood or charcoal burning for heating.

What makes teppanyaki and hibachi similar?

Except for the obvious details, they are all from Japan, and both teppanyaki and Japanese hibachi cooking involve cooking on a metal plate. They usually cook the same food, such as meat and seafood.

The dining experience of Teppanyaki and hibachi is also quite similar. In these two styles, guests usually sit around a teppanyaki table that can accommodate 10 people. Here, they can watch the chef cooking food before their eyes.

Some Japanese hibachi chefs also perform the same tricks that teppanyaki chefs do, such as the iconic onion volcano. However, there are more differences between teppanyaki and hibachi than similarities.

What makes Teppanyaki different from hibachi?

Teppanyaki and Hitachi’s teppanyaki are similar, but the main difference between the two is the characteristics of the teppanyaki.

Teppanyaki is usually cooked in a solid, flat iron skillet. They are usually heated with propane. A flat iron skillet can also put some side dishes, such as rice, vegetables and eggs.

At the same time, hibachi traditionally uses a circular grille with an open grille. They are usually made of wood or ceramic lined with metal. Hibachi grills can also be portable or built into modern furniture for use. Unlike the teppanyaki grill, the heat source of Japanese hibachi barbecue is burning wood or coal.

In addition, because of its open grate design, Hibachi grills are more commonly used for cooking larger foods. Teppanyaki is also more particular about the technique of knives, and hibachi has a more traditional view on this. Teppanyaki is all about precise knives and therefore its iconic performance aspect.

Teppanyaki is also a relatively new cooking method, and Japanese-style hibachi has a history of hundreds of years. However, modern Hibachi has moved to people's comfortable homes. Since many modern Japanese grills are portable or can be installed on furniture, this makes preparing Japanese hibachi food at home much more convenient than teppanyaki food.

Summary

It is undeniable that hibachi and teppanyaki are very similar. Of course, they use iron grills to share some similar cooking techniques, especially in restaurants.

However, their main difference lies in their grills: the iron plate of the teppanyaki grill has a flat surface and can cook small foods such as rice and vegetables, while the Japanese hibachi grill is round and is usually used for cooking larger food.

Nevertheless, both of these cooking methods prove the wonders of Japanese cuisine. They all provide an opportunity for hungry diners to experience delicious Japanese food while also being entertained!