Cheese Hamburger Steak (チーズハンバーグ) is Japanese Hamburger Steak (or Hamburg Steak) with sweet and tangy sauce and cheese on top. Melted cheese adds another layer of flavor and texture to the sauce, and a lot of people enjoy it whether they are eating at restaurants or at home.
Ham Katsu (ハムカツ) is Panko-coated deep-fried thinly sliced ham. It was a popular food in the Showa era (1926-1989) in Japan. Ham Katsu has been more of a nostalgic food than anything else, but it’s getting more attention lately, and making a small come-back in the restaurant scene there.
Fried Squid Ring (イカリングフライ) is squid sliced into “rings,” coated with Panko and deep-fried. It could be an appetizer dish to go with drinks or a tasty entree for dinner.
Fried Squid Ring is more a home cooking dish than restaurant food. It can be served at some diner-type restaurants, but more often, you may find it at Izakaya, food and drink bars. It is like fried calamari in the US, but Fried Squid Ring is definitely always coated with Panko bread crumbs.
Curry Korokke is just like Japanese Potato Korokke (croquette) but the filling is flavored with curry powder. The process and ingredients of making Curry Korokke are very similar to regular Korokke, but a little change of the spice makes this ordinary entree taste like a completely different food.
Kani Cream Korokke is another popular western-style Japanese dish that has been around for a long time. A mixture of creamy béchamel sauce and crab meat is coated with bread crumbs and deep-fried. Kani Cream Korokke is often found on a menu at Yoshokuya (western style Japanese food restaurant) as well as some grocery stores and delis in Japan. Although the cooking steps can be a little finicky, it is worthwhile to make this crunchy creamy morsel at home.
Macaroni Salad is macaroni mixed with vegetables and mayonnaise, very similar to American macaroni salad. Because Japanese mayo has a very different flavor from mayo in the US, Japanese Macaroni Salad tastes quite different, just like Japanese Potato Salad. It is a very good side dish for Yoshoku (western style dishes) such as Hamburger Steaks and Menchi Katsu.