Have you ever heard of ‘Doyo no Ushi no Hi’? ‘Doyo no Ushi no Hi’ is a specific day in summer when many people in Japan enjoy eating eel (unagi) as part of a long-standing tradition.
You’re probably aware that unagi can be quite expensive in Japan and considered a premium meal, so ‘Doyo no Ushi no Hi’ has been the perfect excuse to treat myself;p After all, it only comes around once or twice a year — and it’s tradition!
Let me explain this tradition — and I bet that by the end, you’ll have a good excuse to treat yourself to some unagi too;)
Doyo no Ushi no Hi (土用の丑の日)
‘Doyo no Ushi no Hi’ refers to the Day of the Ox that falls within the Doyo period.
‘Doyo’ refers to the roughly 18-day transitional periods just before each season changes (before risshun/立春, rikka/立夏, risshu/立秋, ritto/立冬).
‘Ushi no Hi’ (Day of the Ox) is a day assigned to the Ox in the old 12-animal zodiac, which cycles every 12 days.
Thus, there are several “Day of the Ox” during the ‘Doyo’ period each year, but the term ‘Doyo no Ushi no Hi’ generally refers to the “Day of the Ox” that falls during the summer Doyo period. In Japan, there is a tradition of eating eel (unagi) on this day.
On this day, supermarkets set up large special sections for unagi, and not only unagi speciality restaurants but also chain restaurants and local diners — which don’t usually serve unagi — offer unagi as a special and limited-time menu. For example, beef bowl chains like Sukiya and Yoshinoya — you might be familiar with;) — actively promote or offer limited-time unagi menus for Doyo no Ushi no Hi. While it’s mostly pre-orders to reduce food waste, convenience stores also strongly push unagi during this time.
If you are in Japan during this time, you might be surprised and wonder, “What is going on?” — the whole city becomes “unagi, unagi, unagi, unagi!”
When Is The Doyo no Ushi no Hi?
2026 summer Doyo no Ushi no Hi falls on July 26 (Sun).
2027 summer Doyo no Ushi no Hi falls on:
July 21 (Wed) — ‘ichi-no-ushi’ (first)
August 2 (Mon) — ‘ni-no-ushi’ (second)
Because it’s a 12-day cycle, a doyo period sometimes contains two Ox days – called ‘ichi-no-ushi’ (first) and ‘ni-no-ushi’ (second). It is considered good luck when the Day of the Ox occurs twice — the reason for this is linked to the tradition of eating eel explained in the next section:)
Why Eel (Unagi)?
There are various theories regarding the origins of the tradition of eating unagi on Doyo no Ushi no Hi.
Long before unagi became popular food for Doyo no Ushi no Hi, there was already a tradition of eating foods starting with the sound ‘u’ on the summer Doyo no Ox (‘ushi’) day for good summer health – such as umeboshi (pickled plum), udon, uri (gourd/melon), ushi (beef) and unagi (eel).
A well-known origin story is that an Edo-period scholar Hiraga Gennai advised a struggling unagi shop* to post ‘Today is the Day of the Ox’. It is said that since there was originally a custom of eating foods with the syllable ‘u’ in their names on the Day of the Ox, sales boomed and the custom spread.
*Eel’s natural peak season is actually autumn-to-winter, when wild eel is fattier. In the Edo period, before modern farming, summer was the slow season for eel shops.
Also, unagi is rich in protein and vitamins A and B complex, traditionally believed to fight natsubate (summer fatigue). In the years we have two ‘Ushi no Hi’ (Day of the Ox), people see it as a great blessing because it gives us two chances to take care of ourselves, nourish our bodies and boost our energy with unagi during the hottest time of the year.
So the tradition blends real nutrition, wordplay and clever marketing;)
Feeling hungry for some unagi yet? If you like unagi, please make the most of it because you are lucky enough to be in Japan during Doyo no Ushi no Hi;) If you are a bit hesitant about it, I’d love you to give it a try at an unagi speciality restaurant when visiting Japan. Once you try Unagi no Kabayaki (grilled unagi with sweet soy sauce), it might open your eyes to just how delicious unagi can be:) It could also be a good idea to start with unagi sushi at a nice sushi restaurant since it’s a small portion, it’s easy to try it out. After all, when in Rome, do as the Romans do, right?
And if your travels take you to Nagoya, we have our own special way of eating unagi here — hitsumabushi, chopped grilled eel that you enjoy in three different ways. I wrote all about it in Where to Eat Hitsumabushi in Nagoya: A Local’s Restaurant Guide.
So…are you ready to open a new door? Konnichiwa new world of flavor;)
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