Translation guide
The Japanese word for 'ingredient' depends on context: 材料 (ざいりょう) for cooking/building materials, 具 (ぐ) for fillings/toppings in dishes like sushi or soup, and 原料 (げんりょう) for raw materials in manufacturing. Use 食材 (しょくざい) specifically for food ingredients.
cooking ingredient
food ingredient
filling/topping
raw material
General term for ingredients used in cooking or baking.
The most common and versatile word for 'ingredient' in cooking. Also used for materials in crafts or construction.
Buy the ingredients for curry.
This dish doesn't require any special ingredients.
Specifically food ingredients, often used in contexts like grocery shopping or discussing food quality.
It's important to use fresh ingredients.
Refers to ingredients that are part of a composite dish, like fillings in onigiri, toppings on ramen, or mix-ins in soup.
Used for solid ingredients inside or on top of dishes like sushi, rice balls, soups, and stews. Not for ingredients that are mixed into a batter or dough.
What filling do you like in your rice balls?
The ingredients in the miso soup are tofu and wakame seaweed.
Similar to 具, but slightly more formal or detailed. Often used in recipes or when listing components.
Prepare the ingredients for the hot pot.
Ingredients in an industrial or chemical context, or raw materials used to produce something.
Refers to raw materials or ingredients for industrial products, chemicals, or processed foods. Not typically used for home cooking.
The raw material for plastic is petroleum.
The ingredients for beer are malt and hops.
Used metaphorically to mean a component or element that contributes to a result.
Means 'element' or 'factor'. Used when 'ingredient' is metaphorical, such as 'the ingredients of success'.
The ingredients for success are effort and perseverance.
Can also be used figuratively, similar to 'material' in English, e.g., 'material for a story'.
That will make good material for a novel.
材料 (ざいりょう) is the general term for ingredients in cooking and materials for making things. 食材 (しょくざい) is specifically food ingredients, often emphasizing freshness or quality. 具 (ぐ) refers to solid ingredients inside or on top of a dish, like fillings or toppings. 原料 (げんりょう) is for raw materials in industrial or processed food contexts.
具 is only for solid pieces that are part of a dish's composition (e.g., in soup, sushi, rice balls). It is not used for ingredients that are mixed into a batter, sauce, or dough. For example, you wouldn't say ケーキの具 for cake ingredients; use 材料 instead.