For Muslims | Japanese Phrases to Avoid Pork

Hasan, a Muslim who has lived in Japan for over 15 years, taught us some Japanese phrases to help you avoid pork.
You can read his interview article from the link below:
An Interview with Hasan about Being Muslim and Food Situation in Japan 

Key Phrases

「豚」
(ぶた)
(buta)
“pork”

*It is very important to memorize the kanji. Before you buy or order any food, make sure there is no this kanji on the label.

「豚肉」
(ぶたにく)
(butaniku)
“pork meat”

「豚肉エキス」
(ぶたにくえきす)
(butaniku ekisu)
“extracts of pork”

「豚肉は入っていますか？」
(ぶたにくははいっていますか？)
(butaniku wa haitte imasuka?)
“Is there pork in it?”

「豚肉が食べられません。」
(ぶたにくがたべられません。)
(butaniku ga taberaremasen.)
“I can’t eat pork.”

「宗教上、豚肉が食べられません。」
(しゅうきょうじょう、ぶたにくがたべられません。)
(shūkyōjō, butaniku ga taberaremasen.)
“I can’t eat pork because of my religion.”

「ベーコンやソーセージ、豚由来のゼラチンなども食べられません。」
(べーこんやそーせーじ、ぶたゆらいのぜらちんなどもたべられません。)
(bēkon ya sōsēji, butayurai no zerachin nadomo taberaremasen.)
“I can’t eat bacon, sausage, or gelatin derived from pork, either.”

* You should also memorize these kanji:「豚由来」(deprived from pork), 「動物性 / 動物由来」(deprived from animal). When these kanji are written on the label, there may be extracts of pig origin used in gelatin or emulsifiers. Be sure to avoid them.

Just memorize this and you’ll be fine! (You can show it to restaurant staff, too!)

「宗教上、豚肉が食べられません。このメニューには豚肉やベーコン、豚のエキス、豚由来のゼラチンなど入っていますか？」

(しゅうきょうじょう、ぶたにくがたべられません。このめにゅーにはぶたにくやべーこん、ぶたのえきす、ぶたゆらいのぜらちんなどはいっていますか？)
(shūkyōjō, butaniku ga taberaremasen. kono menyū niwa butaniku ya bēko, butano ekisu, butayurai no zerachin nado haitte imasuka?)

“I can’t eat pork because of my religion. Does this menu contain pork, bacon, extracts of pork, gelatin derived from pork or something like that?”

Special thanks to Hasan!

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or DM us on our social media! ( Instagram )