Going to a restaurant and ordering a dish that was originally invented in a foreign country, you never know whether the recipe is the original one or you deal with some kind of a domestic variation.

Before we departed to Japan, I was always convinced that original Japanese rolls (or maki) are served with raw or backed fish, other seafood, or vegetables. Maki are made by wrapping sushi rice and various fillings in nori (seaweed). Contrary, putting meat like chicken inside rice and seaweed I treated as a European invention.

…Till I ordered and tasted rolls with Japanese beef and kimchi the midst of Tokyo.

Authentic Japanese (served in Japan) maki filled with meat.

According to the menu the ingredients to prepare the beef maki were: grilled beef, kimchi (spicy pickled cabbage), sangchu (lettuce), nori (seaweed) and rice, as well as the restaurant’s original sauce. 

Beef maki in the context of Japanese cuisine, is a modern interpretation rather than a traditional dish rooted in ancient culinary practices. The concept of rolling ingredients, similar to sushi rolls (maki sushi), is traditional. The most popular kinds of maki include Hosomaki, thin rolls with a single filling like cucumber (kappamaki), tuna (tekka maki), or pickled radish, often used to cleanse the palate between different types of sushi. Futomaki are thick rolls containing multiple fillings, including vegetables, egg, and sometimes cooked fish. However, the use of beef in this manner is more contemporary, reflecting the integration of Western ingredients into Japanese cooking. Beef became a significant part of the Japanese diet after the Meiji Restoration in the late 19th century, as the country opened up to Western influences and dietary practices.