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Japanese vending machine serves up Wagyu beef steaks in the countryside

Oona McGee Nov 26, 2021
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Serving sirloin 24 hours a day, 365 days a year!

What would you do if you had a sudden urge to eat delicious, top-quality Wagyu in the middle of the night? Well, if you’re in the countryside in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, you can venture out into the darkness and towards the welcoming light of a Wagyu beef vending machine, which is ready to serve you delicious cuts at any hour of the day or night.

▼ Who said country living isn’t convenient?

Our reporter Haruka Takagi was in the area recently, riding her bike past rice fields in search of the unusual machine, and when she finally spotted it, she was pleased to see it was stocked with not just any old Wagyu, but a luxury brand she was familiar with.

▼ The brand is Yutakaushi, and it’s stocked fresh daily as the vending machine is located at Tanizawa Ranch.

Initially, the ranch sold Wagyu from its direct sales office only on Tuesdays, but due to popular demand they set up a vending machine outside the sales office so customers could buy their goods at any time of the day or night.

▼ Peering inside the machine revealed options like hamburger steaks (1,500 yen [US$13.04]), shoulder roast (1,800 yen), thinly sliced shoulder roast for yakiniku (1,700 yen)…

▼ …as well as offal (1,000 yen), and sirloin steak (1,600 yen).

Prices here were higher than usual beef goods at the supermarket, but that’s because everything here is quality Wagyu beef. Looking at the push-button display revealed some of the items had already sold out, but thankfully the shoulder roast and sirloin steak were still available, so Haruka was able to purchase them.

▼ After making her payment, Haruka heard a thunk, and out came her expensive Wagyu!

The beef she received was much bigger than she’d expected, and because it was stored vacuum-packed and frozen at -20 degrees Celsius, her purchases came with a best-by date of about three months, making it possible to stock up on Wagyu if she so wanted.

Haruka took her purchases home and placed them on a set of scales for closer inspection. The shoulder roast weighed in at 200 grams (seven ounces) and the sirloin at 150 grams, and they were around 1.5 centimetres (0.6 inches) thick, which is an impressive size for a Wagyu steak.

With her mouth already watering, Haruka was keen to taste these, so she started by frying up the sirloin steak in an iron skillet, cutting it in half to fit the dimensions of the pan.

It wasn’t long before her kitchen, and her senses, became filled with the sweet, juicy aroma of sizzling steak. And because she’s not an absolute heathen, Haruka decided to add a few vegetables to the meal at the last minute.

▼ Serving it up on a plate, things became so sizzling hot it steamed up the lens of her camera.

Adding a dash of spice to the steak, Haruka lifted one of the medium-rare slices to her mouth and took her first-ever bite of vending machine Wagyu.

It was insanely delicious. Each bite was filled with sweet, fatty, beefy juices, melting on the tongue as a good Wagyu should, while also satiating her appetite with tender flavour.

▼ Next, Haruka fried up the shoulder roast.

The shoulder roast was 50 grams larger than the sirloin, so the skillet was filled chock-a-block with meat.

▼ It didn’t take long for the supple meat to reach medium-rare, and when she sliced into it and took a bite…

Divine! This was slightly more fibrous than the sirloin steak, which is to be expected due to it being a tougher cut of meat, but its slight chewiness was still soft, and there was even more meaty flavour in this one. If you want to fill your stomach with steak, then this shoulder roast is definitely the best choice for you.

Who knew vending machine Wagyu could be so delicious? Haruka certainly didn’t, but now that she’s had it, she’ll definitely be heading out to the rice fields to stock up on more Wagyu, and hopefully then they’ll have those hamburger patties back in stock too.

If you’re looking for more unusual vending machine finds, don’t forget to check out our recent travels to this coriander vending machine and this one stocked with mega clams. In Japan, there really is a vending machine to suit every taste and budget!

Vending machine information
Yutakaushi Direct Sales Office / ゆたか牛直販所
Address: Aichi-ken, Toyota-shi, Masuzuka Nishimachi Kitayashiki 120-3
愛知県豊田市桝塚西町北屋敷120-3
Vending machine open 24 hours a day, seven days a week

Reference: Yutaka Beef Brand Promotion Council
Photos ©SoraNews24
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