Foods Starting with U: 40 Foods That Begin with U
I’ll be honest, when I started looking into foods starting with U I thought this list was going to be a struggle. Udon, maybe ube, and then nothing. Turns out U is hiding loads, from Japanese pickles to African staples. If you’re looking for the ultimate u foods list, this is the one.
Table of Contents
Japanese Noodles, Seafood and Pickles That Start with U
1. Udon
Thick & chewy Japanese wheat noodles, usually served in a dashi broth with spring onions and maybe some tempura on top. Udon’s probably the first thing that comes to mind with foods starting with U, and for good reason. I really love them stir fried as well, which is exactly what’s happening in my beef udon stir fry.
2. Unagi
This is basically a grilled freshwater eel, brushed with a sweet sticky soy glaze called kabayaki sauce. You’ll find it on sushi or even sitting on top of a bowl of rice. I was nervous trying it the first time but it’s lovely, soft with a bit of smokiness to it.
3. Uni
Uni is sea urchin, or really the roe inside it. It has a texture that’s almost like custard. Not one for everyone, I’ll admit, but if you like oysters you’ll probably get on with this too.
4. Umeboshi
These are pickled Japanese plums and they are seriously sour, way more than you’d expect from something that looks like a little plum. They’re salted, fermented, and often eaten to settle your stomach or stuffed into rice balls. One is usually plenty.
5. Uzura Tamago
Japanese quail eggs, about a quarter the size of a regular hen’s egg, usually boiled and peeled or pickled in soy. They’re small but packed with flavour for their size.
Indian and South Asian Dishes That Start with U
6. Upma
A South Indian breakfast dish – semolina toasted up with mustard seeds, curry leaves and whatever vegetables you’ve got in the fridge. It’s one of the more comforting dishes that start with U once you’ve made it a few times. It takes about fifteen minutes and uses one pan, which I’m always a fan of.
7. Utthappam
A savoury South Indian pancake made from fermented rice and lentil batter, topped with onion or tomato or chilli before it goes in the pan. The edges go super crispy while the middle stays soft. Lovely with coconut chutney.
8. Urad Dal
A black lentil, usually sold split so it’s actually creamy white rather than black. It’s used in idli and dosa batter, but I think it’s just as good on its own, slow cooked with garlic, ginger & a good knob of butter.
9. Ulava Charu
A horsegram soup from Andhra Pradesh, traditionally served before the rest of the meal to get your appetite going. It’s definitely not one of the better known foods starting with U, but it should be.
10. Usal
Sprouted lentils or beans, stir fried with onion, tomato and a good amount of spice. It’s cheap to make, fills you up, and I think it deserves a lot more attention outside India.
African Dishes That Start with U
11. Ugali
Just maize flour and water, stirred over heat until it turns into a dense dough-like mass. It’s a staple across Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, eaten with your hands to scoop up stews and greens.
12. Ugba
Ugba is from Nigeria. It’s made from oil bean seeds sliced thin, wrapped in banana leaves and buried to ferment for several days. This is not something you’ll find outside West Africa easily, but one of the more interesting foods that begin with U for that exact reason.
Fruits and Vegetables That Start with U
13. Ugli Fruit
A Jamaican citrus hybrid of grapefruit, orange and tangerine, and one of the better known fruits that start with U. The skin looks a bit rough and wrinkled, but underneath that it’s sweet and juicy, and it peels really easily too. A genuinely nice fruit that got a rough name!!
14. Ube
The purple yam behind half the dessert menus you’ll see at the moment, and one of the more famous foods starting with U if you’ve spent any time on social media lately. It’s naturally sweet with a bit of vanilla in there, and it turns ice cream and cake a colour that barely looks real.
15. Ulluco
An Andean root vegetable, and one of the few vegetables that start with U you’re likely to come across. The skin is smooth and brightly coloured, while the flesh underneath is firm with a slight waxiness to it.
16. Umbu Fruit
A small greenish yellow fruit from Brazil with a tangy sweetness to it. It’s tough enough to grow where not much else will, and it’s eaten fresh or turned into jam and juice.
17. Ugni Molinae (Chilean Guava)
A tiny red berry that tastes a bit like a cross between strawberry and guava. Apparently it was one of Queen Victoria’s favourites, which I only found out while researching this and now can’t stop thinking about.
18. Udo
A Japanese mountain vegetable with a crisp texture and a faintly bitter taste, and another addition to the short list of u fruits and vegetables out there. I’ve never seen it in a UK supermarket, but it’s worth knowing the name if you ever spot it somewhere.
European and Global Dishes That Start with U
19. Ukha
A clear Russian fish soup, made with whatever freshwater fish you’ve got plus root veg, dill and bay leaf. It’s one of the more unusual u food names on this list simply because most people have never heard of it outside Russia. If you fancy something simpler with fish, my oven baked fish takes under 20 minutes and is just as good with a squeeze of lemon over it.
20. Uszka
Small Polish dumplings, stuffed with wild mushroom and minced meat. The name means little ears, and that’s pretty much what they look like. Deffo one of those foods starting with U where the story behind the name is almost better than the dish itself.
21. Ukrainian Cabbage Rolls
Also called holubtsi, cabbage leaves are rolled around rice and onion and baked in tomato sauce until soft. It takes a bit of time but is so worth it.
22. Urfa Biber
A Turkish chilli that is deep maroon and almost black once dried. The flavour is smoky with a slight raisin-like sweetness to it. Lovely scattered over eggs or rubbed onto meat before it goes on the grill.
Desserts and Unusual Foods That Start with U
23. Upside Down Cake
Fruit, usually pineapple, sits in caramelised sugar at the bottom of the tin, then the whole cake gets flipped once it’s baked so the fruit ends up on top. Simple if not a bit old fashioned.
24. Ube Halaya
A Filipino dessert made from mashed ube cooked down with coconut milk, condensed milk and butter until it’s thick & glossy. It can be eaten on its own or used as a filling in things like halo halo.
25. Umble Pie
A medieval English dish, traditionally made with offal, often deer, mixed with onion and herbs in a pastry case. This is where the phrase “eating humble pie” comes from, umbles were the cheap cuts nobody else wanted. Easily one of the weird foods that start with U on this list.
26. U-No Bar
An American chocolate bar, a bit like a 3 Musketeers, with bits of almond and truffle running through the nougat and wrapped in silver foil. Sadly it was discontinued in 2025 when the factory that made it closed down.
27. Umeshu
A Japanese plum liqueur, ume plums steeped in alcohol and sugar until it’s sweet and warming. Nice over ice or topped up with a bit of soda, and worth knowing about if you’re after unique foods starting with U that double as a decent dinner party drink.
28. Utah Scones
Nothing to do with English scones. These are pillowy discs of fried dough, served sweet with honey and powdered sugar or savoury as the base for a Navajo taco. It’s a regional thing in Utah, and they take it seriously.
29. Urgelia Cheese
A semi soft, washed rind cheese from the Catalan Pyrenees in Spain. I hadn’t come across this one before researching this post. It’s made from cow’s milk and aged just long enough to go buttery with a slightly nutty edge.
30. Umbricelli Pasta
A thick, hand rolled pasta from Umbria, a bit like chunkier spaghetti, traditionally tossed with simple tomato sauce and a good amount of pecorino. If that sounds good to you, my spicy tomato rice topped with halloumi and coriander has a similar tomato base, just with a bit more kick to it.
31. Ububese Fruit
A round fruit native to Africa with creamy, custard like pulp, which is why some people call it the wild custard apple. It’s eaten fresh or blended into smoothies, and another good example of how many unusual foods starting with U come from cuisines outside Europe.
32. Upland Cress
A peppery leafy green, similar to watercress but with a sharper kick. It’s lovely scattered over a sandwich or tossed through a salad right at the end so it keeps its bite.
33. Ubriaco Cheese
An Italian cheese from the Veneto region that’s literally bathed in wine while it ages, which is exactly where the name comes from, as ubriaco means drunk.
34. Unsweetened Chocolate
This is pure chocolate liquor with no added sugar, which makes it intensely bitter on its own but brilliant for baking, since you control exactly how sweet the finished thing ends up.
35. Umm Ali
An Egyptian dessert made from layers of puff pastry soaked in sweetened milk and cream, topped with nuts and raisins. It’s basically Egypt’s answer to bread pudding.
36. Urap
An Indonesian salad of blanched vegetables tossed with spiced grated coconut, usually served alongside rice as part of a bigger spread
37. Upstate New York Apples
Not one single variety, but the region’s apples, think Empire, Cortland and Macoun, are sweet, crisp, and used in everything from pies to cider.
38. Ugwu (Fluted Pumpkin Leaves)
A dark green leafy vegetable from Nigeria, slightly bitter and earthy, used in soups like egusi and afang. It’s one of the most common vegetables in West African cooking, even if most people outside the region have never heard of it.
39. Unagi Sauce
The sweet soy glaze brushed onto grilled eel, made from soy sauce, mirin and sugar reduced down until it’s thick and sticky. You’ll find bottles of it in most Japanese grocers if you fancy using it on other things too, it’s great on grilled chicken or salmon.
40. Unshu Mikan
A seedless mandarin from Japan, known outside the country as a satsuma. They’re a winter staple there.
If you love a good listicle, check out my other posts: fruit names starting in n, foods starting with z, and foods starting with j.
Foods Starting with U FAQs
If you’re wondering what food starts with U, the answer covers a lot more than udon. Think umeboshi, upma, ugali, ube, ukha, urgelia cheese and umbricelli pasta, so have a look at the full list above for all 40.
Foods starting with the letter U include udon noodles, unagi, ube, ugali, umeboshi, urad dal and umbricelli pasta, among plenty of others covered above.
Udon, easily. You’ll find it in pretty much every supermarket, it works in soups or stir fries, and it’s one of the easier noodles to cook from scratch if you fancy giving it a go.
There are a few, ugli fruit, ube, umbu fruit and ugni molinae (Chilean guava). None of them are exactly common in UK shops, but worth grabbing if you ever spot one.
Yes, ulluco and udo both start with U, though neither’s easy to find outside specialist shops. Ulluco’s an Andean root veg a bit like a potato, and udo’s a Japanese mountain vegetable usually eaten raw.
A few, upside down cake, ube halaya and umble pie (even though that one’s actually savoury, despite the name). Umeshu, the Japanese plum liqueur, counts as a sweet drink too if you want to stretch the category a bit.
U just isn’t a common starting letter for English food names, so most foods starting with U come from other cuisines, especially Japanese, Indian and African cooking, where U shows up much more naturally.
