There are a lot of flavors in Japan which I think have the potential to be gangbusters back home if someone would just introduce them in the right fashion. One of those is kinako (toasted soy flour) when used as a flavoring on rice crackers, baked goods, or candy. Another is yuzu koshou, a type of citrus and vinegar blend which uses a Japanese fruit (yuzu) that looks like a lemon but tastes like a hybrid of various citrus fruits including lemon, grapefruit and orange. In fact, I can't imagine why it hasn't hit a market that enjoys piquant and hot sauces. One of my greatest pleasures is to mix a little yuzu koshoo with mayonnaise and spread that on a bun for my chicken burger or to put dashes of it on pizza or pasta. It's hot, but it's the sort of heat with a deep and satisfying flavor profile rather than just an increasingly intense burning.
I'll miss yuzu koshou both as a condiment I can buy easily and as an addition to various savory snacks I can buy.
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