LEARN 1 TIP A DAY, Product Design Tutorials, Sketching Tutorials

FOOD DESIGN | How to Draw Japanese Skewers in 5 steps

4 min read

Cinema Mode

Did you know Designers could make Food designs?
| remember food design was one of our school projects in my 1st year of Product design school.
It was so much fun!

FOOD DESIGN: How to Draw Japanese Skewers in 5 steps! 13.10minutes

BONUS: You can download the printable tutorial file at the end of the article.

Table Of Contents

FOOD DESIGN: How to Draw Japanese Skewers in 5 steps! 13.10minutes
Food Design Tutorial

My girlfriend sent me a video on WhatsApp about “How to cook Kushiyaki at home.”
These are yummy Japanese Skewers!

Kushiyaki recipe to cook from home inspired me with a sketching tutorial!

I took the recipe in notes and doodled the skewers and ingredients.

Then, looking at my doodles I realized I could make a drawing tutorial for you guys!

Who wouldn’t want to draw Japanese food? lol.

It is so Oishii!! (Delicious in Japanese)

Food Design Tutorial

Today we a Japanese food sketching tutorial!
You will learn how to draw Yakitori. I will show you some skewer illustration techniques among plenty of food design drawing tips.

I explain basic fundamentals of drawing you must know as an artist or designer.
What you learn here will apply to many more products, food, and objects!

Yes, you will learn how to draw your own Japanese skewers, and more than that, the sketching techniques applicable to plenty of other food of course!

Remember, the ultimate goal is to draw anything from your imagination!

Let’s start the Beginner food illustration techniques with Sketchbook Pro drawing software
The sky is the limit!

PART 1 | Draw With a Guide

Add a vertical axis and a vertical rectangle for a quick proportion.

Use reference pictures to draw ingredients

Make sure to draw the skewer (stick) through the meat and other ingredients.
It helps you to draw following the vertical axis as a guide.

Part 2 | Shopping ingredietns

A food designer observes well the details, such as the particular effect on the tomato skin.

Food Design TIP: For texture, you don't need to cover the overall surface of the chicken wing.
Just add a few only. The brain will reconstitute the rest. — **Food Design TIP:** For texture, you don’t need to cover the overall surface of the chicken wing.
Just add a few only. The brain will reconstitute the rest.

Look for imperfections. I call them "Beautiful imperfections".
They help you draw with a more realistic look. — Look for imperfections. I call them **“Beautiful imperfections”.**
They help you draw with a more realistic look.

For the squid, draw with organic forms,
and feel free to exaggerate some details for better visual communication. — For the squid, draw with **organic forms**,
and feel free to **exaggerate some details** for better visual communication.

Don't draw every single mushroom you see.
A few will be enough. — Don’t draw every single mushroom you see.
A few will be enough.

Toppings are important to add a the end!

The 5 steps to draw skewers: Vertical axis, Proportion, Assemble. Details, Toppings! — **The 5 steps to draw skewers:** Vertical axis, Proportion, Assemble. Details, Toppings!

Part 4 | Draw with dynamism!

Doodle the overall shape of the skewers,
importing from the ingredients above.

Use product design sketching techniques, such as contour lines to express the volume

You don't have to guess when you know the drawing strategy. — You don’t have to guess when you know the drawing strategy.

Build your skewer drawing in 5 steps strategy!

Time to assemble your ingredients on the skewer of your choice!

Practice both Doodle sketching, and drawing with detail level.

Have fun!

Cheers,
Chou-Tac

PS: By the way, I am using Sketchbook Pro software.
It is a wonderful software, light and free!

PPS: If you are scared of drawing, I invite you to meet Kim, a baker in Seoul.
Despite being afraid of drawing, all of his bakery’s recipes started with a sketch!

BONUS: Download below the full tutorial, ready to print!