Heka

Heka simmers seasonal seafood such as tilefish, flatfish, and blackthroat seaperch sukiyaki-style in a flat iron pan called a "heka-nabe," a specialty of Oda. The soy-based broth is rich and slightly sweet, and once it soaks into the white fish and vegetables, the dish turns surprisingly light despite its hearty appearance. A common way to finish the meal is to add rice and beaten egg to the remaining broth for a porridge-like final course.

The dish was once made with nothing but seafood simmered in a sweet soy broth, but in recent years onion, napa cabbage, shimeji mushrooms, and other seasonal vegetables have been added, moving it toward a sukiyaki-style dish that combines the bounty of the sea and the mountains. A defining feature is cutting the fresh seafood into generous, hearty chunks before adding it to the pot; using mackerel instead turns the same style of dish into something called "saba no niugui." Wild boar meat is sometimes used in place of seafood as well.

"Heka" refers to the metal blade tip of a plow, and using one in place of a proper pot is said to be the origin of the dish's name. Oda has long practiced "ichinichi ryo," a fishing method in which boats leave port at dawn and land their catch from nearby waters that same evening, and much of the tilefish, flatfish, and blackthroat seaperch used in heka is said to come from this same-day catch. Every year on the night of January 10th, fishermen hold an overnight vigil at a shrine called "miyagomori" to pray for safety and a good catch, and the custom of gathering family and fish merchants to eat heka the following day is said to have been passed down since.