Hot pot & soups
Tsumikko
Tsumikko — hand-torn wheat dough simmered in a vegetable soup
Saitama's take on suiton, made by tearing off pieces of wheat dough into a simmering pot. The name comes from a Honjo-area dialect word for tearing off, and it fed busy farmers between silk-raising and weaving work.
- Origin: Saitama Honjo
- About 80 km northwest of Tokyo
Lineage
What it's made of
Wheat dough, kneaded with water, is torn by hand into a simmering soup. Similar to suiton, it is distinguished by tearing the dough directly into the pot, and combined with the broth of seasonal vegetables it makes a gentle, deeply flavorful dish, the hand-torn pieces coming out in uneven, varied thicknesses.
How it's made
Wheat flour is kneaded well with water, rolled into a ball, and left to rest. Shiitake, carrot, and scallion are simmered in broth, and the rested dough is pulled and torn by hand into the pot. Soy sauce finishes the seasoning, and grated mountain yam or egg is said to soften the texture further, with a dash of seven-spice pepper sometimes added.
Why it took this shape
In a region known for wheat cultivation, the dish is said to have been valued for being quicker to make than udon, useful when time was short. Its name is said to come from a local word meaning to "pinch off," describing how the dough is torn into the pot, and it is said to have also been made quickly between bouts of silk work and weaving, using local wheat and vegetables.
Before you go
- Foods to look for in winterA guide to foods often seen in Japan around winter — nabe hot pot, fugu, oysters, crab, year-end soba, and osechi — with rough pointers for finding them.
- At yakiniku, shabu-shabu, and hot potGrilling your own meat at yakiniku, swishing thin slices at shabu-shabu, and sharing from the pot — the customs behind each.
Dishes in the same style
- Aichi Miso OdenA pot of sweet red miso sits in the center of the simmering pot, and daikon, tofu, and other ingredients simmered in dashi are dipped into it before eating. While soy-based Kanto-style oden spread in Edo, Aichi is said to have settled on dipping in soybean miso instead.
- Aichi ZoniSquare mochi and mochina, a traditional Owari green, are served in a plain clear broth for New Year — a notably simple zoni. It's speculated that using miso so often in daily cooking is exactly why a clear broth is chosen for this festive occasion, deliberately leaving miso out.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Also from Saitama
- Sakekasu Miso RamenA winter-only ramen from Ageo City, where sake lees from a long-running local brewery are worked into a Chinese restaurant's miso broth. The lees' depth and aroma layer over the miso's savoriness, leaving a mellow finish that warms the body in the cold months.
- Dojo NiPond loach caught in the paddies of eastern Saitama, simmered sweet and savory with shaved burdock, from a land fed by the Arakawa and Tone rivers. Rich in nutrients, it was valued as a tonic and a food for pregnant women.
- Gyoda Furai"Furai" from around Gyoda, Saitama, despite its name, isn't fried — it's grilled. Chopped scallion and pork go on a wheat-flour batter cooked on a griddle, an okonomiyaki-like snack said to have caught on with the women working the town's tabi-sock factories.
- Higashimatsuyama YakitoriPork cheek grilled over charcoal and brushed with a spicy miso sauce.
- HiyajiruSesame and miso ground in a mortar, mixed with summer vegetables like cucumber and shiso, then chilled with cold water. It serves as a dipping broth for udon in noodle-loving Saitama, and Kawajima town calls it suttate.
- Iga ManjuA sweet bean bun wrapped in red rice and steamed, said to originate in Konosu. Named for its resemblance to a spiky chestnut burr, it balances a sweet-salty flavor with a chewy bite.