Hot pot & soups
Tsuyu Nishime
Tsuyu nishime — dried herring and straw-wrapped tofu simmered in a seasoned broth
Tsuto-dofu, tofu wrapped in straw for better keeping, simmers in dashi with dried herring, taro, and kelp, seasoned with soy sauce and sugar — a dish of Minamiaizu. It is served at weddings, funerals, and festivals as an accompaniment to sake, and is said to still be served at local events.
- Origin: Fukushima Minamiaizu
- About 170 km north of Tokyo
What it's made of
Dried herring, tsuto-tofu, taro, carrot, and kelp are simmered in dashi and seasoned with soy sauce and sugar in this dish from Minami-Aizu. Its defining feature is tsuto-tofu, tofu wrapped in straw to help it keep longer, said to take on a faint straw aroma that gives it a distinctive flavor. It's said to have been treasured as a dish for weddings and other celebrations.
How it's made
Tsuto-tofu, dried herring, carrot, taro, and kelp are simmered slowly in dashi, then seasoned with sugar, soy sauce, and sake, the basic method. When tsuto-tofu isn't available, cotton tofu can be quartered, wrapped in a bamboo sushi mat, and simmered in salted water instead, it's said. It's also said to be enjoyed as an accompaniment to sake.
Why it took this shape
In the days before refrigeration, wrapping tofu in straw to help it keep longer is said to be how tsuto-tofu came about. Tofu once wrapped in straw simply for carrying is said to have ended up simmered straw and all on one occasion, and cooking it that way from then on is thought to be how the practice settled in. It's said to have taken root as a dish for entertaining guests at weddings and ceremonies.
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.
- Osechi and zoni for the New YearA guide to the meaning behind osechi's tiered boxes, the regional differences in zoni (square vs. round mochi, clear vs. miso broth), and the nanakusa-gayu custom.
- Setsubun: ehomaki and lucky beansA guide to ehomaki, the uncut sushi roll said to be eaten facing a lucky direction on Setsubun, and to mamemaki, the bean-throwing custom with roasted lucky beans.
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 Fukushima
- Aizu RamenFlat, thick hand-made noodles in a clear soy broth. Said to trace back to a Aizuwakamatsu diner owner bringing home a taste learned in Yokohama — a second soy ramen lineage that grew up apart from Kitakata's, in the same Aizu region.
- Aizu Curry YakisobaA dish from Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima: sauce yakisoba topped with curry roux. It's said to trace to a diner called Tommy Food, which began ladling curry over its yakisoba, catching on especially among young diners for its low price and filling size.
- Aizu GyuSteers and heifers of Japanese Black raised in the Aizu basin, fed mainly local rice straw — the basin's sharp seasonal swings are said to suit fattening, making it Fukushima's leading brand.
- Aizu JidoriA lineage said to have been brought to Aizu by Heike clan refugees, saved from near-extinction and re-established through crossbreeding by Fukushima prefecture; reportedly fattened for 90 to 170 days.
- Aizu Sōsu KatsudonAizu's sauce katsudon, doused in a thick sweet-savory sauce. Its origin has several competing accounts, none settled, but all point to it being refined through everyday improvisation on Taisho-era Western food.
- Aizu Yamajio RamenSalt ramen seasoned with mountain salt drawn from hot-spring water — rounder than sea salt.