Place
Gifu
岐阜県
34 items
● 29 born here(Akadatsu no Subute, Ayu Narezushi, Ayu Zosui, and more) / ● 2 raised here(Hida Gyu, Okumino Kojidori) / ● 3 prepared here(Hida Akakabu-zuke, Nita Kumoji, Tsukemono Misoni) / ○ 1 known for it here
Born here29
- Akadatsu no Subute赤だつの酢ぶてred taro-stalk strips dressed in a sweet vinegarThe red-purple leaf stalk of taro, called akadatsu, has its fibers removed and is salt-rubbed before being dressed in a sweetened vinegar — a dish of Yamagata City on land whose lime-poor, thin soil suited taro cultivation, once said to be fed to new mothers to aid recovery.
- Ayu Narezushi鮎なれずしsalted ayu packed with rice and fermented for monthsAyu heading downriver to spawn in autumn, often carrying roe, are salted and stuffed with freshly cooked rice, then packed in a barrel to ferment for about two months — a narezushi of Gifu City said to have been made from fish caught at the Nagara River's cormorant fishery and once presented to the shogunate.
- Ayu Zosui鮎ぞうすいgrilled ayu simmered into a light rice porridgeAyu, grilled plain until fragrant, is flaked and briefly simmered with dashi and rice into a light porridge — a Gifu river-fish dish said to have begun as a way to use ayu too damaged from fishing to sell whole, often served as the closing course at restaurants specializing in ayu.
- Funamiso鮒味噌crucian carp slow-simmered with soybeans in red misoCrucian carp, first grilled plain, simmers for hours with rehydrated soybeans, then finishes in soybean miso and coarse sugar — a river-fish dish of the Seino region, where the miso's strong umami is said to soften the fish's characteristic edge, simmered until the flesh falls apart as a winter keeping food.
- Ayu no Shioyaki鮎の塩焼river-caught ayu salted and grilled wholeAyu are salted all over, given a decorative touch of salt on fin and tail, then grilled over charcoal on both sides — a river-fish dish of Gifu, said to draw on fish caught fresh at the 1,300-year-old Nagara River cormorant fishery or at the traditional yana weirs that channel fish into a catch.
- Gohei Mochi五平餅skewered rice cakes glazed with walnut or sesame misoCrushed rice is skewered and grilled, then glazed with a walnut- or peanut-flecked sauce — a dish of the Tono and Hida areas where soy-based sauce dominates north of the old Nakasendo road and miso-based sauce south of it, traditionally served to celebrate the new rice harvest or to honor a guest.
- Imomochiいももちmashed rice and taro, grilled and dipped in ginger soy sauceTaro and rice are cooked together, mashed smooth, shaped and skewered, then grilled over charcoal and dipped in ginger soy sauce — a dish of the Nakatsugawa area said to have begun with combining leftover broken rice from the harvest with sticky taro, or as a way to stretch rice in lean years.
- Kaki Namasu柿なますdaikon and carrot dressed in vinegar with dried persimmonDaikon and carrot, cut into thin strips and softened with salt, are tossed together with torn pieces of sweet dried persimmon — a dish of Gifu, a region known for its persimmons, where fine dried varieties like Dojo Hachiya persimmon are on hand, often served at New Year's.
- Komodofuこも豆腐tofu boiled wrapped in a straw matLightly drained tofu is wrapped in a straw mat called komo and boiled for about an hour, taking on countless tiny air pockets and a hint of straw's scent — a dish of the Hida region that holds its shape well when simmered further in dashi, long served as a hospitality dish at New Year's and Buddhist rites.
- Hatsuuma Dango初午だんごrice-flour dumplings shaped like silkworm cocoonsRice-flour dumplings, steamed and shaped like silkworm cocoons, are offered on the first day of the horse in February — a custom of Gifu's silk-farming regions, carrying a wish for a good, plentiful cocoon harvest, eaten variously with soybean flour, soy sauce, or in soup depending on the area.
- Hebo Meshiへぼ飯rice mixed with sweet-simmered wasp larvaeThe larvae of a ground-nesting wasp, called hebo, are simmered sweet in soy sauce and sugar, then folded through cooked rice — a dish of the Ena area with a record reaching back to Edo-period texts, long valued as a source of animal protein.
- Hoba Miso朴葉味噌miso grilled on a magnolia leaf with scallion and mushroomKoji miso is spread on a magnolia leaf with scallion and shiitake and grilled over charcoal — a dish of the Hida-Takayama area said to have begun with woodsmen using the leaf as a makeshift plate, now sometimes topped with Hida beef.
- Hobazushi朴葉ずしvinegared rice wrapped in magnolia leavesVinegared rice, topped with things like simmered river fish or egg, is wrapped in a magnolia leaf — an early-summer sushi of Gifu. The leaf is said to carry antibacterial properties, and its convenience — made the day before, no dishes to wash — suited the shared labor of rice planting.
- Kamioka Ramen神岡ラーメンBesides shoyu, miso, shio and tonkotsuHida's beef-bone counterpart to Takayama's chicken-based soy brothA chuka soba from Kamioka, in Hida, Gifu. Where Takayama ramen relies on a chicken-bone broth, Kamioka's version is said to use beef bone instead, combined with the tare in the bowl only after an order comes in.
- Kanboshi Daikon Ni寒干大根煮freeze-dried daikon simmered in dashi and soy sauceDaikon, sliced into rounds, boiled, and skewered, is left in sub-zero air to freeze and thaw over and over across about a month until it turns amber — a specialty of Yamanomura in Hida City, over 850 meters up in what's called the 'sky village,' simmered here in dashi and soy sauce as a way to see out winter.
- Karasumiからすみa steamed rice-flour sweet shaped like twin peaksKneaded rice flour is pressed into a wooden mold and steamed until the cut cross-section forms twin peaks like a mountain — a confection of the Tono region. One account traces the name to a scarcity of the prized mullet-roe delicacy of the same name in this landlocked area, so a similarly shaped sweet stood in.
- Keichan鶏ちゃんchicken and cabbage stir-fried in a house-blend sauceChicken and cabbage and other vegetables are seared on a griddle or Genghis Khan pan in a house-made miso- or soy-based sauce — a dish of the Gujo area said to have started as a way to use hens once they stopped laying, seasoning varying by household and shop.
- Kuri Kinton栗きんとんpure chestnut paste twisted into shape with a clothSteamed chestnuts are simmered with nothing but sugar, then twisted by hand in a dampened cloth into the shape of the chestnut itself — a confection of the Nakatsugawa area, said to have emerged as sweet-makers in this old Nakasendo post town, steeped in tea-ceremony culture, competed to showcase the local chestnut.
- Kuwanokimame Ni桑の木豆煮speckled heirloom beans simmered sweet in soy sauceKuwanokimame, an heirloom bean speckled red and storable dried pod and all, is boiled tender before being simmered in soy sauce and sugar — a dish of the Miyama area of Yamagata City, named, it's said, for how the beans were planted at the base of mulberry trees to shelter them from wind during the region's silk-farming days.
- Misogi Dangoみそぎだんごbean-paste dumplings glazed with a sweet miso sauceA rice-flour dough wraps sweet bean paste, gets skewered, and is grilled while basted with a sweet miso glaze — a confection of Hashima City devised at a local sweet shop in the early Showa era and named for the town's misogi purification rite, a seasonal sight around June 30.
- Mizu Manju水まんじゅうa cold, translucent bean-paste bun chilled in well waterKudzu starch blended with bracken starch is cooked into a translucent dough, wrapped around bean paste, and chilled in well water — a summer confection of Ogaki City, said to have been devised in the Meiji era to make use of the 'city of water's' abundant groundwater, still a seasonal sight sunk in tanks at shop fronts.
- Morokozushiもろこずしa pressed sushi of vinegared rice and sweet-simmered moroko fishVinegared rice is topped with moroko, a small carp-family river fish simmered sweet, then pressed into a mold — a dish of the Seino region, part of a food culture built around fish from the waterways of the Kiso Three Rivers, traditionally made to serve guests at New Year's and festivals.
- Myogabochiみょうがぼちfava-bean paste wrapped in dough and steamed in a myoga leafA fava-bean paste is wrapped in a wheat-flour dough, then steamed inside a myoga leaf — a confection of the Kitagata and Gifu City area, once also called 'rice-planting bochi' and eaten as a snack on paddy footpaths during breaks from farm work.
- Nezushiねずしsalted trout, daikon, and rice fermented with koji for New Year'sSalted trout, daikon, and carrot are mixed with rice seasoned with koji and left to ferment for two to three weeks — a narezushi of the Hida region said to be so essential that, locally, it doesn't feel like New Year without it.
- Otoshi no Gottso大歳のごっつぉroot vegetables simmered in a big pot for the year-end feastRoot vegetables like daikon, carrot, and taro, along with shredded kelp, are simmered together in one big pot, then reheated and eaten from New Year's Eve through the first three days of the new year — a Gifu year-end dish where the kelp is said to carry a wish for a long, unbroken life.
- Senkokumame no Kakimawashi千石豆のかきまわしmixed rice with hyacinth beans and chickenSenkoku beans, a hyacinth bean grown in southern Gifu City, are simmered with chicken and burdock, then folded through cooked rice — called kakimawashi, 'stirred around,' for the way the cooked filling gets mixed in, and traditionally served when relatives gather.
- Suttate Jiruすったて汁a soup of ground boiled soybeans in soy sauce or misoBoiled soybeans are ground in a mortar and thinned with soy sauce or miso — a soup of Shirakawa village said to have emerged from the process of making tofu, traditionally served at gatherings like the hoonko Buddhist memorial rite, now also reworked into a hot pot with Hida beef added.
- Takayama Ramen高山ラーメンShoyu — soy saucesoy broth where tare and soup are simmered togetherDistinguished by simmering the tare together with the soup rather than combining them in the bowl. Served with thin, wavy noodles.
- Tsugi Jiruつぎ汁a spicy chili and tofu broth ladled from a shared potRoasted chili and dried shiitake stock is simmered with cubed local tofu, then finished in soy sauce and sugar — a clear soup of the Kanomizu area of Meiho, Gujo City, named for the dedicated vessel used to ladle it round from person to person, served at the hoonko rite and weddings alike.
Raised here2
- Hida Gyu飛騨牛built on the line of a single famed sireBuilt on the line of a single famed sire, Yasufuku — raised in the Hida mountains.
- Okumino Kojidori奥美濃古地鶏bred from a natural-monument Gifu fowlSaid to be developed from the natural-monument Gifu-jidori fowl by the prefecture's poultry experiment station under a banner of "good eggs and good meat"; reportedly free-ranged from 28 days old and raised for an average of about 84 days.
Prepared here3
- Hida Akakabu-zuke飛騨赤かぶ漬けa red turnip pickle that turns a mountain valley's winter table crimsonWhole turnips salted down in barrels — a preserve from the snowbound Hida region. The skin's pigment bleeds crimson into the flesh as fermentation proceeds, in a method said to date to the Edo period, when it helped stretch precious salt.
- Nita Kumoji煮たくもじsour leaf pickles simmered fresh with sesame oilSalt-leached turnip-leaf pickles are stir-fried in oil, then simmered down in soy sauce and mirin until the liquid is gone — a dish of the Hida region born from the wisdom of using up pickles that had turned sour by early spring, finished with a hit of sesame oil and seeds.
- Tsukemono Misoni漬物味噌煮cut pickled napa cabbage simmered in bean misoCut pickled napa cabbage simmers in a pot of dried-sardine stock and Gujo bean miso — a dish of Gujo City said to have begun with charcoal-kiln workers using an empty mackerel tin as a pot for their pickles, where the more soured the old pickle, the better it's said to taste.