Place
Ishikawa
石川県
38 items
● 32 born here(Aimaze, Beka Nabe, Daikon-zushi, and more) / ● 2 raised here(Noto Buta, Noto Gyu) / ● 4 prepared here(Ishikawa no Sake, Ishiru, Kani Kamaboko, and more) / ○ 3 known for it here
Born here32
- Aimazeあいまぜjulienned root vegetables simmered togetherRoot vegetables from Noto's reddish soil are cut into thin strips and simmered with fried tofu — traditionally made ahead for New Year and other special days, with the choice of vegetables shifting from village to village.
- Beka Nabeべか鍋Miso-basedBekanabe — herring pickled in rice bran, simmered in a hot potSardines pickled in rice bran are simmered with napa cabbage, mushrooms, and sake lees in this Noto winter hot pot, said to descend from a preservation method from before refrigeration — its name reputedly a nod to how commonly the cheap fish was eaten.
- Daikon-zushi大根ずしfermented daikon and herring sushi carried in by the herring shipsA fermented sushi from the Kaga region layering daikon radish with dried herring in rice koji. Said to have taken root once herring carried by the Kitamae trading ships reached ordinary tables, it now sits alongside kaburazushi as a New Year staple.
- Ebisuえびすsweet soy-flavored agar jelly with eggMelted agar is mixed with beaten egg, sugar, and soy sauce, then set — said to trace back to an egg-and-agar dish recorded in an Edo-period cookbook, nicknamed "berobero" for its glossy, slippery look, and served on festive occasions.
- Goshiki Namagashi五色生菓子five colored mochi sweets for celebrationsFive kinds of mochi and buns, each representing sun, moon, mountain, sea, and village, are arranged in a lidded box — a Kanazawa wedding confection said to trace back to a gift prepared for a Kaga domain bride, still handed out as a return gift at celebrations.
- UFO RamenUFOラーメンShoyu — soy saucea shoyu bowl branded around Hakui's flying-saucer fameA bowl from Hakui, Ishikawa, a town known for its UFO-sighting lore, served under the local Hakui UFO Gourmet banner. Sushi shops and Western-style diners alike top a soy-based broth with saucer-shaped garnishes, each putting its own spin on the town's story.
- Hasumushiはす蒸しsteamed grated lotus root with white fishGrated Kaga lotus root is mixed with white fish or shrimp and steamed — the root's high starch content is said to bind the mixture without egg or starch, giving a mochi-like chew finished with a glossy sauce.
- Hinezushiひねずしfish fermented with rice in a wooden tubSalted fish is packed into a tub with rice, chili, and sansho leaves and left to ferment for a month or two — a narezushi from the Oku-Noto area whose flavor is said to shift with the salt level and the weather, varying even when the same person prepares it each time.
- Isaza no Tamagotojiいさざの卵とじicefish simmered with eggIcefish about five or six centimeters long, said to swim up Anamizu's rivers to spawn each spring, are simmered and set with egg — a plain preparation that lets the delicate fish, caught by the traditional "houcho" net method, come through.
- Buri Daikonぶり大根yellowtail simmered with daikon radishFatty winter yellowtail trimmings are simmered slowly with thick-cut daikon and kelp stock, the fish's richness said to soak into the radish — a dish that carries the prized status yellowtail holds at New Year and in gift-giving.
- Ishiru Nabeいしる鍋Soy-based & yosenabehot pot seasoned with Noto's fish sauceNoto's traditional fish sauce, ishiru, forms the base for this winter hot pot of seasonal seafood and vegetables — said to have been made since at least the 1700s, built on a fermented seasoning ranked alongside Akita's shottsuru and Kagawa's ikanago shoyu.
- Itokojiruいとこ汁azuki bean and tofu miso soupAzuki beans, tofu, and root vegetables are slow-simmered into a miso-based soup, said to be essential at the memorial gathering for the founder of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism on his death anniversary — eating the beans, his favorite, is meant as a gesture of gratitude.
- Jibuniじぶ煮duck and vegetables in a thickened brothDuck coated in wheat flour, wheat-gluten cakes, and seasonal vegetables are simmered until the broth thickens — said to have been served as far back as the Edo period, with a dab of wasabi cutting through the duck's richness.
- Kaburazushiかぶらずしfermented turnip and yellowtail sushi from Kanazawa's New Year tableA Kanazawa New Year dish: salt-cured turnip sandwiching fatty yellowtail, fermented in a sweet rice-koji malt. Neither sashimi nor a pickle, its tang gives way to malted sweetness underneath.
- Kaga Futokyuri no Ankake加賀太きゅうりのあんかけthick-cut cucumber in a starchy saucePeeled Kaga futokyuri — a thick, meaty local cucumber said to hold its shape and lose its grassy edge when cooked — is parboiled, simmered with ground meat, and finished with a starch-thickened sauce, welcomed during the sluggish heat of summer.
- Kaga Miso Ramen加賀味噌ラーメンMisoKanazawa's ramen built on sweet, rice-koji-heavy red misoA miso ramen centered on Kanazawa, built on Kaga miso — a sweet, rice-koji-heavy red miso. Animal-based broth meets the miso's fermented sweetness for a richness built on umami rather than salt, in a fermentation culture said to trace back to the Kaga domain.
- Oshizushi押しずしKaga oshizushi — pressed sushi layered and rested overnightVinegar-cured fish, sushi rice, and nori are layered in a wooden mold and left overnight under a weight — a festival dish whose fish changes with the season, with Kaga variants wrapped in bamboo grass or persimmon leaves.
- Kishizuきしずcolorful glass-noodle platter with sesame-miso sauceGlass noodles, wakame, and wood-ear mushrooms are cut into thin strips and arranged colorfully, then eaten with a sauce of ground sesame and sake lees — a Buddhist vegetarian dish said to stand in for sashimi at memorial services in Daishoji's temple town.
- Mako no Nitsuke真子の煮つけcod roe simmered in soy sauce and mirinCod roe sacs, said to grow to nearly thirty centimeters, are simmered whole in soy sauce and mirin — a winter dish built around the outsized roe landed at Noto's fishing ports during spawning season, said to bloom open flower-like once sliced.
- Megisu no Dangojiruメギスのだんご汁icefish fishcake dumplings in brothIcefish, deboned and ground into a paste with miso, egg, and scallion, are shaped into dumplings and simmered in dashi — said to have taken root as a way to use up a fish Ishikawa catches more of than anywhere else in the country.
- Mettajiruめった汁pork and root vegetable miso soup with sweet potatoA pork and root vegetable miso soup loaded with sweet potato in place of the more common potato — its name, roughly "every which way," is said to nod to the habit of throwing in whatever vegetables are at hand, so the taste shifts from home to home.
- Mitamaみたまsteamed sticky rice with black soybeansSticky rice steamed with black soybeans — said to be chosen over red-bean rice for memorial services and house-raising gifts because red can evoke fire, sometimes written with characters meaning "spirit."
- Namako no Sunomonoなまこの酢の物sea cucumber with grated daikon and vinegarThinly sliced sea cucumber is dressed with grated daikon and vinegar, a winter dish from Nanao Bay, whose calm waters are said to yield especially tender sea cucumber — prized as a crunchy, briny accompaniment to sake.
- Nasu no Orandaniなすのオランダ煮eggplant simmered sweet and savoryWhole eggplant, fried or pan-seared, is simmered sweet and savory in soy sauce and sugar — said to have taken hold among farming households looking to use up a heavy harvest, its name reputedly tracing to a cooking method that arrived via Nagasaki. Often served chilled.
- Nasu Somenなすそうめんeggplant simmered with wheat noodlesEggplant simmered in dashi is finished with boiled wheat noodles — closer to a stew than a noodle dish. It is said to echo the region's past as a somen-producing area, a way to use up leftover noodles.
- Nishin no Konbumakiにしんの昆布まきherring rolled in kelpSoftened dried herring is rolled in kelp, tied with dried gourd strips, and simmered sweet and savory — a preservation dish said to pair the herring and kelp that Kitamae-bune trading ships once brought to Noto, traditionally made in bulk for the New Year.
- Sawara no Kobujimeさわらの昆布じめkajiki marlin cured between sheets of kelpMarlin — locally called sawara — is sliced thin and pressed between sheets of kelp for about half a day, the kelp's savor said to seep into the fish and lend it a silky texture, one of the uses found for the kelp that Kitamae-bune ships carried in.
- Sazaemeshiさざえめしturban shell rice cooked with dashiTurban shell meat is cooked into rice with dashi, using shellfish said to be gathered by free-diving ama divers off Hegura Island — its briny aroma and crisp bite make for a summer favorite, also known by the koji-pickled variant "sazaebeshi."
- Suizenすいぜんa white agar terrine served with black sesame sauceAgar seaweed is boiled down, thickened with rice flour, and set — a Wajima Buddhist dish served in place of sashimi at funerals and memorial gatherings, eaten with a sauce of ground black sesame and brown sugar that men were traditionally tasked with grinding.
- Tai no Karamushi鯛の唐蒸しsea bream stuffed with okara and steamedSea bream, split along the back, is stuffed with okara simmered with carrot and burdock, then steamed — a Kaga banquet dish said to have been prepared by the groom's family from fish the bride brought, the pair plated belly to belly for a wedding feast.
- Takenoko Konbuたけのこ昆布bamboo shoot simmered with kelpBoiled bamboo shoot and rehydrated kelp are simmered in light soy sauce — a spring dish said to bring together bamboo grown around Kanazawa and kelp once carried in by Kitamae-bune ships from Hokkaido.
- Tara no Kotsukeたらの子つけcod sashimi coated with cod roeFinely broken cod roe is scattered over slices of raw cod, a winter dish said to be possible only where cod is fresh enough to eat raw, as in Noto — served as part of the "tara gozen" spread at the lunar New Year boat-launch festival.
Raised here2
- Noto Buta能登豚pork graded at Kanazawa's meat marketPork raised in Ishikawa and processed and graded at Kanazawa's meat distribution center. A promotion council of hog farmers and meat-trade groups formed in 2014 to spread the name as a unified brand.
- Noto Gyu能登牛bred from three Tajima sires brought to the peninsula in 1892Japanese Black raised on the Noto peninsula, tracing to three Tajima sires brought from Hyogo in 1892 — its fat is said to carry notably high oleic acid, for a refined melt.
Prepared here4
- Ishikawa no Sake石川の酒Ishikawa sake — the rich-bodied style of the Noto tojiHome ground of the Noto toji, said to have originated around Suzu on the Noto Peninsula. Descended from farmers known as 'Noto-shu' who traveled to the Kinki region to brew sake from land ill-suited to farming, the lineage is known for a rich, full-bodied style called 'Noto-ryu.'
- Ishiruいしり（いしる）Noto's squid-and-fish fermented sauceA fish sauce native to the Noto Peninsula, made mainly from squid innards on the inner-bay coast and from sardine or mackerel on the outer coast. Its year-plus fermentation technique is a registered Intangible Folk Cultural Property, and it is counted among Japan's three great fish sauces.
- Kani Kamabokoかに風味かまぼこthe imitation crab that conquered the worldKani kamaboko is fish paste bound with alginate and worked into crab-like fibers. Sugiyo of Nanao, Ishikawa, is said to have released the world's first version in 1972, now a global export.
- Noto salt能登の塩salt hand-carried up the beach in Japan's last agehama fieldsSalt made by the 'agehama' method — carrying seawater up by hand and scattering it over sand to concentrate it by evaporation — as practiced in Suzu, Ishikawa. The technique dates to the Edo period, has been designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property, and is said to survive today only in this part of Noto.
Known for it here5
- Kaisendon海鮮丼Seafood rice bowlA rice bowl topped with an assortment of raw seafood. Thought to have spread nationwide after the war as refrigeration and transport improved, it has no single fixed form: shops differ over plain versus vinegared rice. Its origin is unsettled — one account points to diners in Hokkaido's Hakodate and Kushiro, another to Edo-style chirashi-zushi — with no single birthplace agreed upon.Kanazawa's Omicho Market sits close to the city's central wholesale market, and some of its seafood-bowl shops send staff to the morning auction themselves each day — a short supply line from landing to bowl.
- HoboホウボウWhite fishKnown sourcegurnard — a spiny, winged fish valued for its firm winter fleshA fish that spreads its wing-like pectoral fins to 'walk' along the seabed, fattening in winter. Its delicate white flesh goes into sashimi or clear soup, and it favors calm, sandy-bottomed bays, where it has long been eaten as a local catch.
- NamakoナマコOther stylesKnown sourcea sea-floor grazer eaten cold for its crunch, not its flavorAn echinoderm that grazes sand and mud on the seafloor. In season through winter, thinly sliced and vinegared for a crunchy bite and briny aroma; its salted innards are also processed into the delicacy konowata.The winter Sea of Japan coast here is a notable fishing ground.
- Curry Riceカレーライスa British-route curry sauce ladled over Japanese riceA wheat-thickened curry sauce ladled over white rice, a yoshoku staple said to have arrived via Britain rather than directly from India, with the roux and toppings varying home to home and place to place, in some towns tied to a naval or industrial past."Kanazawa curry" — a thick, dark roux topped with a pork cutlet, served with shredded cabbage on a stainless steel plate and eaten with a fork — is the local specialty, featured on the official Ishikawa Prefecture tourism federation's site as a dish beloved by residents.
- Nigiri-zushi握り寿司hand-pressed sushi, the form that came to mean 'sushi' itselfVinegared rice topped with a slice of fish or other seafood and lightly pressed into shape. So central to sushi today that the word 'sushi' often means this alone, it's said to have spread as late-Edo street food.Often linked to Omicho Market, a nearly 300-year-old market drawing fresh Sea of Japan catch into the city's sushi counters.
Food experiences here
- Omicho MarketMarkets & morning marketsOpen year-round (closing days vary by shop). Mornings tend to be the liveliest time to visit.
- Wajima Morning MarketMarkets & morning marketsAs of 2026, operating from a temporary location (closed Wednesdays). The situation is likely to keep changing as recovery continues — check the official website before visiting.