Seafood ── Shellfish and cephalopods
Hoya
a sea squirt whose iodine-sharp flavor divides opinion
An invertebrate that lives fixed to rocks. Its distinct aroma, somewhere between brine and pineapple, and a lingering sweetness make it a delicacy people either love or avoid, eaten raw or vinegared, in season through summer.
- Other styles
What it's made of
A sea squirt that lives fixed to rocks, carrying a distinct aroma somewhere between brine and pineapple. Through its June-to-August season, glycogen levels are said to climb to roughly eight times their off-season low, sharpening its sweetness and savoriness. At peak freshness it's described as having a clean sweetness, like eating the sea itself, an impression that collapses fast once it starts to lose that freshness.
How it's made
Farming in Miyagi combines natural seeding, collecting wild larvae on oyster shells and similar surfaces, with hanging culture on ropes, and reportedly takes two and a half to three years from seed to harvest. Eaten raw as sashimi or dressed in vinegar, how it tastes comes down almost entirely to how fresh it is the moment its shell is opened.
Why it took this shape
The intricate inlets of the ria coastline and the plankton-rich waters of Sanriku are said to suit both the natural growth and farming of sea squirts, with the mixing of the Oyashio and Kuroshio currents adding to the conditions, making the region Japan's center for their cultivation. The jagged coastline's many sheltered coves are also likely part of what makes it so well suited to hanging-rope culture.
Before You Go
- How to shop at a supermarketHow to choose prepared foods, sashimi, and packaged sushi, when discount stickers tend to appear, region-only specialties, buying by weight, the checkout and bagging flow, and sampling etiquette at a local supermarket.
- Roadside stations, direct-sale stands, and marketsHow to enjoy buying food near where it's produced, visiting and shopping at morning markets and fish markets, what to expect at farm stands, and finding local food at roadside stations (michi-no-eki).
- 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.
Dishes in the same style
- Bafun UniA small urchin whose shell shape is said to resemble horse droppings, hence the name. Richer and creamier than murasaki uni, in season winter through spring, often sold preserved in brine rather than alum.
- Murasaki UniIts shell and spines run purplish-black, but the roe inside is pale gold. Milder and more refined than bafun uni, said to have a distinctly grainy texture, eaten raw or as sushi, in season through summer.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Known for it here
- Known for it here: Miyagi, Onagawa
The intricate ria coastline and the mixing of the Oyashio and Kuroshio currents suit aquaculture here, making it Japan's main farming center.
Contrast
- AwabiA large sea snail that grazes on seaweed, with a distinctive single-shell form. Its firm, briny bite has long made it a prized delicacy raw, while steaming is said to soften it and bring out more sweetness.
- SazaeA turban-shaped sea snail with spiny shell projections, sealing itself shut with a trapdoor operculum when threatened. Grilled whole in the shell, it steams in its own juices, its briny aroma and crunch standing out, in season spring through summer.