Otawara city is the leading producer of red pepper in Japan. The red peppers they produce are certified as Tochigi Santaka Togarashi by the city. Many restaurants in the city serve fried chicken seasoned with certified red pepper, which is spicy and packed with umami, making them such a popular food among customers.
Variety of ayu dishes are served in regional cuisine restaurants and hotels around the Maze area. The most popular one is none other than the salt-grilled ayu. The entire fish is slightly salted, while a generous amount is pressed onto the head, backfin and tail. It is then skewered and grilled over a charcoal fire. Ayu in the Maze River has dense flesh with a distinct sweet aroma.
Bishamon’s ice is made from the japan famous water where from Mount of Bishamon. This Bishamon’s Shaved ice is fluffy and full of minerals. Then syrups are also made from local produce, with the tomato syrup which highly recommended.This shaved ice can be eaten at the Kannon Teahouse, located at the Chichibu mountain range. Also recommended are the ‘shin udon’ and ‘shin soba’ noodles which are made from Chichibu-grown wheat and carefully prepared by the shop owner every day.
This Maple syrup is made from natural maple trees which grow wild in Chichibu. Chichibu is a rare region in Japan where most of the maple tree species grow wild Maple trees are planted in the mountains then the tree sap were collected to make Chichibu Maple Syrup which is a very popular product. The Sugar House Maple Base, which is the first maple syrup production in Japan. Maple Base is a source region for the Maple brand where could experience the blessings of Chichibu’s rich forests with all five senses. In cooperation with mountain owners and an NPO, we aim to combine the ‘logging forestry’ which cedar and cypress and the ‘non-logging forestry’ which maple sap, to create a forest that will lead to the future. The café from Maple Base were also provides homemade maple and pancakes.
Horumon, the intestines of pigs/cows have been Chichibu’s signature food. Here at Ichibankan, you can enjoy the good old Japanese-style yakiniku on a shichirin grill. They’re focused on offering carefully prepared offal meat to customers so that they can enjoy flavorful, fresh horumon with no distinctive odor. Come enjoy the acquired taste of the horumon meat that goes well with beer, sake, wine or shochu or any drink of your choice.
The place used to be called Toyonokuni (Bountiful land), and as the name suggests it is a fruitful area blessed with seafood and foods of the mountain, such as, oysters from Morie Bay, Himeshima’s Kuruma prawns, Hiji’s Shiroshita flatfish, and dried shiitake where Toyonokuni has the highest production rate of in Japan.
Takachiho Beef is a premium brand of beef known for its tender meat and slightly sweet fat, exceptional qualities created by raising cattle with the fresh air and clean water of Takachiho area.
Swidden field burning has become rare in Japan, but it remains a regular practice in Shiiba Village. The burning provides excellent nutrients for growing buckwheat, millet, and other grains.
‘Ayu Zoni’, which uses natural ayu caught in the ‘Takatsu River’, is a local dish that is eaten at many homes during the New Year. It is written in an ancient document that this ayu was served as a cuisine for entertainment for lord Masuda, who served during the Warring States period, and can be eaten with a reproduction dish as a ‘medieval food’.
Two relatively recent innovations in the grand traditions of Sanuki cuisine are olive yellowtail. Look also for Sanuki San Fruit, locally branded fruits that have been cultivated for sweetness. One other Kagawa dish incorporating seasonal ingredients that must be mentioned is kankan-zushi, sushi made with spring Spanish mackerel caught in the Setouchi area.
