# Omizuke ｜ Our Regional Cuisines

**Cuisine Name**: Omizuke

**Region**: Our Regional Cuisines

## Main Lore Areas
Murayama area, Mogami area, Okitama area

## Main Ingredients Used
Yamagata seisai (greens), daikon radish, carrot, Jerusalem artichoke, perilla seeds (salted), soy sauce, granulated brown sugar

## History, Origin, and Related Events
Yamagata Prefecture maintains a diversity of pickling traditions. "Omizuke" is a pickle made from a type of mustard green called "Yamagata seisai." Along with "seisaizuke," it is one of the representative pickles of Yamagata Prefecture.Seisai greens are said to have been imported from Chongqing, China in 1904, and the seeds were introduced from Nara Prefecture to Yamagata Prefecture in 1908, where they were prototyped at an agricultural experiment station. They found that the quality surpassed that of conventional pickled greens such as bok choy, Chinese cabbage, and rape leaves, and thus the farming of Yamagata seisai was started. ("Kitaguni no Yasai Fudoshi" Takashi Aoba"). Seeds could be collected from the early Taisho period, and cultivation expanded from the Murayama area to the entire prefecture during the Showa period. Yamagata seisai are large vegetables, weighing around 500g each with a length of 70 to 80cm. In "seisaizuke," the thick stems are highly valued, so the leaf tips were often thrown away. The traders from Omi province started to cut off the tips and pickle them, which led to the name "omizuke." (There are many other origin theories for the name, such as that the cut vegetables were rubbed (momi) and pickled, leading to the name "momizuke," which eventually became “omizuke").In this way, "omizuke" is said to have developed as a clever way to use up leftover vegetables, so not only "Yamagata seisai" but any leftover vegetables can be chopped and pickled to make this dish.

## Opportunities and Times of Eating Habits
Yamagata seisai are harvested from late October to mid-November. They are large, with a single plant reaching 70 to 80 cm in length. "Omizuke" is also eaten for the New Year's meal. As the Yamagata seisai season approaches, many households make the relatively simple "omizuke."

## How to Eat
Yamagata seisai are most frequently used, with seasonal vegetables daikon radish and carrot. They are chopped together and pickled in salt for awhile before being eaten. It is delicious with rice, and is a staple item with a multitude of other uses, such as the ingredient in rice balls, rice in green tea, or fried rice. In recent years, it is sometimes made with thinned Yamagata seisai, so it can be eaten even earlier than Yamagata's signature winter pickle, "seisaizuke."

## Efforts for Preservation and Succession
(Outline of the traditions, the preservation society, social media use, modern approaches at commercialization)These days, in addition to being made at home, it is also sold as a vacuum-packed ready-made product. It is also not uncommon for restaurants to serve it as part of a set meal.

## Ingredients
- Seisai greens: 1kg
- Daikon radish: 200g
- Carrot: 80g
- Jerusalem artichoke: 150g
- Perilla seeds (salted): 100g
- Salt: 45g (3% of the ingredients)
- Yellow chrysanthemum (edible chrysanthemum): 20g (optional)
- Ginger: 30g (optional)
- [A] Soy sauce: 50g (a little over 3 tbsp.)
- [A] Granulated brown sugar: 10g
- [A] Mirin: 35g

## Recipe
1. 1. Wash the seisai, cut the wide part in half lengthwise, then cut into 7mm pieces. Peel the daikon radish and carrot and cut into small pieces. Thoroughly wash the Jerusalem artichoke and cut into small pieces, leaving the peel on.
2. 2. Sprinkle salt on the chopped vegetables and mix well, then cover with a weight about twice as heavy as the ingredients, and pickle overnight. Soak the perilla seeds in water to lightly remove the salt.
3. 3. The next day, throw away the vegetable juice, wash well with water, then squeeze thoroughly to remove the moisture.
4. 4. Remove the petals from the yellow chrysanthemums, blanch briefly in boiling water with a little vinegar, then drain and remove the moisture. Peel and julienne the ginger.
5. 5. Briefly boil the ingredients from A in a pot, then cool.
6. 6. Combine the pre-pickled and washed vegetables, perilla seeds, yellow chrysanthemums, and ginger, then pour the seasoning liquid from step 5 on top and mix together. Place a light weight on top to ensure that the ingredients are submerged in the pickling liquid. (If the ingredients are submerged in the liquid that comes out, you can remove the weight and just use the lid.)
7. 7. It is ready to eat in 2-3 days. It's not too salty, so it is best to store in the fridge and eat within about 2 weeks.

## Provider Information
provider : Yamagata Prefecture

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