Top-class premium fish among Joban-mono seafood: Yanagi-mushigarei (Willow flounder)
2022.12.07
Yanagi-mushigarei is a premium flounder that represents the best of Joban-mono.
It has a light flavor, with its peak season from winter to spring. During the spawning season, its skin and the layer just beneath it become fatty, giving it an even richer flavor. Because of its slender shape, which resembles willow (yanagi) or bamboo (sasa) leaves, it is also known as “yanagi-garei” or “sasa-garei”, depending on the region. It is particularly popular when dried overnight and is often used as a gift. It is a popular fish with a good flavor, but it is expensive because the catch is small.
The desire to make people appreciate the elegant flavor of Yanagi-mushigarei
You can enjoy Yanagi-mushigarei throughout the year at “Waryori Miharashi” in the inland area of Soma City. After relocating to its current location following the earthquake, it has been operating for 10 years and is much loved by the local community.
Dishes made with Yanagi-mushigarei are by far the most popular among the many menu items. Some customers declare that if they are going to eat flounder, they will only eat Yanagi-mushigarei, and there are even people who come to the restaurant once a week in search of the particular fish.
According to Kikuchi-san, Yanagi-mushigarei is like “the king of flounders”. He says it has no peculiar taste and has a “soft texture and a delicate, melting flavor”. The lunch menu “Miharashi Zen” features a whole, homemade overnight-dried grilled fish. Many people visit the restaurant specifically to enjoy this menu, as it offers the opportunity to savor the high-quality fish.
In addition to being grilled, it is also delicious when deep-fried as karaage. Some restaurants serve the karaage of the overnight-dried fish, but at Miharashi, they deep-fry fresh Yanagi-mushigarei. Apart from the tough central bone, the rest of the fish can be eaten, and you can enjoy the flavor of the fluffy white flesh and the savoriness of the fins and skin.
Encouraged by the local fishermen, he reopened the restaurant with the hope of “serving local fish dishes again someday”.
There are many fans who travel from far away to visit Miharashi to enjoy Kikuchi-san’s cooking. It may seem like a smooth ride, but the road to this point has not been easy. In the past, Kikuchi-san used to run a guesthouse and a restaurant near the beach. However, in 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake occurred, and “everything was washed away by the tsunami”. It was about a year and a half after the earthquake that he reopened Miharashi at its current location. What encouraged the reopening were the words of the fishermen, with whom they had a deep relationship before the earthquake, who said, “We will definitely catch fish again”.
Because he was committed to using fish from Fukushima, he was reluctant to reopen the restaurant, thinking, “If I can’t use local fish, there’s no point in doing business”, but the fishermen reassured him, saying: “Even if we can’t do it right now, we’ll definitely catch some fish someday. Then we’d like you to serve local fish dishes again”. At first, the catch was limited and the restaurant couldn’t source the local fish. But now they can get it regularly. Today’s Miharashi owes its existence to the determination of the fishermen, who promised, “We will definitely catch fish again one day”. Ten years have passed since Kikuchi-san was encouraged by the words, “We’ll do our best, so you should too”. “I was grateful for every word the fishermen said. I have to repay them”, says Kikuchi-san.
Buoyed by the strong words of the fishermen and customers who have been coming to the restaurant since before the earthquake, Miharashi continues to operate. Some customers who have been coming for over 10 years have become older and weaker in their legs and hips. “Even so, they still come here. I am truly grateful”, says Kikuchi-san.
Waryori Miharashi
◎Address：2-1 Nakanoteramae, Soma City, Fukushima Prefecture
◎Opening hours：11:30 AM – 2:00 PM / 5:00 PM – 9:30 PM (Last order at 9 PM)
◎Closed：Mondays
One day we’ll bring the delicious fish of Soma to the world.
Dried yanagi-mushigarei is also popular as a gift. Loop Shokuhin, which has a processing plant on Matsukawaura Bay, also says that its dried Yanagi-mushigarei is popular.
Loop Shokuhin sells dried fish, prepared foods, frozen foods, etc. Taking advantage of their location just a minute’s drive from the market, they process and sell Soma’s fish in the freshest condition possible. Mori-san describes Yanagi-mushigarei as so delicious that “once you’ve tried it, you can’t eat any other flounder”. According to Mori-san, Yanagi-mushigarei has long been favored as an “extremely delicious” fish. As a premium ingredient, it is not commonly consumed on a daily basis. However, since it is caught locally, he wanted “many people to be able to enjoy it”, so he decided to commercialize it.
Yanagi-mushigarei is such a prized fish for drying that it “ranks among the top in the market, fetching some of the highest prices”. Therefore, the processing is carried out with the utmost care. Factors such as salt content, temperature and drying time are carefully controlled to ensure consistent quality. To achieve a moist finish, particular attention is paid to moisture content. The drying time is also adjusted based on the size of the fish.
The strength of Loop Shokuhin lies in its ability to purchase ingredients directly. Because they have the rights of a fish wholesaler, they can obtain fresh fish without going through middlemen. Mori-san says, “First and foremost, I want the people of Soma to enjoy our local fish”. Their expansion plan is not limited to the local area. He is looking to the future of Joban-mono products, saying, “I want to expand our reach within the prefecture and beyond, and one day, spread the deliciousness beyond the country”.
Loop Shokuhin.
