Oyama no Kasuzuke - Traditional Foods in Japan | Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Fermented foods

YamagataOyama no Kasuzuke

Classification (Large)

Agricultural products

Classification (Small)

Pickled

Main ingredients used

Vegetables native to Yamagata, sake lees, sugar, salt

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Region of inheritance

Tsuruoka City

Product overview (special characteristics and types)

Good water nurtures good rice and produces good sake. The Oyama area of Tsuruoka City has been a sake brewing town since the Edo Period. In its heyday, the area had as many as 40 sake breweries; today, four large breweries remain. Sake lees, which are a byproduct of sake brewing, are used to make flavorful kasuzuke (pickles), which have been nicknamed "Oyama no Kasuzuke."
Oyama's sake lees have a distinctive flavor that combines sweetness, umami, and depth. The typical kasuzuke features vegetables native to Yamagata, including Atsumi Turnip, Fujisawa Turnip, and Minden Eggplant. Sake leeks are also used in processed, pickled seafood products that feature autumn salmon caught along Shonaihama and other shores as well as Obako Sawara (Spanish mackerel), the prefecture’s new brand.
Since these dishes feature sake lees derived from Japanese sake, they are naturally perfect pairings for it. More recent products include Zao Cream Cheese kasuzuke, which combines Japanese and Western fermented foods. Originally valued as a preserved food, kasuzuke are gaining popularity as a health food rich in the benefits of fermentation.

History and culture

In Oyama, a territory formerly under the direct control of the shogunate, people started full-scale sake brewing during the early Edo Period. Since not only toji (sake brewers) but also diverse skilled professionals concentrated in Oyama, the sake brewing industry developed and grew through close cooperation among various manufacturers toward the end of the Edo Period into the Meiji Period, establishing Oyama’s reputation as a leading sake-producing area of Japan. At that time, to bolster the reputation of the entire Oyama area, brewers made sake under the unified brand name of Oyama Shu.
As cross-sector collaborative initiatives emerged, Honcho, a pickle shop established in 1908, began pickling native Yamagata vegetables with sake lees, a byproduct of sake brewing, and fishery processors such as Tezuka Rinzo Shoten (the present Tezuka Shoten) began making kasuzuke by processing fish caught mainly along Shonaihama.

Production method

Oyama no Kasuzuke using vegetables
Every winter, sake lees are put into a barrel and broken up into small pieces to avoid clumping. Next, they are carefully crushed to remove any air inside. Then, they are spread and evened out as appropriate to lay salted vegetables. The vegetables are transferred about five times to new batches of sake leeks, with the salt content gradually reduced from 25% to 3%.

Conservation and succession efforts

Kasuzuke of seasonal vegetables is available year-round at stores and elsewhere. Seafood kasuzuke is available at farmers markets, supermarkets, and similar locations, although only during a certain time of year. Some are sold online.
In 2016, Yamagata's sake brewing industry became Japan’s first to be certified under the Japanese sake category of the GI (Geographical Indication) program.

Main consumption method

You can eat vegetable kasuzuke as is. To eat seafood kasuzuke, grill it to remove the sake lees while taking care not to burn it. Both dishes pair perfectly not just with hot rice but with sake. Vegetable kasuzuke is also used in various recipes, including putting it on crackers with cream cheese.

At-home recipes：Oyama no Kasuzuke rice balls

Ingredients

Oyama no Kasuzuke

30g

Rice

300g

Green shiso leaves

2 leaves

How to make

Chop the Oyama no Kasuzuke into small pieces.

Mix the kasuzuke from step 1 with rice to make rice balls and wrap them in seaweed.