Koi no Umani is a local dish from the Oitama region of inland Yamagata Prefecture, centered on Yonezawa City, in which carp is sliced into rounds and simmered until sweet and savory in soy sauce, sugar, and sake. In the inland Oitama region, far from the sea and short on seafood, freshwater carp has long served as a valuable source of protein. It is said that the foundation of this food culture, which continues today, was laid in the late Edo period when Uesugi Yozan, the 9th lord of the Yonezawa Domain, encouraged carp farming. After the Russo-Japanese War, sugar became easier to obtain, and the sweet-savory seasoning used today is said to have taken hold from that time. The carp is simmered until even the bones turn soft, and aside from the gallbladder, virtually the whole fish, from head to tail, can be eaten. It is an essential dish for celebratory occasions such as New Year, Obon, and weddings, prized as a lucky food because the Japanese word for carp, 'koi,' echoes the word 'koi,' meaning 'come.' Even today, 'Yonezawa Koi' carp raised around Yonezawa City is protected as a regional brand alongside Yonezawa beef and Tateyama apples.
Origin
In the inland Oitama region, which lacks access to fresh seafood, freshwater carp has long been cherished as a valuable source of animal protein. It is said that the foundation of the carp food culture that continues today was laid in 1802, when Uesugi Yozan, the 9th lord of the Yonezawa Domain, proposed and encouraged carp farming to secure nourishing food. Carp raised in the clear waters at the source of the Mogami River continue to be passed down today as 'Yonezawa Koi.'
History
Carp dishes, which spread through fish farming in the Edo period, were originally seasoned without the precious commodity of sugar. After the Russo-Japanese War, sugar became easier to obtain, and the sweet-savory simmered 'umani' style seen today is said to have taken hold. Passed down in households as an essential dish for celebratory occasions such as New Year, Obon, and weddings, it has more recently also become a popular product sold by specialty carp restaurants.
Features
The dish is characterized by carp cut into rounds, left nearly whole aside from the gallbladder, and slowly simmered in soy sauce, sugar, and sake until even the bones become soft. Carp, or 'koi,' is considered a lucky food because it echoes the word for 'come,' making it fitting for celebratory occasions. Yonezawa Koi raised around Yonezawa has firm flesh, said to become especially firm when water temperatures drop in winter.
Main Ingredients
Food Culture
Passed down in households as an essential dish for celebratory occasions such as New Year, Obon, and weddings, carp, or 'koi,' is considered a lucky food because it echoes the word for 'come,' and the dish symbolizes the food culture of the inland Oitama region, which has long lacked access to seafood.
How It Differs from Home Cooking
While fewer households prepare it themselves these days, specialty carp restaurants manufacture and sell carp simmered in sauces handed down for generations, available at supermarket deli counters and as gifts for the mid-year and year-end gift-giving seasons.
Famous Shops
みやさかや
山形県米沢市相生町7-130
A specialty carp restaurant with a history of over 170 years. It manufactures and sells sweet-simmered carp cooked until the bones are soft in a secret sauce, priced at roughly 950 to 4,600 yen.
View details →| Koi no Kotokoto-ni (Miyasakaya) | A long-selling product in which carp tail meat is slow-cooked in a pressure cooker with a secret sauce passed down and replenished since the shop's founding, until even the bones are soft. It is also served in school lunches in Yamagata.Where to buy →PR |
|---|