Oshinuki-zushi (Pressed Sushi)
Oshinuki-zushi (Mold-Pressed Spanish Mackerel Sushi of Kagawa)
Oshinuki-zushi is a sushi made throughout Kagawa Prefecture by packing ingredients into a mold, pressing them, and pushing the sushi out to shape it. Because it is topped with vinegar-cured sawara (Spanish mackerel), which comes into season in the Seto Inland Sea from spring to early summer, it is also called 'Sawara no Oshinuki-zushi' (Spanish Mackerel Oshinuki-zushi). Sushi rice is packed into a press mold with sweet-and-savory simmered vegetables sandwiched in between, then sawara, broad beans, tamagoyaki (rolled omelet), kinome (young sansho pepper leaves) and other toppings are arranged on top before the sushi is pressed out. Most molds are square, but there are also fan, pine and plum blossom shapes. In farming households there was a custom called 'Haruio' (spring celebration fish), in which people bought sawara and invited relatives in the period before the mugi (wheat and barley) harvest and rice planting, and this sushi was the centerpiece of that hospitality. It is made from around late April to June, when the seasons for sawara and broad beans overlap, and in season it still appears in supermarkets in the prefecture and is served at restaurants.
Origin
In Kagawa Prefecture, sawara caught in the Seto Inland Sea in spring has long been cherished as a fish that heralds the season. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries' 'Our Regional Cuisines' (Uchi no Kyodo Ryori), farming households would buy a whole sawara during the slack farming period before the mugi harvest and rice planting, and invite relatives for a drinking feast. This custom was called 'Haruio' (spring celebration fish), and Oshinuki-zushi is said to have been its centerpiece. Because it was made when sawara fishing was in full swing, it is also known as 'Sawara no Oshinuki-zushi.'
History
There was a custom in which, when a bride went back to visit her parents' home, her mother-in-law would send her with a sawara. The bride would then bring Oshinuki-zushi made at her parents' home back to her husband's family as a gift, and this is said to have fostered good relations between the two families. In some areas, similar customs remain under names such as 'Mugi-urashi' (a rest after the mugi harvest) or 'Sawara Hatsuho.' Kagawa Prefecture materials also note that pressed sushi was made not only in spring but also for autumn festivals, and that very large pressed sushi was made in places such as Sakaide City.
Features
Sushi rice is packed into the press mold, sweet-and-savory simmered carrots, shiitake mushrooms, fuki (Japanese butterbur) and other ingredients are sandwiched in, and another layer of sushi rice is added on top. Vinegar-cured sawara, broad beans, shrimp, tamagoyaki, snow peas, beni shoga (red pickled ginger), kinome and other ingredients are colorfully arranged on top, and then the sushi is pressed from above and pushed out of the mold. It is a dish that uses seasonal ingredients and values a festive appearance. Traditional ones are mostly perfectly square, and in addition to squares, molds come in a variety of shapes such as fans, pines and plum blossoms.
Main Ingredients
Food Culture
It is a seasonal festive dish made from spring to early summer, when sawara enter the Seto Inland Sea and come into season, broad beans ripen and the mugi matures. It is still made at home today, mainly in farming households. However, it is said that fewer households buy a whole sawara, and more are making it with fillets.