🍱 Aji no maruzushi

Saiki City, located in southeastern Oita Prefecture, is the largest city in Kyushu. It covers an area of 903.12 km2 and has a coastline extending about 270 km. The topography of the city consists of mountainous areas stretching from the Kyushu Mountains, plains spreading downstream from the Banjo River, a first-class river, and coastal areas with a rias coastline. The bounty of the sea brought by the Bungo Channel supports the region's fishery industry. A wide variety of fish and shellfish are caught in the area, and it is said that more than 350 species of fish are landed. The horse mackerel has long been a popular seafood in the area. The clean water of the Bungo Channel, where the warm current of the Kuroshio Current flowing from south to north meets the cold current from the Seto Inland Sea, provides abundant food for fish. Horse mackerel grown in the Bungo Channel have a reputation for being fatty and tasty. In 2007, horse mackerel was recognized as a "city fish. One of the local dishes using horse mackerel is "horse mackerel maruzushi. The horse mackerel is marinated in ume (plum) vinegar and wrapped in red shiso (perilla frutescens). It is characterized by the use of the whole horse mackerel. Because it is made with shiso, it can be preserved well.