🍱 Jiri-yaki (Pancake with Miso Taste)

There are many local dishes in Gunma used wheat flour, like ‘okirikomi' (type of simmered noodle dish), ‘suiton' (soup with flour dumplings), ‘tansan manjyu' (buns used baking soda) and so on. Especially ‘jiriyaki' is much popular in the farmers villages than any other wheat flour dishes. It is a miso-flavored pancake grilled with remaining heat from clay in ‘irori' (=Japanese traditional heater). It is said that its name ‘jiriyaki' came from the sound while grilling (‘jiri-jiri' in Japanese). Minced left-over vegetables are sometimes added besides miso. In Gunma, both men and women worked, and it was customary to prepare dinner after work. Therefore, nutritious and easy-to-cook dish, like ‘jiriyaki' became popular. Also, it is served as a one-handed snack served at the snack break, 10am and 3pm, during the farmer's work. It is served various area in the prefecture.