🍱 Kujira gohan

Hamada City and Masuda City are located in the western part of Shimane Prefecture, facing the Sea of Japan. Iwami Sanda, which includes both cities and Ota, is the main city of the Iwami region. Both cities have thriving fishing industries. Hamada City has grown as a core fishing ground in the San'in region since the end of World War II, increasing its production through offshore trawl and purse seine fisheries. At its peak in 1990, the city landed approximately 200,000 tons of fish. Masuda City promotes a "cultivate and nurture" fishing industry. The city of Masuda promotes a "create and nurture" fishery, releasing abalone fry and flatfish fry and focusing on their cultivation. Whale rice, rice cooked with whale skin, has long been eaten in both cities. It was eaten on Setsubun day to pray that children would "become a big fish in the future," in honor of the giant whale. In the early Showa period (1926-1989), in this snowy region, households would buy large quantities of whale skin and pickle it in salt. This shows that the culture of eating whale was deeply rooted in the region.