🍱 Tako Meshi
Dried octopuses, hung with their legs spread out and swaying in the sea breeze, are a slightly humorous summer tradition in Ariake Town, Amakusa City. During the summertime up until September in Ariake, Amakusa, octopus are left out to dry in the salty breeze on sunny days for three to four days. The dried octopus is always soaked in water and softened before being eaten not eaten as it is, as is the case with the surume. Octopuses are caught using traditional methods, whereby octopus pots are submerged into the sea. The texture of octopus differs depending on where they are caught, and those from the Amakusa region are firm and chewy year-round. Octopuses caught in the Ariake Sea close to Nagasaki have little fat and are suitable for making dried octopus. In the past, octopuses were dried and preserved during the winter when they become scarce. They are used for “Tako meshi” because by drying them, their flavor becomes concentrated and delicious. The dried octopuses are soaked in water and cut into smaller pieces once soft and combined with gobou (=burdock), carrots, and hijiki. Some regions cook all the ingredients and rice together from the start while others flavor the other ingredients separately from the rice and then add them later to the cooked rice. The water used to soak the dried octopuses are used as “dashi” (=Japanese soup stock) and soy sauce, sake and sugar are added. In Itsuwa-machi, the “Tako Meshi” is made with dried octopus and rice only. National Route 324 in Ariake is called “Amakusa Ariake Octopus Street” and attracts many tourists.