20
Moriguchizuke
- Characteristics
- Ingredients/Locality
- Common Souvenir
- High quality pickles
The Pride of Aichi, the revival of affordable gourmet pickles.
Slender coils of fiber rich Moriguchi daikon radishes grown on the banks of the Kiso River are pickled in sake production residue as Narazuke. Sweet sake known as mirin is a specialty of Aichi, and so not only sake, but mirin residue is also used. The result is a mild, easy to enjoy pickles with a distinct crispness and a mellow sweetness compared to other brands of Narazuke. Moriguchizuke is an appreciated luxury gift and a true treasure of Aichi.
Origin
Theories point to the pickles having been refined by someone called Moriguchi, or having come from Moriguchi in Osaka. In the mid Meiji period (1868-1912), Nagoya businessman Saikichi Yamada developed his own production method, currently the standard process, which became a Nagoya specialty.
Availability
Specialty stores dating back to the Meiji period continue to sell the traditional gift, which is enjoying a resurgence with the introduction of smaller sized packaging and Japanese food boom.
Moriguchi daikon radishes have a diameter of 2cm, but can be extremely long, and so they are coiled up and pickled in barrels.