Traditional Chinese Simplified Chinese Russian Korean Japanese 3. Traditional Crafts 2. Local Flavors 1. Rice/ Sake
 

Kiritampo Hot Pot
   Pound freshly-cooked new rice, wrap it around a cedar stick, and bake it over the embers of an open fire, and you have kiritampo. Kiritampo hot pot, made with kiritampo, free-range Hinai chicken, sweet cicely and mushrooms, is an essential part of the Akita winter and the flavor of the region.

Stone-Cooking
   Drop a heated stone - 800 through 1,200 Celsius (1,470~2,200 Fahrenheit) - into a broth brimming with seafood, and this hearty meal is ready in an instant.

Hinai Free-range Chicken
   This chicken, an essential part of kiritampo hot pot, combines the delicious flavor of the Hinai breed – recognized as a natural monument of Japan – with the efforts of the caretakers and the richness of Akita’s natural environment to produce this queen of free-range chicken. The meat has no extra fat to prevent you from sinking your teeth into the delicious meat that has been rated as one of the top three best chicken of Japan.

Inaniwa Udon
   Counted as one of the top three udon varieties of Japan, the chewy quality of these wheat noodles allows the flavor to linger all the longer.

Iburi-gakko
   Iburi-gakko is a pickle unique to Akita made by pickling smoked daikon (Japanese radish) in salt and rice bran. “Gakko” means “pickle” in the Akita dialect.

Sasamaki
   This snack of glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo grass has a simple but satisfying taste, particularly when sprinkled with kinako (soybean flour).

Iwagaki
   Iwagaki (crag oysters) reach the peak of their season in the summertime. Three to five times the size of normal oysters, minerals from the underground water sources where they flourish gives them a unique, rich flavor.

Tonburi
   Tonburi comes from the dried seeds of the summer cypress Kochia scoparia. Because it resembles caviar in appearance and in texture, it is called “caviar of the field.”


Junsai
   The jelly-like membrane wrapped around these water-lily sprouts gives junsai a distinctive, slippery texture. It is eaten in Japanese soups, with sanbaizu (a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar), in tempura, and more.
  
Shottsuru Hot Pot
   Shottsuru is a fish-garnish made by pickling Akita’s famous sandfish in salt and fermenting them. Shottsuru hot pot is made using this shottsuru, along with sandfish or other seasonal fish. This is a classic winter dish in Akita.
  
Tsukudani
   High-quality tsukudani (preserved food boiled in soy) is made according to ancient tradition, using freshly-caught fish.