Category Archives: Japanese Culture

Kumejima Kuruma Prawns

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It’s no secret that Japanese food is popular outside of Japan.  Not only is the food in-country highly rated, but there are Japanese restaurants all over the world.  A lot of people wonder, why is Japanese food so good?  It’s a complex answer.  Many will tell you it’s umami, others the care and thought put into food, and yet more that it’s the simplicity of the dishes that highlights natural flavors.

I’m not a food expert, but I think it’s a bit of all the above.

When I lived in the States, I never ate fish.  Maybe it was because I lived in the desert and all we got were frozen or river fish.  Whatever the reason, I’ve had an aversion to most fish since I was young.  Then, 5 years ago, I got dropped on a little island in the Pacific, their second industry being fishing.  Their food was fresh, delicious, and amazing.

IMG_6225A week ago I had a shrimp that was still moving a bit.  And IT WAS SO GOOD.  My family will tell you what large strides my palate has taken over the last five years.  So why was that prawn tail I had so much better than any other shrimp I’ve ever had?  How did a bit of still moving shrimp overcome 23 years of stubborn dislike?

Simplicity.  The shrimp was peeled, and served with a bit of soy sauce.   There were no other flavors to get in the way, no cross-contamination from sauce pans, pasta, or other fish.

Umami. The briny flavor combined with the bite of soy and the sweetness of the meat meant create that unique sixth taste that everyone raves about.  It’s a balance easily lost when the simplicity is left out.

Quality.  Kume Island is known for miso cookies, sugar cane, and white sand beaches, but it’s also home to many kuruma prawn farms.  Kuruma Prawns are similar to tiger shrimp, but a slightly different species.  They’re the kind of shrimp Jiro’s restaurant used in Jiro Dreams of Sushi.

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So what makes Kume Island’s shrimp so good?  Checkout the video below then head over to the Ultimate English Guide to Kume Island… Kumeguide.com to learn more about Kume Island Prawns.

**Please note: At least 3 shrimp were harmed in the filming of the video and writing of this post.  They were delicious.**

Kume Island’s Lost Village

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IMG_5632Last week, after filming an upcoming video post, I went exploring through Kume Island‘s lost village.  I didn’t stay for very long because of the danger of poisonous snakes during this time of the year, but I did have my camera.  Hidden under the trees of the island’s north shore is an abandoned village.  Today, only the walls and a few stone buildings remain of what was once a vibrant village.

IMG_5577The only visitors are the occasional explorers and locals who return to pray for the ancestors who used to live there.  This village is located near sea-level, and is surrounded by tall cliffs.  The village was difficult to get to before the modern roads that now lead to the farms, tropical pools, and Epoch Kuruma Shrimp farm that are located between the ocean and the cliffs.  Many years ago, the villagers abandoned the village and moved to the top of the cliffs so that they would be free from the dangers of tsunami as well as the difficulties of traversing the steep cliffs.

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One  modern building remains in the old village, a place for people to pray for ancestors long gone.  The rest of the area is overgrown with trees and plants, yet there is a unique sense of history as the paths echo into the depths of time.  As I walked, I couldn’t help but think of the people who used to live there, what kind of life they used to lead, and what the village looked like so long ago.

I intend to return for a more in-depth look and will do more research on the lost village.  In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this first look.

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2013 Kume Island Firefly Festival

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IMG_4730Most small communities throughout Japan have several festivals throughout the year to celebrate milestones along the way.  The largest festivals are usually derivatives of the traditional harvest festival, while smaller festivals usually are tied to specific events.  On Kume Island, the start of spring is marked by the arrival of fireflies.

Since Kumejima has its own species of firefly, they have become an important symbol of the island.  The official character is even a Kumejima Firefly.  Aside from Kume Island, fireflies are deeply rooted in Okinawan culture.   Fireflies thrive in wetlands, and throughout the islands, they would mark the start of spring.  If  you’ve ever ridden the Okinawa monorail, you might notice songs played to distract nervous riders whenever the monorail turns.  At the turn before Tsubogawa station, there is a song that echoes the pattern of lights the fireflies make as they fly.

 

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IMG_4621On Kume Island there is a road along the kanegusuku area full of shops, stores, and restaurants.  Every year the association of owners shuts down the street to vehicles and host the Kume Island Firefly festival.  The street is lined with paper lanterns, and restaurants set out tables and stalls to sell food.  Children draw with chalk along the road, festival games like darts, fishing, and other games are out and a stage is set up for entertainment.

IMG_4568This year, the event started around 4:00 on April 27.    There were a surprisingly large number of students, far more than I usually see around the other events on the island.  The local school band started off the entertainment with popular show tunes and other music.  Throughout the evening there were also live eisa performances, a signing group from Minamidaito called Borijinaru Musume, chugging competitions (soda for kids, beer for the adults), arm wrestling, and a small band to cap things off.

They also revealed the new official mascot for Kume Island, a cute Kume Island Firefly with a tsumugi patterned front.

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While this festival doesn’t have the long history and ritual appeal of older festivals, it is a fun way to relax and enjoy a carnival atmosphere while providing local businesses a much-needed boost from local and tourist spending.

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Getto – It’s many Uses

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IMG_5342Last week I caught this post over at Ryukyu Mike’s blog and was reminded of my time on Kitadaito Island.  Kitadaito’s biggest industry is sugar production, but during my time there (2008-2011) they created a factory to harness the many uses of the getto plant, aka Alpinia zerumbet.  

So what is a getto?  It’s a tall stalk based plant with broad, tapering leaves and white cone-shaped flowers.  The stalks grow slowly but prodigiously, and regrow after being cut down.  They are sometimes used as windshields for gardens and field or as decorations.

IMG_5343Even before the factory on Kitadaito was made, the plant was well utilized by locals.  One of my first memories on the island was being handed a small greenish cookie.  Chinsuko are popular cookies in Okinawa that are only slightly sweet.  The getto chinsko I was given had a unique spice flavor that was both bitter and salty at the same time and quickly grew on me.

The other item I had was getto tea.  As with the cookie, tea made from the getto leaves had a subtle spice flavor and delicious taste.  Every time I gave it as a present it went over very well.

After the factory was completed, they began harvesting getto plants from around the island.  The leaves were removed, boiled, dried and turned to various food and health uses while the stalks were compressed, their juices extracted and fibers separated.

IMG_6748The fibers in the stalk were washed, separated, dried, and then sent to Osaka to become kariyushi shirts, traditional Okinawan dress.  The getto juice is utilized in fragrance sprays, cosmetics, and health treatments.  The getto plant juice is a natural insect repellent which is useful as it doesn’t contain the harmful and corrosive chemicals in modern insect sprays.The island also produces an insect repelling incense coil based on the getto extract.

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In addition to the taste, getto has a pleasant smell so it’s used in soaps and other items to add natural fragrance.  Finally, it is traditional to serve New Year’s mochi on getto leaves in Okinawa.  Its amazing all the things that can be done with one plant.

Check out the getto segment from my video on Kitadaito for a look at the processing of getto on Kitadaito.

Skip ahead to 8 minutes 18 seconds for the start of the section on Getto.

Mozuku

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IMG_1583Mozuku is a type of seaweed.  Before coming to Japan, I had never eaten any kind of seaweed, even nori which is the kind used in sushi rolls.  I had a vague feeling of disgust when thinking about seaweed, which is weird given that they’re just plants that happen to grow in the sea.

On my first day at school, we had soup with seaweed in it, and given that there were a 100 kids around me waiting to see what the gaijin did, I ate it.  What I wasn’t expecting was how delicious it was.  Over the past five years I’ve had a lot of different seaweeds in a lot of different dishes.  One that has popped up a lot since moving to Kumejima is mozuku.

Mozuku (Cladosiphon Okamuranus) is a seaweed that grows in small groups in shallow water in Okinawa.  The actual taste of the seaweed isn’t strong, but is a ready source of vitamins and minerals and is easy to harvest.  During school lunches I’ve most often found it in soups and tempura, though it also went really well on pizza (okay so that wasn’t at school).

On Kume Island, mozuku is harvested between April and June in the shallow waters around Oo Island.  I went out one Saturday afternoon and found several people harvesting during low tide.  They suggested that May was when the mozuku was most delicious.  I also asked them about how long mozuku would keep.  They said that if refrigerated it would stay up to a year, while non-refrigerated mozuku would be good for a month.

KumejimaMozukuMany locals simply go and harvest enough for themselves and their families, though one lady I talked to was planning to send a batch to friends in Tokyo.  At the local store, mozuku was available in a small package for about 150 yen since it in season.  There are also branded packages available for tourists as omiyage.

Once the mozuku is harvested, locals wash it in sea water to remove shells, bits of coral, sand, and small animal.  Be sure to wash your mozuku well before use.

So if you do get some mozuku, here are a few ways you can use it.

  1. Add it to Miso Soup
  2. Strain it well and add to tempura
  3. Top a pizza with mozuku and canned (or fresh) tuna
  4. Mix it into eggs for a vitamin rich breakfast
  5. Eat it raw dipped in ponzu (a sweet and sour sauce based on soy)