Hooray for Hamamatsu!

Shizuoka

Paradise of Food

To say that Hamamatsu is a foodie’s paradise is no small claim. Its natural environment is rich and fecund, producing a wide variety of produce — from mikan to menegi. Read on to find out more.

Because of the region’s favourable soil drainage and abundance of sunlight, the mikan in Hamamatsu are especially well received. Some of the popular variants include the Okitsu and Miyagawa variations, which are known for their thin skin and high levels of sweetness. However, the most popular variant is probably the Aoshima variation, which has the perfect balance of sweet and tart flavours.

In fact, there is a beef producer in Hamamatsu that supplements his cattle feed with the ground peels from Aoshima mikan. Known as mikkabi beef, the meat is said to be full-flavoured without being overly greasy or fatty.

Another must-try food item when you’re in Hamamatsu is eel. After all, Hamamatsu is the birthplace of eel aqua-farming. A great deal of eel is also caught naturally from Lake Hamana.
Because Hamamatsu is located in between the regions of Kanto (Tokyo area) and Kansai (Kyoto and Osaka area), you can enjoy both regions’ style of preparing eel here. The Kanto style involves slicing the eel’s back before lightly grilling the fillets and steaming in a basket. The fillets are then drizzled with tare sauce before being grilled again. Kanto-style eel is known for its moist and tender texture. As for the Kansai style, the eel’s belly is sliced and whole fillets are skewered on metal skewers, generously seasoned with tare sauce, and grilled over an open flame. This version packs a lot of flavour and is slightly crispy.

14web_DSC_0999 — Enjoy a delicious unagi meal at Kappo Hikumano.

Apart from eel, the brackish Lake Hamana is also a treasure trove for a whole host of marine life. That’s because the lake is partially connected to the Sea of Enshu, creating a potent mix of fresh and saltwater for marine creatures such as clams, prawns, and oysters to thrive. The oysters from Lake Hamana are particularly famed for their large size and rich briny flavour.
Itadakimasu!