Nihon Chomiryo Tabi
Why Toyama eats the most kombu in Japan
- Toyama was not a place that harvested kombu but a place where it was gathered and passed on. The answer lies with ships.
- From the late Edo period into the Meiji era, kombu was a main cargo of the kitamaebune, the ships linking Ezo and Osaka. The ports of Toyama were where they put in.
- Kombu stayed behind in a place that was only a waypoint, and a food culture grew around it, tororo kombu first among them.
- Almost all the kombu on the Japanese market comes from Hokkaido, yet for consumption it is Toyama, on the Sea of Japan side, that ranks near the top.
Ask where kombu comes from and most people will say Hokkaido. They are right: almost all the kombu circulating in Japan is from Hokkaido.
Consumption is a different story. The names near the top are not Hokkaido but one prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast: Toyama. How did a place that harvests no kombu become the place that eats the most of it?
Not a place of harvest, a place of transfer
The answer lies with ships.
From the late Edo period into the Meiji era, the kitamaebune sailed around the Sea of Japan linking Ezo (蝦夷地), now Hokkaido, with Osaka (大坂). One of the main cargoes those ships carried was kombu. And the ports of Toyama were where they put in.
Toyama also had its baiyaku merchants, the men who left a box of medicines with each household and came back around to restock it. As they moved through the country doing business, they became involved in the kombu trade too, and the story goes that kombu travelled from Toyama westward and then across the sea. This route is sometimes called the Kombu Road.
Kombu gathered at the ports, merchants handled it, and it walked straight into the kitchens. Here is a case where being on the route mattered more to the food culture than being the source.
The evidence left in the kitchen
You can still see the traces in what Toyama eats today.
Start with the rice ball. Nationally it is wrapped in nori, but in Toyama wrapping it in tororo kombu, kombu shaved into soft threads, is nothing unusual. Pale brown fluff clinging to the outside of white rice is a mildly startling sight if you come from another prefecture.
Kobujime, sashimi pressed between sheets of kombu and left to rest. Kamaboko fish cake with kombu worked into it. Simmered dishes using kombu. Kombu here is not material for a feast but a staple kept in the cupboard. It is not only for drawing dashi, which is how kombu is positioned in Toyama.
A shop that deals in nothing but kombu: Aimono Kombu in Kurobe
In that same Toyama there is a shop that has handled kombu and nothing else. Aimono Kombu in Kurobe, founded in 1949. It is a specialist that carries roughly 150 kinds of kombu.
The unusual family name "Aimono" is said to come from an old word for processed goods that sit between raw fish and dried fish. A name that could only come from a place that deals in seafood.
The shop's "Kuro Tororo" is a tororo kombu finished from domestic kombu with no additives. Its character is a well-judged acidity and a deep savoriness, and pouring hot water over it alone brings the outline of the kombu out clearly. The savor of the sea the kitamaebune carried is still there inside a single bag.
How to use tororo kombu
- Rice balls: wrap it on in place of nori and start with the Toyama way
- Instant clear soup: put it in a bowl, pour hot water, add a drop of shoyu (soy sauce)
- Udon and soba: float it on at the finish and the broth gains savory depth
- Miso soup: as added dashi. Do not simmer it, add it straight to the bowl
- Rice with raw egg, chilled tofu: a pinch on top changes the whole impression
Light, long-keeping, and one cup away as long as there is hot water. It is a staple worth keeping precisely on a table far from the sea.
Frequently asked questions
Why does Toyama Prefecture consume so much kombu?
No kombu is harvested in Toyama. It still ranks near the top of the country for consumption because of the history of distribution. From the late Edo period into the Meiji era, the kitamaebune ships that carried Hokkaido kombu around the Sea of Japan put in at Toyama, and kombu is said to have settled in as an everyday ingredient there. Being a hub for goods rather than a place of harvest is what built the food culture.
Is wrapping rice balls in tororo kombu something only Toyama does?
Nori is the norm nationally, but in Toyama wrapping a rice ball in tororo kombu is nothing unusual. There is also kobujime, fish pressed between sheets of kombu, and kamaboko fish cake with kombu worked into it: dishes that use kombu as an everyday material rather than as the star. It is what remains of a place where kombu was a pantry staple, not a treat.
How should tororo kombu be used?
Put some in a bowl, pour hot water over it and add a drop of shoyu, and you have an instant clear soup. Wrap it around a rice ball for the Toyama way, or float it on udon or in miso soup to add savory depth. Kuro Tororo from Aimono Kombu in Kurobe uses domestic kombu with no additives, at around 1,660 yen for 37g x 3 bags. It is light and keeps well, so it is easy to have on hand.
