Seasonings of Saga

Kyushu shoyu is sweet. Saga sits inside that zone, where the shoyu you dip sashimi into is expected to be thick and sweet. It is finished with added sweetness, and it is usually the first thing that surprises visitors from elsewhere.

The prefecture also faces the Ariake Sea, which lands fish found almost nowhere else. Eating something as assertive as mudskipper or warasubo goby calls for a sweet, heavy seasoning. The local fish and the local shoyu grew up together.

• The thick, sweet shoyu of Kyushu
• Assertive Ariake Sea seafood and sweet, heavy seasoning