NARA - Nara Prefecture is home to a remarkable variety of traditional dishes, including an ancient cheese-like food dating back some 1,300 years, a wild mountain vegetable enjoyed for generations and a homemade crepe once served on special occasions, offering a glimpse into the region's long culinary history.
One of the lesser-known dishes is gonpachi, a traditional mountain vegetable preparation from Shimokitayama, a village in southern Nara Prefecture about two and a half hours from Osaka.
Gonpachi is made from a wild plant known locally as itadori or sukanpo, which grows in the mountains and is typically harvested in spring. The plant takes its name from an old belief that applying it to an injured area could relieve pain.
For generations, the vegetable has been a familiar part of life in the village. One local resident recalled picking it on the way to and from school and chewing on the fresh stems as an inexpensive snack.
Although gonpachi remains a traditional household dish, it is not commonly available in stores. Residents generally gather the plant themselves during spring, with some freezing their harvest so it can be eaten throughout the year.
A local resident named Naka demonstrated how the dish is prepared using itadori collected in spring and kept frozen. The vegetable was first stir-fried in butter, then seasoned with powdered dashi stock and a small amount of mentsuyu, a Japanese noodle soup base.
The resulting dish retains the vegetable's distinctive crunchy texture, while its natural acidity and sweetness are complemented by the richness of the butter. It is particularly well suited as an accompaniment to rice.
Further north, in Katsuragi, another traditional food offers a much older connection to Nara's history.
Known as so, the cheese-like dairy product is believed to date back to the Asuka period, when it was reportedly enjoyed by members of the imperial court and other high-ranking figures around 1,300 years ago.
Often described as Japan's ancient cheese, so is made entirely from milk, without any additional ingredients. Despite its simple composition, the production process is remarkably labor-intensive.
At Latte Takamatsu, a dairy farm and shop in Katsuragi that produces sweets using fresh milk from its own cows, so is still made using a traditional method.
Fresh milk is heated in a pot and continuously stirred for approximately 24 hours. As the liquid gradually evaporates, the milk becomes increasingly concentrated, eventually developing a brownish color and thick consistency.
The concentrated milk is then transferred into molds and allowed to cool and solidify, producing a firm dairy product with a distinctive flavor.
Although so resembles cheese, its taste also has a slight caramel-like quality, reflecting the lengthy heating process. Its rich flavor makes it suitable as both a snack and an accompaniment to drinks.
The ancient food has also attracted considerable interest among modern consumers. At a nearby roadside station, so frequently sells out shortly after arriving because production is limited and demand is high.
While so offers a taste of the imperial court's culinary traditions, another local specialty reflects the everyday lives of ordinary people in Nara.
The traditional dish, known as shikishiki, resembles a thin crepe and was once a popular homemade snack, particularly during periods when food was scarce.
A local resident named Kimura demonstrated the traditional preparation, which involves mixing wheat flour, salt and other ingredients with water to form a simple batter. The mixture is then spread thinly over a heated cooking surface and fried, with one side taking approximately three minutes before the crepe is turned over.
In earlier generations, the thin pancakes were commonly filled with sweetened peas grown locally. Today, they can be enjoyed with a variety of fillings, including jam and sweet red bean paste.
Once the filling has been added, the pancake is rolled up to create a simple dessert.
According to local tradition, shikishiki may have acquired its name because families often prepared the dish for special occasions, including school entrance and graduation ceremonies.
Although it was once a familiar household snack, the tradition has gradually declined as commercially available foods, including pancake mixes and ready-made sweets, have become more widespread.
Some local residents had not eaten shikishiki for around 20 years, but tasting the freshly prepared version brought back memories of childhood and family meals.
Together, gonpachi, so and shikishiki illustrate the diversity of Nara's traditional cuisine, from mountain vegetables gathered in remote villages to ancient dairy products associated with the imperial court and simple homemade sweets passed down through generations.
Source: YOMIURI
