Fish paste

Special flavors rooted in Toyama

About Fish paste

Toyama fish paste is represented by “swirling fish paste” such as kelp rolls, etc., and its origin also comes from cooking (cooking), and it has been devised so that people can enjoy the fun appearance by adding deliciousness to the swirling shapes and colors.
Also, since fish paste has been a product that is so familiar in the past, there are aspects where its deep appeal has gone unnoticed, and it has the unique taste and shape of the region built over a long history, and above all, its appeal as a health food that is low in fat, low in calories, and is a good source of protein.

■Fish paste culture brought about by diverse fish
Fish paste was originally made from a wide variety of inshore fish caught in Toyama Bay. White fish such as horse mackerel, flying fish, pike, cutlass, Japanese squirrel (pictured), and walleye fish were caught in abundance throughout the year regardless of the season.
Surimi made with seasonal fish is full of flavor regardless of the type of fish, large or small. It can be said that a unique fish paste culture was nurtured precisely because of the rich blessings of the sea in terms of fish species, quality, and quantity.
Fishery resources have declined in recent years, and on the other hand, frozen surimi using advanced freezing technology has been developed, so raw materials for fish paste are changing nationwide.
Even if the environment surrounding fish changes, Toyama's kamaboko culture, which brings out the umami of surimi made from a wide variety of fish with kombu and is enjoyable to look at by adding color, will continue to be passed on from now on.

■ Customs related to “wedding fish paste”
In Toyama, there is a custom of cutting fish paste brought back as a gift for a wedding and distributing it to relatives and neighbors.
A wedding is a place to obtain approval from participants, and sharing gifts has the meaning of expanding the circle of approval.
Happiness is deepened by getting as much approval as possible, and large things in the shape of lucky charms, such as sea bream, cranes, and Mt. Fuji, have been favored as gifts at weddings,
Recently, convenience when taking home has been measured, and it seems that there is a trend where wedding fish paste is becoming smaller.

■"Wrapped fish paste” without a board
The characteristic of Toyama fish paste is that it doesn't have a “board.” In contrast to “itakamaboko,” which is formed by putting surimi on a plate, Toyama's kamaboko is finished by stretching the surimi into a plate shape and then steaming it wrapped like a dashi rolled egg.
Above all, “colored fish paste,” which is wrapped together with thin surimi colored red or blue and has a pattern like a Naruto roll on the cross section, is popular.
Maki kamaboko is said to have originated from “kelp wrapped fish paste,” which is surimi wrapped in kelp. In the latter half of the Edo period, “kombu maki,” which involves sweetly boiled fish such as herring in kombu carried by Kitamaebune, became widely popular in Toyama.
As one type of this, “kombu-maki kamaboko,” in which fish surimi is wrapped in kelp and steamed, was born, and it is said that “colored fish paste wrapped” came to be made as a variation of this.
As a result of these circumstances, it is common to see red and blue colored rolls and three colors of kelp rolls sold side by side at food stalls in the prefecture.