Introducing the top 10 unmissable local gourmet dishes from the Nagano region.

Introducing the top 10 unmissable local gourmet dishes from the Nagano region.
When visiting the Nagano region, be sure to enjoy the authentic local gourmet dishes at their best.

Table of Contents

Nozawana-zuke
Nametake
Shinshu Salmon
Shinshu Soba
Sanzoku-yaki
Togakushi soba
Oyaki
Koshiabura
Koikoku
Sobagaki

No.1

Nozawana-zuke

A comforting taste of home that pairs perfectly with rice.

In Shinshu, people say, “Snow, kotatsu, and pickled nozawana.” The region’s mineral-rich snowmelt and the temperature differences between day and night give nozawana its sweetness and freshness. Lo...

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No.2

Nametake

A smooth, savory, and wholesome topping for rice.

Nagano is known for its mushrooms, and most of the enoki mushrooms used to make nametake in Japan are grown there. Nametake generally refers to young enoki mushrooms simmered in soy sauce. They are...

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No.3

Shinshu Salmon

Shinshu Salmon’s sweetness blooms on the palate

Shinshu Salmon is a new salmonid variety bred by crossing rainbow trout and brown trout, combining the strengths of both. Its energy that would otherwise go toward spawning is retained as flavor, c...

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No.4

Shinshu Soba

Made with at least 40% buckwheat flour, Shinshu Soba is celebrated as the original soba.

Shinshu is said to be the birthplace of soba-kiri, or cut soba noodles. Nagano Prefecture’s large day-to-night temperature differences and well-drained mountain fields are well suited to growing bu...

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No.5

Sanzoku-yaki

A local specialty of central Nagano, especially Shiojiri and Matsumoto

Sanzoku-yaki is a beloved local dish from central Nagano, particularly Shiojiri and Matsumoto. Chicken thighs are marinated in a garlic-rich sauce, coated in potato starch, and fried until crisp. A...

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No.6

Togakushi soba

Togakushi soba, one of Japan’s three great soba varieties, from Shinshu—the birthplace of cut soba noodles

Togakushi soba refers to soba noodles from Togakushi, Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture (formerly Togakushi Village). Along with Wanko soba from Iwate Prefecture and Izumo soba from Shimane Prefecture...

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No.7

Oyaki

Nagano’s soul food! Nagano is the birthplace of oyaki!

Oyaki, a specialty of Nagano Prefecture, is made by mixing flour or buckwheat flour with water and kneading it into dough. The dough is rolled out thinly, filled with sweet red bean paste or vegeta...

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No.8

Koshiabura

Koshiabura: a mountain vegetable with an addictive aroma and distinctive bitterness

The new shoots that emerge in early spring have a distinctive aroma and are eaten as a mountain vegetable. Koshiabura is highly nutritious and is enjoyed in Nagano Prefecture in dishes such as temp...

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No.9

Koikoku

A warming, comforting dish that pairs beautifully with Shinshu miso.

Nagano Prefecture, especially the Saku area, is known for carp farming. Koikoku is a miso-based soup or stew made by simmering cross-cut slices of carp. The flesh is mild and tender, while the fatt...

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No.10

Sobagaki

A local specialty from Nagano, known for its delicious soba

Sobagaki is made by quickly mixing buckwheat flour with water or boiling water until it forms a dough-like mass. It is eaten by tearing off small pieces with chopsticks and dipping them in soba dip...

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