The Oga Peninsula has a unique food culture, which includes but is not limited to that staple of Namahage meal offerings: the sandfish. Let us now taste the culture that the Namahage birthed.

Food | Hot Stone Cooking
This lively cooking method is done by inserting a heated stone inside a bucket filled with ingredients. Oga fishermen of yore would mix the catch of the day, onions, seaweed, and other vegetables into a bucket of water, then insert a red-hot stone to quickly stew the contents, and add miso to complete their lunch. It makes for bracing and impactful food, like the Namahage themselves.

Food | Sandfish Sushi
This is a form of “izushi”, or fermented sushi, made with sandfish cured over a long period of time. The fish is mixed with rice, carrots, ginger, and other vegetables, then pickled until fermented. A local staple of New Year’s celebrations, weddings, and other special occasions.

Food | Sticky Wakame
Sprinkle salt over wakame, then soak in lukewarm water to create “sticky wakame”. Normally eaten with vinegared soy sauce, or used as an ingredient in miso soup.

Food | Babahera Ice Cream
“Baba” means “mom”; in this case, the vendor’s mom, who arranges ice cream with a spatula, or “hera” in Japanese. The finished dish looks just like a rose.

Food | Oga Yakisoba With Shotsuru Fish Sauce
Salt-cured fish is used to make one of Japan’s top three fish sauces. Originally it was made with sardines or saury caught throughout the year, but it became popular by putting a unique Akita spin through the use of sandfish.

Known as “garum” in ancient Rome, fermented fish sauce is used in Italy as a condiment for pasta and other dishes. The Akita version, known as “Shotsuru”, was normally used for wintertime hot pot dishes, but the “Oga Shotsuru Yakisoba” dish was created to be enjoyed year-round, much like Italian pasta.