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Bokumeshi ｜ Our Regional Cuisines

  • Shizuoka Prefecture

    Bokumeshi

Bokumeshi

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  • recipe image

    Image Provider: “Shizuoka’s Side Dishes” Kaikosha

  • Main lore areas

    Yoshida Town (Chubu Region)

  • Main ingredients used

    Eel, burdock, green beans, rice

  • History/origin/related events

    Within Shizuoka Prefecture, there are two main production zones for farming eels: Lake Hamana and the Oi River basin, with Yoshida Town corresponding to the Oi River basin production zone. Eel farming began in Yoshida Town with the formation of eel ponds on unused rice paddies flooded out by the Oi River during the Taisho era, and utilized the basin’s underground water. Yoshida Town’s eels are well known for being fatty and soft.
    “Bokumeshi” is a mixed rice made by combining boiled eel and burdock root to cooked rice. The name is derived from a thick stake called a “bokkui.” At the time, eels that were too fat were unsellable, so the eel farmers began to eat them and it is said that the meal eventually came to be called “bokumeshi.”
    Since the latter half of the 1950s, eels have been farmed so much that they account for 40% of Japan’s eel production（※）. Because eel could be bought locally and in large quantities, bokumeshi was a staple in many households, but in recent years the price of eel has increased and there are less opportunities to make it at home.
    ※Source: Yoshimachi Public Corporation website

  • Opportunities and times of eating habits

    It is eaten during festivals and celebrations.

  • How to eat

    Cut the burdock into small pieces and boil. Steam the eel and cut into small pieces. Mix the boiled ingredients with cooked rice, then cut diagonally and decorate with thinly sliced green beans or omelet.

  • Efforts for Preservation and Succession

    (Outline of the traditions, the preservation society, social media use, modern approaches at commercialization)
    The dish is home-cooked, but some shops sell it.

RECIPE

Ingredients (4 servings)

  • rice 2 cups
  • eel shirayaki 1 skewer (100g)
  • burdock 150g
  • 【A】 sugar 80g
  • 【A】 soy sauce 3 tbsp
  • 【A】 sake 2 tbsp
  • green beans 40g
  • toasted sesame (white) 2 tbsp

How to cook

  • 1. Cook the rice normally.

  • 2. Cut the burdock into small pieces, soak in water to remove the scum, then boil.

  • 3. Steam the eel and cut into small pieces.

  • 4. Put 【A】 into a pot, bring to a boil, then add 2 and 3 and simmer over low heat until the juices are gone.

  • 5. Boil the green beans and slice them diagonally.

  • 6. Mix 4 with rice, green beans, and sesame seeds.

provider : Recipe Provider: “Shizuoka’s Side Dishes” Kaikosha

Recipes vary depending on the region and home.

Contact

Food Cultures Office, Overseas Market Development and Food Cultures Division, Food Industry Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Tel:+81-3-3502-5516

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