As autumn arrives, Tokyo’s seasonal flavours come to the fore. This article looks at three: roasted sweet potatoes, the story of “Meguro no Sanma” and Tsukishima’s monjayaki.
Yaki-Imo: Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Yaki-imo (roasted sweet potatoes) are a familiar cold-season snack in Tokyo. They are often sold from vendors’ trucks fitted with stone ovens, as well as in shops.
“Meguro no Sanma”: The Lord Who Loved Saury
FACT: A rakugo story
Meguro City explains that the link between Meguro (a district with no coastline) and sanma (Pacific saury) comes from the rakugo comic story “Meguro no Sanma.”
LEGEND (言い伝え): The story as Meguro City tells it
In the Edo period, a shogun came to Meguro for falconry and stopped at a teahouse, where he was served sanma. It was a simple dish, just grilled, but the fatty, in-season fish tasted wonderful to a lord used only to elaborate cuisine. Back at the castle, he could not forget the flavour and ordered sanma to be served. The castle cooks had never served such a common fish to the shogun. To be thoughtful, they removed the oil and bones and steamed it, and the shogun found it not tasty at all. He then said, “Sanma is best in Meguro” (さんまは目黒に限る). The city says this story is how “Meguro no Sanma” became famous. It also notes that the teahouse in the story is thought to be the “Jiji ga Chaya” at Chayazaka, which shoguns hunting in Meguro were said to use often.
Tsukishima Monja Street
FACT: Monjayaki and moji-yaki
Monjayaki is a runny-batter dish cooked on a hot griddle at the table. The Tsukishima Monja Promotion Association explains that monjayaki, which developed in Tokyo’s shitamachi from the mid-Meiji era, takes its name from moji-yaki (文字焼き, “letter-grilling”). According to the association, there were only four monja shops in Tsukishima in the Shōwa 30s (1955–64). Their number rose sharply from around the start of the Heisei era. By April 1997, 28 shop owners on the roughly 500 m-radius shopping street (known as Monja Street) formed the association’s predecessor. Membership reached 54 shops by June 2019.
Related on JAPAN ESSENCE: Osaka Autumn Food Trails: Seasonal Sweets & Fall Foliage | Hiroshima Winter Food Guide: Oysters, Okonomiyaki, and Local Delicacies
Sources
- Autumn Food Guide: Japan’s Regional Seasonal Specialties | Japan Specialty Traveler
- めぐろのさんまのルーツ – 目黒区
- 月島もんじゃ振興会 – 月島もんじゃ振興会協同組合
To explore further, visit Zenkei (禅景) for Zen-inspired onigawara art and Oni Kobo (鬼工房) for onigawara demon-tile art and charms.
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