# Oshizushi (pressed sushi) ｜ Our Regional Cuisines

**Cuisine Name**: Oshizushi (pressed sushi)

**Region**: Our Regional Cuisines

## Main Lore Areas
Kaiyo (Mugi, Kainan region)

## Main Ingredients Used
Rice, yuzu vinegar, vegetables such as carrots, burdock root etc

## History, Origin, and Related Events
okushima is home to several varieties of sushi, including boze no sugatazushi (pieces of sushi made up of a whole fish), kakimaze sushi (where the rice is mixed with kidney beans), and amego (trout) sushi. Among these, oshizushi, or pressed sushi, is familiar in the areas around Kaiyo and Mugi. Its rice is mixed with a yuzu vinegar known as yunosu, which is then placed in a square box with a lid that can be pressed down on its contents. It may look as though it's just made up of white rice, but when cut into, it reveals stewed vegetables such as burdock root and finely sliced carrots. It is also noteworthy for its use of “misho yuzu vinegar”, a local specialty of Mugi, in its sushi rice. It's a traditional local food, with every family handing down their specific seasonings from mother to child, but it is not certain exactly when it originates from.

## Opportunities and Times of Eating Habits
Oshizushi is served at festivals and other celebrations where one hosts guests. Particularly in Mugi, it is offered to friends and relatives at New Year and other days when big crowds gather. It keeps for a long time and is easy to eat, making it popular as a bento box option for picnics and other outings, too. There is also a similar local dish called hakozushi in Anan, where it is customarily served at New Year and during the Bon festival.

## How to Eat
Various ingredients can be added, such as carrots or burdock roots, sliced and dried daikon radish, chikuwa (fish paste cake), or kidney beans. These are usually simmered in soy sauce or mirin beforehand to add flavor. The vinegared rice is laid into a box, with the other ingredients placed on top, before being covered with another layer of rice and then lightly pressed down. Yuzu peel, eggs, sakura denbu (finely shredded pink fish), and leftover ingredients used in the dish can then be added on top for decoration. The type of decoration used differs depending on the season or the household.

## Efforts for Preservation and Succession
While it is fundamentally a homemade dish, oshizushi is also sold at supermarkets within Mugi. It is also sold during events there, and the town offers classes that allow you to experience oshizushi making.

## Ingredients
- Rice: 450g
- Water: 630ml
- Kombu kelp: 2.5g (1 x 10cm sheet)
- Vinegar: 30g
- Yuzu vinegar: 3ml
- Caster sugar: 38g
- Salt: 4.5g
- Kombu kelp: 2.5g (1 x 10cm sheet)
- Cucumber: 90g
- Salt (for the cucumber): A pinch
- Dried wakame seaweed: 4g
- Carrots: 45g
- Tinned crab: 150g
- Vinegar: 15g
- Caster sugar: 38g (4 heaped tablespoons)
- A box to press the ingredients in: 1

## Recipe
1. 1. Cook the rice together with the water and 1 sheet of kelp.
2. 2. Mix together the vinegar, yuzu vinegar, caster sugar and salt.
3. 3. Once the rice has cooked, cover it with the vinegar mixture. Blend together, then leave to cool.
4. 4. Thinly slice the cucumber, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Once it has softened, wipe off any excess moisture.
5. 5. Slice the carrots into thin strips before boiling them.
6. 6. Quickly splash the wakame seaweed with boiling water to rehydrate, then slice.
7. 7. Drain the tinned crab, then soak in a mixture of vinegar and sugar, before lightly pressing it to remove excess moisture.
8. 8. Moisten the inside of the box with a little water so that the rice doesn't stick.
9. 9. Line the box with sushi rice to a depth of 1cm, and lay the wakame seaweed on top. Next, pack with alternating layers of rice, carrots, rice, cucumber, rice, and tinned crab. Place the lid on the box, and weigh it down with a weight.
10. 10. Once the rice and other ingredients are tightly packed on top of each other, push it out of the box, and cut into slices.

## Provider Information
provider : Recipe source: Kumiko Nagao, Tokushima Bunri University Junior College

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