Konowata
Fermented sea cucumber intestines, a rare Japanese delicacy.
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Konowata is a type of shiokara, or fermented salted seafood, made from sea cucumber intestines. It is considered one of Japan's chinmi, or rare tastes. The name derives from the Japanese words ko (sea cucumber), no (possessive), and wata (internal organs).
Background
Konowata has a long recorded history in Japan. The Engishiki, established in 927, lists 'one koku of sea cucumber intestines' among tribute from Noto Province. The 15th-century Ninagawa Chikamoto Diary also mentions that Hatakeyama Yoshimune presented Ashikaga Yoshimasa with "one hundred tubs of sea gut" as a gift, as well as "one hundred tubs of konohata" f.
A recipe for making konowata appears as a secret recipe in the cookbook Shijoryu-Houchou-sho from around 1489. In 1522, Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiharu ate konowata when he attended the Gion Festival. The 16th-century Diary of Odachi Joko records that warlord Hatakeyama Yoshifusa gave konowata as a New Year's gift in 1539. In 1583, Sen no Rikyū provided konowata in a kaiseki meal to Araki Murashige.
The Muromachi-dono Diary describes Toyotomi Hideyoshi receiving konowata as a gift and having a waka poem composed about it. In 1603, Tokugawa Ieyasu presented konowata to the Kyoto Imperial Palace. In 1635, konowata was served for breakfast when Date Masamune entertained Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Konowata (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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