【Reading】おまんずし

【English Name】Oman sushi

Oman-zushi is a local sushi handed down in the Iwami coastal area of western Shimane Prefecture. Characterized by using okara (unohana, soybean pulp) instead of ordinary vinegared rice, it is finished by stuffing okara into vinegar-cured horse mackerel (aji) or sardine (iwashi).

Around Hamada City, fatty Japanese sardine landed from autumn to winter is used as the material, and it has been cherished as a dish for autumn festivals. The cooking method is to fillet the fish by hand, salt it for about one night, then soak it in vinegar to remove the saltiness, and further marinate it in seasoned vinegar. The okara is lightly roasted to bring out its savoriness, and the fish's marinating vinegar is added and heated to blend the flavors.

Regarding its origin, there is a theory that the "oman-zushi" that was fashionable in Edo during the Tenpo era (the 1830s–1840s) was brought in by people involved in the development of the Iwami Ginzan silver mine. Although it died out in Edo, it took root as a local taste in the Iwami region.

In the Chugoku and Shikoku regions, sushi using okara in place of vinegared rice is widely distributed, and Yamaguchi Prefecture's "unohana kizushi," Kochi Prefecture's "tamazushi," and "maruzushi" of Uwajima City in Ehime Prefecture also belong to the same lineage.