【Reading】みかき

【English Name】Mikaki

"Migaki-nishin" is a dried product made by removing the head and entrails of nishin (Pacific herring) and then drying it to improve preservability; "migaki" is a term broadly referring to this processing method and product.

There are two theories about the origin of the name. One holds that it derives from the process of shaving off the belly flesh during processing, and the other that it derives from the state in which, after drying, the flesh shrinks and becomes easy to peel from the bone. The alternate spelling "migaki-nishin" written as "polished herring" is said to be incorrect.

The earliest appearance in literature is in "Matsumae Ezo Ki," published in Kyoho 2 (1717), where it is recorded under the name "nishin migaki" alongside whole dried herring, herring roe (kazunoko), and shirako (milt). Throughout the Edo period it spread to various regions across the country along the Kitamae-bune shipping routes, becoming a valuable protein source woven into the food cultures of each region.

As a point of contact with sushi, its use in the kabura-zushi of the Hokuriku region is noteworthy. Although the current mainstream has shifted to buri (yellowtail), the traditional method using nishin is still carried on around Tsuruga City in Fukui Prefecture. Before cooking, it is soaked in rice-rinsing water or nukamizu (rice-bran water) to soften and rehydrate it, after which the standard procedure is to process it into simmered dishes, kanroni (sweet simmered dishes), or kombu-maki.