【Reading】しろいOctopusんぶ

【English Name】Shiroita Kombu

A byproduct arising from the production process of oboro kombu (shaved kelp) is shiroita kombu (white-sheet kelp). To briefly explain the method: dried kelp is soaked in vinegar to loosen the fibers, and a skilled artisan shaves it thinly in ribbon-like strips from the surface with a special blade. As the shaving proceeds from the outer layer toward the center, the color and flavor change from the black outer layer (sarae), to the middle layer (mukikomi), to the white inner layer (taihaku). After all layers have been shaved off, the thin, yellowish-white core that finally remains at hand is the true identity of shiroita kombu.

It has a high affinity with sushi, and because there is a custom of layering it on top of battera (pressed mackerel sushi) in particular, the alias battera kombu has become widely established. In the Kansai region the name matsumae kombu is also used. This derives from the historical background in which Osaka became a major collection point in the Edo-period kelp distribution route of the kitamaebune (northern-bound ships) passing through the Matsumae domain.

Oboro kombu is limited in production volume, and meeting all the battera demand with shiroita kombu, a mere byproduct of it, is a difficult situation. To fill this supply-demand gap, the battera sheet, made by compression-molding kelp powder, appeared on the market. Genuine shiroita kombu is semi-transparent with a refined luster, and is highly valued as a material that adds the inherent umami and aroma of kelp to pressed sushi.