Nagasaki food refers to the food eaten in Nagasaki, the capital city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the Kyushu island of Japan. The food includes a host of seafood delicacies, and shows strong influence of Chinese, Dutch and Portuguese cuisines. Shippoku cuisine is the cuisine in the region that developed as a mix of Chinese, Japanese and Western cuisines.
Common Ingredients of Nagasaki Cuisine
Nagasaki food is rich in seafood, and other popular ingredients include local fruits and vegetables. Loquat is a very popular fruit here. Biwa loquat is a wild variety of the fruit from Japan, while mogi loquat was brought to Japan from China in the 19th century. Loquat picked during initial summer period at Nagasaki is a specialty which the entire Japan loves, and the fruit is eaten raw or used to prepare different types of products like jelly candy. Loquat leaves are also used to prepare tea.
Popular Nagasaki Cuisine Dishes
- Castella: It is a sponge cake originally introduced by the Portuguese missionaries in the 16th century. It was initially made of flour, sugar and eggs, and cooked in a steam pot on fire. The recipe evolved with time and the present day 'Nagasaki Castella' is a uniquely moist sponge cake which people visiting the place love to take as a souvenir with them.
- NagasakiChanpon Noodles: The noodles were first created by a Chinese restaurant owner in Nagasaki as an inexpensive and nutritious noodle dish for Chinese students visiting the place. It consists of various seafood ingredients as well as the Chinese lye.
- Kamaboko: It is a Nagasaki food item containing local fish meat that is salted, combined with seasonings, kneaded, shaped and cooked by steaming, deep frying, grilling or boiling.