JOURNAL / JAPAN etc.（English）

JAPAN ［NAGANO］
Japanese Ingredients for the World’s Top Kitchens ＃45

Spontaneous, New Varieties Not Far Off
Western Heirloom Vegetables

2024.10.07

text by Michiko Watanabe / photographs by Daisuke Nakajima / English text by Susan Rogers Chikuba

Though the times are always changing, there are certain timeless ingredients from Japan that will never go out of style. Yukio Hattori, president of Hattori Nutrition College in Tokyo, introduces unique labors of love—items grown and produced with care and integrity by hardworking suppliers across the country.

連載：未来に届けたい日本の食材

Yusuke Miyano grows Western varieties of vegetables along with rice and mushrooms in Nagano Prefecture, using no pesticides and organic compost only. “We’re at 800 meters elevation,” he says. “The storehouse is naturally cooled; root vegetables keep well there through the winter. Produce grown with chemical fertilizers wouldn’t last as long. And our rich soil bears some spontaneous mutations that we might try cultivating.”

“Mostly we sell to chefs,” Miyano adds. “They appreciate not only the flavor but also the fact that organic produce stays fresh longer.” And such an array of colors—a walk through his fields is like flipping the pages of a guide to unusual heirloom varieties. Before starting Agronaume nine years ago Miyano grew grapes at the nearby Villa d’Est Winery. Watch for the wines he’ll offer wholesale next year.

（photo left）Kale stands in the foreground; a purple variety grows behind it. （photo right）Lacinato kale sprouts straight and tall; its leaves are removed from the bottom up.

Root vegetables, vibrantly colored, are harvested before the first frost.

(photo left) Probiotic beds for shiitake are prepared with leaf mulch, yogurt, and natto fermented beans. (photo right) A newly formed head of radicchio nestles inside its leafy shell.