Food in Tohoku: northern Japan are more salty compare to other parts of the country. It is mainly because winter in Tohoku is long and cold that there are not much food recourses available during winter. So that people made a lot of preserved food that use a lot of salt.
Sweetness is also loved in Akita. Why? Because it was difficult to buy sugar in Akita back in old days that having sweets was a bit of luxury. Therefore, people in Akita have many sweets on special occasions like festival day. There is a festival called “Ammeko ichi” which means candy market in Odate, northern part of Akita. In Yurihonjo city people make “Jigoku udon” which is udon noodle with a lot of sugar. Traveling different parts of Japan and look for traditional foods can be a great thing to do.
I LOVE Sushi that I eat Sushi everywhere I visit in Japan. I like it so much that asked my Japanese friends to teach me and now trying to make it by myself. However, making Sushi, especial Nigiri is very difficult. Rice does not stick well together in my hands. My favorite one is makizushi: sushi roll which use seaweed to rap and it’s easier to make.
A Sushi roll that I found in Akita was very interesting one. Sushi roll usually use one seaweed to make one roll. But the one I found in Akita make a lot of thin rolls, put them together to one large roll and make a picture. Anime character, flowers, so many designs can applied for that roll.
Some Sushi were sweet because of vinegar and rice they use, or because of ingredients inside. There is a little wooden sheet to make sushi roll. It is small and easy to find that you can take one home as a souvenir and try your own sushi! (From UK)