Local specialties
Mehari Sushi
- 30Wakayama
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- 30Wakayama
Dish log
A local dish of southern Wakayama Prefecture in which a large rice ball is wrapped in salt-pickled takana (mustard green) leaves.
Dish profile
About this dish
- Main ingredients
- rice, takana (salt-pickled takana-zuke)
- History and origin
- It spread in the southern part of the prefecture, where fishing and forestry thrive, as a packed lunch that could be eaten easily during breaks in busy fishing and mountain work. There are various theories about the origin of the name: that you open your mouth so wide your eyes widen, that it is so delicious your eyes widen in amazement, or that the leaves wrap the rice ball as if sealing it (mebari).
- When it is eaten
- It has been eaten as a packed lunch during breaks in fishing and mountain work. Takana is harvested from winter to early spring, and when salted in barrels around January-February it keeps until around autumn.
- How it is eaten
- Rice shaped into a round ball is wrapped in takana-zuke soaked in vinegar and eaten. The rice is plain white rice or sushi rice, and grilled fish dipped in soy sauce is sometimes added as a filling; small rice balls are now the most common.
Sources
- めはりずし 和歌山県 | うちの郷土料理：農林水産省 · Ministry of Agriculture · Source checked 2026-10-12
Recipes vary by region and household. This is not ingredient, allergy, or dietary guidance for a specific restaurant.
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- VegetarianNo direct clue found (this does not mean suitable)
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- HalalNo direct clue found (this does not mean suitable)
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- PorkPork: no direct clue found (absence is not confirmed)
- Alcohol (mirin / sake)Alcohol (mirin / sake): no direct clue found (absence is not confirmed)
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