Protected local food
Aomori Black Garlic
⻘森の⿊にんにく
Garlic from Aomori, Japan's top garlic-growing prefecture, aged until the cloves turn jet black. Soft like dried fruit, sweet and gently tangy.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 29 January 2024
- Region
- Tohoku
- Official name in Japanese
- ⻘森の⿊にんにく
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 青森県
Japan's garlic capital
Aomori grows more garlic than any other prefecture in Japan. When demand for fresh garlic fell, growers, processors and the prefecture built black garlic into a new industry together, improving the process, quality control, promotion and exports.
Like dried fruit
The cloves turn completely black and soft, with a texture like dried fruit and a sweet-sour taste, nothing like the sharp bite of raw garlic. Black garlic also contains many compounds studied for their health effects.
From local to global
Aomori black garlic is now exported to 25 countries, and in 2018 it won the agriculture minister's award for local food activity. Demand for the raw garlic, and its price, rose with it.
Good to know
- Eat a clove or two as a snack, or slice it into salads, pasta and cheese boards.
- Peeled black garlic in sealed packs is light and easy to carry home. From the same prefecture, try Aomori Cassis.
Questions travellers ask
Does black garlic smell like garlic?
Much less. Ageing makes it sweet and mellow, without the sharp smell of raw garlic.
How is it eaten?
As it is, like a dried fruit, or added to salads, pasta and sauces.
Where it comes from
More protected foods from the same area
Crafts from the same area
Heritage stories from the same area
Sources
We checked the facts on this page against these sources.