Protected local food
Gushichan Piman
ぐしちゃんピーマン
A large, glossy green pepper from Yaese in southern Okinawa. It is sweet like an apple and crisp, with so little bitterness that you can eat it raw.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 29 January 2024
- Region
- Kyushu & Okinawa
- Official name in Japanese
- ぐしちゃんピーマン
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 沖縄県島尻郡八重瀬町
A pepper you can eat raw
Japanese green peppers are often bitter, but Gushichan piman is different. The fruit is big, thick-walled and glossy, with a sweetness people compare to apple, a crisp crunch and very little bitterness, so it is good raw.
Grown the Okinawa way
It grows in Yaese town in southern Okinawa, named after the old Gushikami village. The warm climate, mineral-rich Okinawan soil enriched with local materials such as sugarcane, and water from underground dams let growers get the most from a variety that is hard to grow elsewhere.
No heating in winter
Even in winter the greenhouses need no heating, so no fossil fuel is burned, and growers use fewer pesticides. Young farmers are joining, and shipments are rising.
Good to know
- Try it raw in salads or as a simple stir-fry with Okinawan pork.
- Yaese is about 30 minutes by car from Naha, close to the Gyokusendo cave in Nanjo.
Questions travellers ask
What is piman?
The Japanese name for the green bell pepper. Japanese piman are usually smaller and thinner-walled than western bell peppers.
When is it in season?
It is grown in greenhouses through the cooler months, roughly autumn to spring.
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.