Protected local food
Himi Inazumi Ume
氷見稲積梅
A rare Japanese plum (ume) from Himi in Toyama, found in the Inazumi area in 1949. Thick flesh and a small stone make excellent umeboshi.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 3 February 2022
- Region
- Chubu
- Official name in Japanese
- 氷見稲積梅
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 富山県氷見市
A rare local plum
Inazumi is a variety found in 1949 in the Inazumi area of Himi, Toyama, and selected because it copes with the snowy local climate. Growers have planted it on unused farmland, along plum-lined roads and in a plum park, and they prune, protect and harvest the trees together.
Made for umeboshi
The fruit is a short oval with a slightly pointed tip, pale green and fuzzy, and about half weigh 18 to 25 g. The stone is small and the flesh thick. Pickled as umeboshi, the skin rarely splits, the colour comes out well and the sourness is pleasantly moderate.
How to eat it
Umeboshi, salted and dried plums, go with plain rice and in onigiri. Ume are also made into plum wine (umeshu) and syrup.
Good to know
- Himi is famous for winter yellowtail (buri). Plum products and fish make a good food trip on the Toyama coast.
- In Toyama, also see the giant Nyuzen Jumbo Watermelon in summer.
Questions travellers ask
What is ume?
A Japanese apricot-like plum. It is too sour to eat raw, so it is pickled into umeboshi or made into umeshu.
Where is Himi?
A coastal city in western Toyama Prefecture, on the Sea of Japan.
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.