Protected local food
Hirota Bay Ishikage Clam
広田湾産イシカゲ貝
A rare cockle farmed in Hirota Bay, Rikuzentakata, on the Iwate coast. Its cream-coloured foot is sweet and springy, and top Tokyo sushi restaurants seek it out.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 3 February 2022
- Region
- Tohoku
- Official name in Japanese
- 広田湾産イシカゲ貝
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 岩手県陸前高田市広田湾
A sushi chef's favourite
Ishikage-gai is a type of cockle with a plump, dark red-brown shell. The part you eat is the cream-coloured foot, which is springy, sweet and full of umami. It is rare and has become a staple at high-end ryotei and sushi restaurants in Tokyo.
First farmed here
Hirota Bay in Rikuzentakata, Iwate, sits on the jagged Sanriku rias coast. In 1993 local fishers worked out how to collect wild young clams and raise them in sand-filled tubs hung in the sea. In 1996 they began the first full-scale ishikage farming in Japan.
Two and a half years
Each clam is raised for about two and a half years from seed to harvest, then strictly sorted before it ships.
Good to know
- Rikuzentakata has the Takata Matsubara Tsunami Memorial Park and the Miracle Lone Pine that survived the 2011 tsunami.
- Ask for ishikage at sushi bars along the Sanriku coast, where it is served fresh from the bay.
Questions travellers ask
How is it eaten?
Raw, as sushi or sashimi, so you get the full sweetness and springy texture.
Is it wild or farmed?
Farmed in Hirota Bay from wild-collected young clams.
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.