Protected local food
Ibusuki Katsuobushi
指宿鰹節
Dried, smoked and mould-aged bonito from Ibusuki in Kagoshima. The town makes more than 70% of Japan's top grade, honkare-honbushi, the backbone of dashi.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 18 March 2025
- Region
- Kyushu & Okinawa
- Official name in Japanese
- 指宿鰹節
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 鹿児島県指宿市
The heart of dashi
Katsuobushi is bonito that has been simmered, smoked and dried until it is as hard as wood. Shaved into flakes, it makes dashi, the stock behind Japanese cooking. The finest grade, honkare-honbushi, is also cured with mould again and again, which gives it a refined aroma and deep richness. Ibusuki makes more than 70% of Japan's honkare-honbushi and has won many top national prizes.
A harbour in a crater
Yamakawa Port in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, formed when the sea flooded a volcanic crater, making a sheltered natural harbour. In the Meiji and Taisho eras it became a base for bonito fishing in the waters near Amami.
Skills from Shikoku
Fishers from Kochi and Ehime moved here for the good fish and taught locals how to make top-quality katsuobushi. The town has kept that craft going for generations.
Good to know
- Ibusuki is famous for its sand baths, where you are buried in naturally heated volcanic sand on the beach.
- Look for katsuobushi shops in Yamakawa, and try fresh-shaved flakes on rice.
Questions travellers ask
What is honkarebushi?
The top grade of katsuobushi, made from bonito fillets that are smoked and then mould-cured several times over months.
How do I use katsuobushi?
Simmer the flakes briefly in water with kombu for dashi, or sprinkle them on tofu, okonomiyaki or rice.
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.