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Rock Oyster Grilled with Rice Flour, Tomato Simmered with Thyme, Corn Shinjo, Edamame Simmered with Herbs

For the tomato simmered with thyme: after combining the dashi and seasonings, it's important to first draw out the thyme's fragrance thoroughly by…

Smoked Pork, Summer Daikon Simmered in a Glossy Glaze

For the smoked pork: because the meat is cured in a block, it's important to cure it for about three days. If the internal temperature is raised too…

Flathead and giant Pacific octopus, cocktail-style

For the kochi and mizudako cocktail-style: if you use too little dill when tossing it, the fragrance turns muddy, so use a generous amount and go…

Horse Mackerel Pickle

As summer approaches and horse mackerel grows richer with fat, I made it into a Chinese-style pickle. It's a preserved side dish that goes equally…

Venison Corned Beef

Crop damage from deer and wild boar is a problem nationwide. I devised a summery dish that lets people enjoy venison, sourcing it this time from…

Whelk Simmered in Sake

When whelk is cheap, simmering a generous amount in sake makes it keep well, so it can be used in an appetizer, a dressed dish, or a simmered dish…

Small Melon Pureed Soup

This soup lets you enjoy the whole ayu just as its season opens. Ayu cured with kombu can be frozen, so it's versatile — useful for an appetizer, a…

Octopus Rice-Bran Pickle

For the octopus nukazuke: octopus cured in rice bran becomes pleasantly tender and takes on the bran's flavor, making it a dish that goes well with…

Cherry salmon grilled with koji

The flower-cut lotus root is pickled in vinegar, so it's convenient to keep as is. For the domyoji (coarse steamed glutinous rice) grilled with…

Soup finished with soba-boiling water

Yamagata is known for its soba, and since soba groats keep well, I use them often. Here I mixed them into a pounded shrimp fish-paste dumpling to…

Simmered dried skate

Next is the simmered course. Karakai-ni uses karakai — a long-standing dried skate preserve made in Yamagata's landlocked interior, far from the sea…

Yamagata Beef Cold Roast Beef with Wild Mountain Vegetable Salad

I sous-vide Yamagata beef, a branded beef from Yamagata Prefecture, to make a cold roast beef that keeps well refrigerated. Meat dishes are popular…

Steeped soybeans with herring roe, herring simmered in sweet glaze with vinegared soy pulp, dried hyō greens simmered with vegetables

The steeped soybeans with herring roe are made by soaking green soybeans in water overnight, then simmering them without letting the liquid boil…

Crossbred duck with fruit miso

Aigamo duck with fruit miso can be vacuum-sealed for storage, and in a pinch it can be plated with whatever vegetables are on hand to serve as an…

Avocado grilled with miso, Japanese sea bass grilled with sansho blossom

For the avocado grilled with miso, I use tama-miso, egg-yolk miso, which I keep on hand; its richness pairs well with the avocado's own richness, and…

Berkshire pork steamed with shio-koji

This is a takiawase, an assortment of separately simmered ingredients. For the baby taro simmered in koji and pan-rolled: as the stock in the pot…

New burdock root pureed soup

For the pike conger with grated plum sauce: this time I used the tail section of the pike conger that isn't used for the quick-blanched preparation…

Sweetfish simmered in miso and steeped for fragrance, chestnut kabocha mousse, Kamo eggplant mousse, tomato mousse, pike conger with grated plum sauce

For the ayu simmered in miso and steeped for fragrance: remove the ayu's backbone and stuff the cavity with chopped myoga ginger and ginger, then use…

Venison

Compared to other meats, venison is low in fat, high in protein, low in calories, and rich in iron and minerals, so it's good for the body and I'd…

Ezo Deer Cutlet

Ezo deer cutlet is a dish that lets you serve venison — meat that's difficult to cook properly — deliciously and without failure. I cleanly remove…

• ¥515

• Cook time 15 min

Ezo Deer Tsukune, Cabbage-Wrapped

Ezo venison meatballs wrapped in cabbage are made by mincing the meat that is left over from fillet…

• ¥606

• Cook time 30 min

Kabocha Tofu

Pike conger eel, lightly seared

This is the soup course. For the seared hamo, I bone-score it and cure it in kombu before searing, which removes its fishy odor and draws out its…

Grilled eel roll, local mochibuta pork and bamboo shoot grilled with sansho pepper miso, new-harvest sweet potato in salted honey, azuki bean cream cheese terrine, sweetfish Hakata-style pressed sushi, mountain stream crab fried and marinated in vinegar, green plum in a crystal-clear kuzu-starch glaze, and blanched taro stem with salted fish-innard paste

As for the local Mochibuta pork and bamboo shoot grilled with sansho miso: our local Mochibuta pigs are raised on feed blended with a high proportion…