Tottori Food Guide: Crab Cuisine, Gyukotsu Ramen & Sand Dune Pears

Tottori has many appealing flavours, beginning with crab dishes — the prefecture lands more crab than anywhere else in Japan — as well as its distinctive gyukotsu (beef bone) ramen and Twentieth Century pears, which rank first nationally in wholesale volume. Blessed with the rich seafood of the Sea of Japan and with farm produce raised in a mild land known for its sand dunes, Tottori is a treasure house of good food known to those in the know. Savouring these local flavours alongside sightseeing at the Tottori Sand Dunes is one of the great pleasures of a trip to Tottori.

Crab Cuisine in Tottori, the Crab Kingdom

Tottori Prefecture is said to rank first in Japan for both crab landings and crab consumption, and it calls itself the "Crab Kingdom," even styling itself "Kanitori Prefecture." In addition to matsuba-gani (snow crab), Sakaiminato also lands red snow crab in the largest volume in Japan. Matsuba crab, the king of winter flavours, is packed with meat and has a superb rich umami and juicy sweetness. Fresh crab can be enjoyed in all sorts of dishes — sashimi, boiled, grilled and in kanisuki hotpot. The many dishes made with freshly caught crab are truly the star of winter in Tottori. You can also enjoy local specialities such as "oyagani" (sekogani), the roe-bearing female crab.

Distinctive Gyukotsu Ramen

Known as Tottori's local ramen is "gyukotsu ramen," beef-bone ramen. Whereas ordinary ramen uses pork bones or chicken carcasses, in Tottori the broth is characteristically taken from beef bones. Simmered slowly from beef bones, the soup has body and sweetness yet a clean finish. It is a bowl unique to Tottori, where beef culture has taken root, and a soul food long loved by locals. Shops serving gyukotsu ramen are scattered mainly in the central and western parts of the prefecture, each with its own individual flavour. It is a Tottori speciality well worth trying.

Twentieth Century Pears, Tottori's Pride

Tottori Prefecture ranks first in Japan for wholesale volume of Twentieth Century pears with a national share of more than 75 per cent, and the "Twentieth Century pear" is the branded fruit that represents Tottori. Its appeal lies in the juicy, crisp texture and the balance of refined sweetness and refreshing acidity, and it comes into season from summer into autumn. Chilled, it offers a coolness perfect for the hot season. There are also pick-your-own orchards in the prefecture where you can enjoy the taste of freshly picked fruit. Not only rich seafood but fruit like this is a Tottori boast. Do try the seasonal flavours nurtured by Tottori's countryside.

Daisen-dori (Brand Chicken)

Free-range chickens raised on the slopes of Mt Daisen. Tender meat with clean flavour.

Sakaiminato Seafood

Sakaiminato Port lands huge quantities of bluefin tuna and other seafood at low prices.

Best Season and Access

The matsuba crab fishing season opens on 6 November each year and closes on 20 March of the following year, and open-field Twentieth Century pears are shipped from late August to mid-September. Gyukotsu ramen can be enjoyed all year round. For access, crab dishes can be enjoyed around JR Sanin Main Line Tottori Station and in port towns such as Sakaiminato, where Sakaiminato Station is the terminus of the JR Sakai Line. The main landing ports in the prefecture are Sakai Fishing Port, Tottori Port and Ajiro Fishing Port. Combining your visit with sightseeing at the Tottori Sand Dunes and at Sakaiminato, known for Mizuki Shigeru Road, is recommended. In Tottori, rich in both the bounty of the sea and of the mountains, take your time to savour the flavours of the Crab Kingdom and the specialities unique to this land.

"Itadaki," a Local Dish of Yumigahama

"Itadaki" is handed down on the Yumigahama Peninsula in western Tottori Prefecture. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries' "Our Local Cuisine" project, it is made by stuffing large triangular pieces of abura-age (fried tofu) with uncooked rice, burdock, carrot, dried shiitake and other ingredients, then simmering it slowly in dashi. It looks like a big inarizushi, but both the cooking method and the flavour are entirely different, and it has been loved as a country dish representing the Sanin region.

Its beginnings are said to date to around the middle of the Meiji era, when the head priest of a temple in Sakaiminato City encountered abura-age in the vegetarian temple cuisine of a temple in Fukui Prefecture, brought it home, stuffed it with rice and vegetables and simmered it. There are several accounts of the name: one is that because it was a great feast in an age when rice was precious, the word for gratitude, "itadaku" (to receive humbly), rather than "morau," became the name as it was; another is that the shape resembles the summit (itadaki) of the noble Mt Daisen. It is also known as "nonoko-meshi," said to be a corruption of "nunoko" (a padded cotton garment), because it is as plump as a wadded kimono.

When you break open the dashi-soaked abura-age with chopsticks, the absorbed broth spills out and the aroma of the rice and vegetables inside rises up. It was once made in every household for each festive occasion, with ingredients and seasoning differing slightly from home to home — a true "taste of mother's cooking." Today, partly thanks to the efforts of citizens' groups, it has spread to supermarket delicatessens and izakaya menus.

"Ago Chikuwa," Made from Flying Fish

In Tottori, flying fish are called "ago," and chikuwa made from their surimi paste is "ago chikuwa." While ordinary chikuwa is made from pollock or shark, in ago chikuwa flying fish is the star. According to the same Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries material, its appeal lies in the firm, grilled surface; when you cut into it there is a pleasant crisp sound and a fragrant aroma spreads. It is darker in colour than ordinary chikuwa and has a firm, satisfying bite.

The name "ago" appears in documents from more than 400 years ago. Flying fish are in season from spring into summer, their spawning period, and have been enjoyed as a flavour announcing the arrival of early summer. They are a lean, light-tasting fish, and in the prefecture nearly 180 tonnes are landed each year using a fishing method in which several dozen white "buri-ita" boards attached to a rope are used to drive the fish. Tearing it by hand, or biting into a whole piece, is the best way to enjoy the aroma and flavour, and it is also served with wasabi soy sauce or ginger soy sauce as an accompaniment to sake. Used as an ingredient in clear soups and for dashi as well, it is an everyday flavour across the whole prefecture.

Rakkyo Raised by the Sand Dunes

"Rakkyo" (Japanese scallion), grown in the dune land around the Tottori Sand Dunes, is another product essential to any account of Tottori. Its cultivation history goes back to the Edo period, when it is said to have begun with bulbs brought back from the Koishikawa medicinal herb garden during the sankin-kotai alternate attendance journeys. Because it is hardy and grows even in sandy soil, at first only a few farmers grew it for their own use, but full-scale large production began around the start of the Taisho era, when an industrial cooperative was established and sprinkler irrigation was introduced.

The harvest runs from late May to mid-June. During this period "washed rakkyo" and "rooted rakkyo" appear in the shops, while versions processed by salting or seasoning are sold as souvenirs all year round. Sweet vinegar pickling is the most popular preparation, but locally there are many others: salt-pickled, shiso-pickled, black-vinegar-pickled and red-wine-pickled. In fiscal 2015, "Tottori Sakyu Rakkyo / Fukube Sakyu Rakkyo" was registered under the GI (Geographical Indication protection) system. Its appeal is the crisp bite, which also works well as a palate cleanser alongside crab and meat dishes.

Practical Information

• Matsuba crab (male snow crab) fishing season: opens on 6 November each year and runs to 20 March of the following year (about five months)
• Oyagani (sekogani / female snow crab): the season is short for stock conservation, and Tottori Prefecture's official website gives the peak as November to December
• Waka-matsuba crab: in season around February
• Main landing ports: Sakai Fishing Port, Tottori Port, Ajiro Fishing Port
• Red snow crab: Sakaiminato boasts the largest landings in Japan
• The prefecture's own positioning: because Tottori Prefecture ranks first in Japan for both crab landings and crab consumption, it styles its name as "Kanitori Prefecture"
• Twentieth Century pear shipping periods: greenhouse-grown from early to mid-August, open-field from late August to mid-September. Others include "Shinkansen" from late August to early September, "Akibae" from mid to late August, and "Oshu" from late October to late November
• Pear-growing areas and record: grown throughout the prefecture. The wholesale volume of Twentieth Century pears has a national share of more than 75 per cent, ranking first in Japan (2023, 2,096 tonnes)
• Note on allergies: crab is a cause of crustacean allergy. Anyone affected should take care

*Opening hours and prices at individual shops, and the periods during which pick-your-own orchards operate, vary from establishment to establishment. Crab fishing seasons and volumes may change from year to year.*

*(Sources: Tottori Prefecture official website "Tori-Net"; Tottori Prefecture press releases)*