“SpecialtynumberoneinJapaninautumnhastobethematsutake
mushroomorpinemushroom,”saysTakafumiYamanakaoftheKiso
OntakeTourismOffice,threehoursbytrainfromTokyo.ChefAkihisa
Tsuda,fromthesereneguesthouseTsutayaTokinoyadoKazariin the
greenKisoValley,prizesthesewoody,luxuriousmushrooms,which
aresaidtoaidfertilityandhappiness. He emphasises that
thebestwaytopreparethem
is tobarelytouchthematall.
“Thereis nopreparationfor
matsutakemushroom,”hesays.
“Ifyouwashmatsutake,thearoma
willbegone.Justcharcoal-grillthem
onthetable.It’sverysimple,but
youcantastewhatthematsutake
mushroomis like:texture,flavour,aroma,umami,everything.”
If youwanderintotheancientmountainforestsaroundthetiny
townofKaybayashi,thesmallesttowninKyotoPrefecture,inearly
autumn you’re likely to meet locals or Japanese tourists from the cities
gatheringthefallenhorsechestnutsfrom1000-year-oldtrees.Back
in thevillage,threegrandmothersagedin their90sstillpractisethe
painstakingartofmakingchestnutmochiandcookiesbyhand,which
involves 15 stepsandthreemonthsoflabour.Visitorsareinvitedto
helpremovethehusksandpoundthenutsusingtraditionaltools.
Elsewhere around the countryautumnchestnutsareserved
askurigohan,a simplechestnut
andricedishflavouredwithmirin,
soysauce,sakeandkombuor
kurimushiyokan,a sweetjellymade
withchestnutandred-beanpaste.
Japan’s“truemackerel”,or
saba,is availableallyearround
butit’sconsideredtobeatits
mostdeliciousinlateautumnandintowinter.Manyregionsclaim
toservethebestsababutOitaPrefecture,ontheeasterncoast
ofKyushu,is particularlyfamousbecausethepreferredlocal
method of catching the oily fish is using traditional methods.A u t u m n
Threegrandmothers agedintheir
90sstillpractisetheart ofmaking
chestnut mochi,whichinvolves 15
steps and three months of labour.Clockwisefromleft:
BeppuinOitaPrefecture
ontheislandofKyushu;
traditionalgrilledmackerel;
matsutake mushrooms.