Japanese Street Food in the Mountains Ouchi Village
Japanese Street Food in the Mountains Ouchi Village
Overview
John Daub travels to the snowy mountains of Fukushima Prefecture to visit Ouchijuku, a beautifully preserved historic post town from the Edo period. Once a resting place for samurai and feudal lords traveling between Tokyo and Kyoto, the village now features traditional thatched-roof buildings lining a dirt road. Despite the freezing temperatures, John explores the area with his friend Gaku, focusing on the unique street food available in this remote location.
The video highlights the contrast between the ancient history of the village and modern conveniences like 4G LTE, allowing for live streaming even in this historic setting. John and Gaku sample a variety of local specialties, including grilled river fish, miso-covered rice balls, and konjac skewers. The journey provides insight into rural Japanese life, the preservation of cultural heritage, and the resilience of locals working in harsh winter conditions.
Beyond the food, the video captures the serene beauty of Ouchijuku under a light dusting of snow, with discussions about how spectacular the village looks during heavy snowfall in February. John interacts with friendly vendors and a local photographer, showcasing the welcoming atmosphere of the region. The episode concludes with John preparing to eat soba noodles, a staple of the area, emphasizing that there is always room for more food despite the earlier street food binge.
Highlights
- 00:00:03 John introduces Ouchijuku, a preserved samurai village in Fukushima.
- 00:01:39 Gaku explains that samurai used to stay here for about a week at a time.
- 00:02:20 John notes the impressive preservation of thatched roofs and the presence of 4G LTE.
- 00:04:10 Trying grilled iwana (char fish) salted from the local river.
- 00:06:21 John eats the whole fish, including the crunchy bones and tail.
- 00:10:26 Sampling shingoro mochi, a crushed rice ball with miso sauce.
- 00:14:04 Eating konjac (yam cake) skewers boiled in soy sauce.
- 00:18:04 Discovering fresh tempura manju with red bean paste inside.
- 00:20:15 Meeting a photographer who shows stunning images of the village in deep snow.
- 00:23:26 Discussing the vast size of Fukushima Prefecture and travel times.
Timeline / Chapters
- 00:00:00 Introduction to Ouchijuku and the cold weather.
- 00:00:57 Meeting guest Gaku from Fukushima City.
- 00:01:29 History of the samurai post town.
- 00:02:54 Walking the street and looking at food stalls.
- 00:04:10 Buying and eating grilled iwana.
- 00:08:54 Drinking hot barley tea in the cold.
- 00:10:26 Trying shingoro mochi with egoma miso.
- 00:13:30 Acknowledging super chats and Toby the crow.
- 00:14:04 Eating konjac skewers.
- 00:16:46 Searching for more food; tempura sold out.
- 00:18:04 Finding fresh tempura manju.
- 00:20:15 Conversation with a local photographer.
- 00:21:43 Browsing souvenir shops and gifts.
- 00:23:26 Discussing travel distances in Fukushima.
- 00:24:00 Heading to eat soba noodles to end the tour.
Japan Travel Tips
- Getting There: Ouchijuku is remote; it takes about 3.5 hours to drive from Fukushima City. Public transport involves buses, but driving allows more flexibility.
- Best Time to Visit: While beautiful year-round, February offers the most spectacular snow scenery, though it is extremely cold.
- What to Eat: Try iwana (grilled char), shingoro mochi (miso rice ball), and soba noodles, which are local specialties.
- Costs: Street food is affordable, ranging from 100 to 200 yen per item.
- Clothing: Dress warmly; temperatures can drop to minus 10 degrees Celsius or lower in winter.
- Connectivity: Surprisingly, 4G LTE is available even in this historic mountain village.
Japanese Language & Culture Notes
- Ouchijuku (大内宿): A historic post town (shukuba) preserved to look like the Edo period. No modern buildings are allowed on the main street.
- Samurai History: The village served as a resting spot for feudal lords and samurai traveling between Edo (Tokyo) and Kyoto.
- Thatched Roofs: The traditional kayabuki roofs are a defining feature, requiring significant maintenance to preserve.
- Eating Whole Fish: When eating grilled iwana, it is common to eat the entire fish, including bones and head, though the head can be tough.
- Shingoro Mochi: A local Fukushima specialty where rice is crushed slightly, skewered, and grilled with a miso sauce often containing egoma (perilla seeds).
- Konjac (Konnyaku): A low-calorie food made from the konjac yam, known for its rubbery texture.
Food & Drink Guide
- Iwana (Char Fish): 00:04:10 Grilled whole fish on a stick, salted. John notes it has more meat than ayu and the bones are edible.
- Shingoro Mochi: 00:10:26 Crushed rice ball on a stick with miso and egoma sauce. Cost: 200 yen. Soft inside, crunchy outside.
- Konjac Skewers: 00:14:04 Boiled konjac yam cakes in soy sauce. Cost: 100 yen. Rubbery texture, absorbs sauce well.
- Tempura Manju: 00:18:04 Fried bun filled with anko (red bean paste). Cost: 120 yen. Crunchy outside, sweet soft inside.
- Barley Tea: 00:08:54 Hot tea served to warm up in the cold weather.
People
- John Daub: Host and creator of Only in Japan Go. Enthusiastic about street food and cultural preservation.
- Gaku: John's friend from Fukushima City. Acts as a guide and fellow food taster.
- Staff: Various vendor staff at the food stalls. Friendly and helpful in explaining the food.
- Passerby: A local photographer who shares images of the village in deep snow.
- Toby (crow): 00:13:30 Mentioned by John as a recipient of super chat gratitude (running joke).
Key Takeaways
- Ouchijuku is a rare example of a fully preserved Edo-period post town in Japan.
- Fukushima Prefecture is vast, taking several hours to traverse from coast to inland mountains.
- Local street food reflects the history and agricultural products of the region (river fish, buckwheat, rice).
- Winter offers a unique beauty but requires preparation for extreme cold.
- Community hospitality is strong, with locals eager to share their culture and photos with visitors.
Notable Quotes
- 00:00:03 "Greetings to one of the coldest places on earth it feels. This is Aizu-Wakamatsu in Fukushima."
- 00:02:20 "What's most impressive is the fact that they have 4G LTE here in the samurai village."
- 00:06:21 "She said you can eat everything, but the head's kind of tough."
- 00:09:54 "He said that there's so much snow in February, but it's also the most beautiful time."
- 00:14:57 "Imagine eating a tire, but the tire tastes really good and when you bite it, it breaks in your mouth."
- 00:23:31 "Fukushima is huge. And it takes to get from Fukushima City to here, it takes 3 and a half hours."
Related Topics
- Fukushima Travel Guide
- Japanese Street Food Tours
- Edo Period History
- Winter Festivals in Japan
- Soba Noodle Culture
Search Tags
#only-in-japan-go #fukushima #ouchijuku #street-food #samurai #winter #travel #japan #iwana #soba #foodie #history #culture
Full Transcript
00:00:03 John Daub: Greetings to one of the coldest places on earth it feels. This is Aizu-Wakamatsu in Fukushima. This is a really unique place. This is a village that has been preserved. This is Ouchijuku. It's a place where the samurai used to stay 100, 200 years ago and now it's been preserved and it looks really beautiful. You can see some of the buildings here. It looks great with the snow, doesn't it? It's just a dirt road that leads from one side to the other.
00:00:36 John Daub: People come here, they drive up here and enjoy the area. But I'm here not so much for the history. I'm here for the street food and that's what we got here today. But I can't eat alone. So I came with somebody. That there is Wara-san.
00:00:57 Gaku: Hello. Let's go. Let's introduce ourselves.
00:01:07 John Daub: My name is Gaku. Call me Gaku. Alright, Gaku. Where are you from Gaku?
00:01:07 Gaku: I'm from Fukushima. Fukushima city.
00:01:07 John Daub: Fukushima guy. Which city? Fukushima city? We ate gyoza last time. Gyoza? Was it good?
00:01:07 Gaku: Very good. Marugyoza.
00:01:29 John Daub: So what is this town about? I said it before but this is a place where the samurai used to stay.
00:01:39 Gaku: Samurai stayed here? Yes. One week. Around here. All of them. Yes.
00:01:52 John Daub: Wow. Oh they stayed for one week? Like here. This is where they stayed. Japanese hotels. So this is all hotels? Eh? Really? Look at the traditional structure. It's pretty cool. A lot of these roofs. They're thatched. Let's take a look at a roof here. I'm actually starving. So we're gonna eat real fast. But I wanna just look at the roof. It's all thatched. It's really well preserved. I like this. It's like walking through a museum. What's most impressive is the fact that they have 4G LTE here in the samurai village. So we're able to stream live. Yeah. Okay. Let's go try some street food. Enough samurai history. Where are the samurai? They're gone, but we're here.
00:02:54 John Daub: Fukushima is big. I can't see their faces. They're announcing the tour. A lot of tour groups come here. I'm hungry. What should we eat? So Gaku and I, we were just in the onsen. Really beautiful onsen. And I'll put a picture up of it on Instagram later on. We're gonna try. Let's try some street food. We'll walk over here. Let's check this one out. This is dango and ayu fish. This one is just off the grill. They have some senbei. Some really traditional stuff. Senbei. Rice crackers. There's some soba. Some soba rice? That looks like soba kome. Soba kome? There's some gobo sticks. That's a root. Made from a root. Some brewski.
00:04:10 Staff: Hello. What is this? This is iwana.
00:04:16 John Daub: Iwana? Yes. Wow. Not ayu? Not ayu. I usually like to eat things on a stick. Looks like these fish had a better day than today. But this is iwana we call them. And iwana is from the local river. We're gonna eat from the river. And they're salted and then grilled. And they look really good. Would you eat this?
00:04:47 Gaku: I'll try one.
00:04:49 John Daub: Two please. One please. I'll grill it. I'll bring it over. And this they also have dango. And this is dango with... what flavor?
00:05:04 Staff: It's sweet soy sauce. Sugar and soy sauce.
00:05:09 John Daub: Ah, like a mix. Iwana nigo mochi. Wow. So I'm gonna try this iwana. Iwana iwana. And we're gonna see what the difference is between the ayu sweet fish. Ayu fish is a sweet fish. And this one is iwana fish. It's a little bit different. But how different? This is a street food that I reckon that the samurai ate something like this back in the day. Right? This is samurai street food. Yeah. Really? I made that up, but guess what? It's kind of true. So samurai, you know, they carry their katana around and they finish with the battle. They come, you know, I want some iwana. You know, I want iwana. And they get a stick of this. Ah! There you go. There's the street food for you. A stick of iwana. How do you eat it?
00:06:11 Staff: Just like that.
00:06:13 John Daub: Really? You eat the whole thing?
00:06:18 Staff: I eat everything.
00:06:21 John Daub: She said you can eat the whole thing. Everything. That's pretty cool. My head is pretty hard, but mine is pretty... Mine too. So you can... She says you can eat everything, but the head's kind of tough. I think it's tough for me, not because it's tough to eat, but it's just the head. Alright, let's eat this thing. You don't have any stomachache? John, eat it. The tail is pretty crunchy. It's salty. It's salty. There's a stick inside that you want to fish. You gotta be careful of the stick, but... Yeah. It's pretty good. It's hot. But right now, it's so cold. How much is it? Minus 10 dollars. Minus 10? Minus 10? I can't feel my hands. Hahaha. It's good. The meat is so soft. You know, if I compare this to an ayu fish, this has more meat. There's more meat than ayu. You can eat the bones, right? Yeah. You can eat the bones, which is really interesting. Mmm. It's a little crunchy, but everything is edible. Wow. Do you eat iwana every day? Do you eat iwana every day? Hahaha. I asked her, does she eat this every day? She said no. Hahaha. Now ask yourself, would you eat the head? Yeah. I would. Haha. It's kind of bitter. Slightly crunchy. Thank you. Thank you. A guy got me a tea. What kind of tea is it?
00:08:54 Staff: It's barley tea.
00:08:55 John Daub: Oh, barley tea. It's barley tea. It's so cold. The tea is hot. My hand is frozen to the hand. I'm holding the handle of the stabilizer. We gotta keep going. More street food! Oh, wait. I gotta drink this first. Well, I'll drink this real quickly. Turn around and enjoy the beautiful town of Ouchijuku. Yesterday it snowed, but it's not really deep. It's snowing a lot in February, right?
00:09:52 Gaku: Yes. But February is the most beautiful.
00:09:54 John Daub: Oh. Yeah. He said that there's so much snow in February, but it's also the most beautiful time. Next is... Street food! Hahaha. Next? Next. Dango? Alright. What kind of dango?
00:10:26 Staff: Rice dango.
00:10:27 John Daub: Rice dango? This time you... Gaku, you eat something too. Please take one. Here you go. Wow! What is this?
00:10:49 Staff: It's rice. This is shinmai. This is the rice we got this year.
00:10:52 John Daub: It's like a onigiri on a stick. Is it different? You crush the rice a little. Not all of it. Just a little bit. And then... You roll it up, add miso, and then you eat. It's a little bit mushy, so be careful. Thank you. Alright. Do it, Gaku! Shingoro mochi. Shingoro mochi. Rice... rice... Rice ball? No. Mochi. Rice mochi ball, Gaku style. Hot! Hot? Looks like a big piece of chicken. Show me the inside. That is rice. That looks real good. Nice. The outside, it's crunchy. It's crunchy, right? It's soft. It's soft? John, you try it. Let's go for it. What sauce did you use?
00:12:09 Staff: I used miso and zhounen. It's a sweet potato. Take a look. Oh, this is goma, sesame. Kind of sesame. Egoma. It's not goma, right? It's not really goma, but has goma in it. It's egoma. But they make a miso out of it. Like a miso. It has kind of a sweet miso-like taste to it. Oh, it's really soft. It's soft. The postman only rings once. No, he doesn't even ring. That's a postman from the samurai. Mmm. It's good. This one is 200 yen, about $1.80. At these exchange rates. Yeah! Street food! Next one! There's no end to the street food binge of the samurai.
00:13:30 John Daub: So, Toby (crow), thank you, my friend. Um, I appreciate the super chat. I will grab more street food for Toby. And then I'll fly away with it. That's what Toby does. Tam, thank you. I will go grab a beer and a coffee. We're gonna go eat soba next, which is cool. And Jim, thank you very much. You're very welcome for showing you the positive side of Fukushima. I appreciate that very much. Thanks, guys. The super chat is going straight into food binging. Is this konjac?
00:14:04 Staff: Konjac.
00:14:06 John Daub: Ok, let's eat konjac. I think I ate something similar to this in Tokyo's Shibamata on another episode of Street Food, but let's check this out. Ok. Excuse me. Dun dun dun dun. A steaming pot of sticks. Wow. This is a cool looking store. One tamacon, please. Wow. Two. One is 100 yen. Ok. What is this?
00:14:55 Staff: Konjac. Konjac tam.
00:14:57 John Daub: Wow. Two with soy sauce. This is something really cool. I thought it's not dango, it's konjac. Konjac is made from konjac potato. And they take that and make it into a ball, they boil it, they make it into the shape, and then they dip it in the sauce. And konjac is one of the healthiest foods because it's... I'm getting a runny nose. It's cold. It's so cold. So konjac is one of the healthiest foods. It doesn't have many calories in it at all. It's no fat. Made from the potato. And let's see how this tastes. Oh yeah. It's really rubbery. That's good. Thank you. Rubbery. Like rubber. Imagine eating a tire, but the tire tastes really good and when you bite it, it breaks in your mouth. Something like that. But it takes the flavor of the sauce that it's been cooked in and it's really good. It soaks right through. It's good. Oishi. Alright. I'm gonna eat half of it and show you what's inside. You're gonna see. It's real rubbery. Like a samurai.
00:16:46 John Daub: Alright. Next up. Next? Next up is soba? He has no idea. Street food maniac. So we've eaten the iwana. We've eaten any mochi dango. Mochi or tempura or amazake. Amazake? There's some. There's some. Amazake and tempura. Oh yeah. This is a pretty cool village. Again, once again for those joining us, this is the village of the samurai. This is Ouchijuku. This is a village. How many years ago?
00:17:30 Gaku: Ask how many years ago? 250.
00:17:33 John Daub: 250 years ago. We were just kids back then. 250 years ago that's like the mid-1800s or something like this. 1870s. And now it's been preserved so they also have samurai street food. Alright, let's go get one more. Amazake or tempura sold out. The tempura is sold out. No!
00:18:04 Staff: Hello. What is this? This is tempura manju. It's freshly baked.
00:18:10 John Daub: Wow! The timing is good. Can I have one? Yes. He just got it out of the boiler. Oh my gosh. What timing. Is it hot? It might burn. Be careful when you eat. Be careful, it's hot. 120. Look at this. 120. What is this? Tempura? Tempura. Sobakono tempura. Sobakono tempura. Inside is anko. Anko inside. Oh god, this is gonna be good. Alright. So it's 120 yen for this. Tempura. Tempura. Let's go for it. Go for it. Just silly girls. Just silly girls. Okay, here we go. Mmm, oishii. You can see the red bean paste inside. It's crunchy on the outside, soft, warm. And that anko, the red bean paste, it's just so soft and sweet. It just melts around the side. Mmm. I don't want to share. I don't want to share. Eat it. Nice guy. Thank you. The tempura was good. It was good.
00:20:15 Passerby: Where are you from? I speak Japanese. Where are you from? I'm from America. Oh, America. I'm from America. Do you live here? Yes, I do. Wow. It's colder in February, right? It's cold. Can you work in the cold? I'm doing a snow festival. Oh, you're taking pictures? Yes. Wow, let's check out the pictures. I asked him how cold it gets in February, and oh my word, look at this! This looks like a snow paradise. This is a snow festival. Look at this! Wow. The roofs are just caked with snow. This is stunning. Can you put the glass on? So they say that the... he was saying that winter, Gaku was telling me earlier, the winter is the best time to visit here. We're just starting the snow. Oh, he got some more pictures. That's nice. I like to see... you can see me in the reflection. I like to see people's pictures. I like that they preserved this town. Wow. So winter is the best time.
00:21:43 John Daub: Okay, I'm full. The street food has won. Thank you very much. You're welcome. Everybody is really friendly. Do they have any meat on a stick? Not really. Samurai didn't eat steak on a stick. That's just me. It's like some other people. So I want to thank you all for joining me on this street food tour. There is some other stuff. Just really quickly, I gotta go and have some soba. I might live stream that. I'm not sure. If you take a look here, they also have lots of gifts that you can buy. Chopsticks. What? Oh, the cat was talking. How come it doesn't move when I was... Oh, there it is. Let's see, there's a lot of really nice stuff. Dunhill pipe. Thank you, buddy. Wow. Okay, I will be eating like a champion on Dunhill. I appreciate that. You know what, then maybe I will do... I will show you the soba because of that. I appreciate it very much. The owls agree. So lots of little stuff. I like this bonsai tree. It's nice. Very traditional. Oh, we saw these earlier. The Fukushima. These are famous as well. It's just attached by a string. Yeah. There's a lot of stuff that you can find here in Ouchijuku.
00:23:26 Gaku: How long does it take to get from Fukushima City to here? 3 and a half hours.
00:23:31 John Daub: That far? Yeah. I was saying earlier how big the Fukushima prefecture is. Fukushima is huge. And it takes to get from Fukushima City to here, it takes 3 and a half hours. And probably from coast to coast, it's like a 6 hour drive. It's a pretty big prefecture. From the sea to this area, it's a 4 hour drive. So we're not even close to the ocean. We're really far inland. Alright, so I'm going to start the livestream here. This is where we are. This is the countryside. This is really cool. So thanks for joining me in the livestream. I'm going in here to eat some soba. In this town. So goodbye to Ouchijuku. Hello soba. This is an old soba house. So I'll see if we can livestream in here. If so, awesome. Because I'm still hungry. Soba is one of those foods like a soba. I have a second stomach for soba. I can always eat more. So thanks everybody. I'm going to turn the last 20 seconds or so around to the beautiful view of sake and a door. Hello. Is this Japanese sake? Thanks everyone.