Ishigaki no Shio
Tokuhige Togo has created one of the purest and most nutritious, mineral-laden sea salts found in Okinawa by “brewing” the sea salt he makes from the waters off Ishigaki Island in jars filled with brine for eight years.
Tokuhige Togo, who tells you to call him Toku-chan (the most familiar way you can address someone in Japan), is one of the most spirited artisanal sea salt makers you will find anywhere. With a technical background in marine culture and a love for all aspects of the beautiful blue, coral-rich seas that surround Ishigaki Island where he was born and raised, Toku-chan was one of the earliest pioneers of making an all-natural sea salt in Japan. He began making sea salt twenty-years ago soon after the government monopoly on salt production was lifted.
When you visit his salt works, Toku-chan will not only enthusiastically tell you all about the salts he makes and taste them with you, he will eagerly take you down a narrow mangrove-lined path to the sea to show you where he gets the sea water he uses to make his salt, all the while explaining his salt-making process. Once there, he will grab some mozuku seaweed fresh from the sea and entice you eat it. It is both a demonstration of the mild yet highly flavorful, mineral-rich flavor of the sea foods harvested from Nagura Bay, where his salt farm is located, and a proof of the purity of the local sea water.
Nagura Bay is located on the west side of Ishigaki Island. Like most of the territory of the island, it is a protected part of the Irimote-Ishigaki National Park. It is a shallow bay that extends about 12 kilometers to the coral atoll of Taketomi Island and is a unique sea environment. The bay has a lower salinity than the outlying ocean and a higher concentration of minerals. This is due to the coral covering the bottom of the bay and the fresh water runoff from the mountains behind it. The fresh water also enhances the mineral content of the sea water because of the forest minerals carried along in it.
If you happen to visit the day after a full moon, Toku-chan will encourage you to return at low tide to see his “salt god” — a large chunk of fossilized coral that emerges from the sea only once a month during low tide on the first day after a full moon. Standing together with Toku-chan in the shallow sea, he will help you appreciate the beauty and spirituality of the rock, pointing out how the receding sea waters create patterns in the sand much like those raked by Buddhist monks around rocks in their zen gardens elsewhere in Japan. It is a sublime moment of participation in the native animistic beliefs of Okinawan culture. It is also a chance to hear Toku-chan explain how the intensity of flavor of Ishigaki no Shio varies with the tides and seasons which cause a swing of up to six percent in the salt and mineral content of the sea water and thus his salt. During a full moon, he says that the flavor is particularly unique because it is affected by the turtles who come then to lay their eggs on the beach.
The variation in flavor also reflects the simple, natural process Toku-chan employs. He starts by pumping sea water to his salt works through a pipe that lays under the mangrove forest and beach and out into the middle of the bay. At the salt works the water is slowly simmered in an iron cauldron for three days and then dried in a plastic-sheathed hut. The result is a very fine-grained salt with a slight moistness. These characteristics are typical of Okinawan salts. Their high mineral content, particularly the calcium from the coral, prevents the formation of larger crystals. In addition, Okinawan salt makers avoid roasting their salts to dry them completely because it would reduce some of their nutritional benefits.
The flavor of Ishigako no Shio is strong and sharp due to its high mineral content. It is excellent when used to season mild-tasting foods like onigiri rice balls, vegetables, and white fish. It is especially delicious when used in salad dressings and as a coating for grilled white fish. In turn, it is also a perfect match for very rich foods such as fried foods and steaks as it balances their richness and brings out their sweetness. Still, Ishigaki no Shio should be considered for all of one’s cooking needs especially if you are cooking light yet flavorful and healthy akin to the qualities of Okinawan cuisine. Okinawan cuisine is called nuchigusui in the Okinawan language, meaning “medicine for life.” It is similar to mainland Japanese cuisine but is richer tasting while also being light and more natural by virtue of its reliance on fresh flavor-filled and nutritious ingredients found locally instead of on fermented foods. A flavorful, nutrient-rich salt like Ishigaki no Shio is a key ingredient in Okinawan cooking. Toku-chan will tell you how you should also put it in your juice and coffee, use it to boil rice and pasta, and add a touch to any dish to enhance your daily dose of vitamins and minerals and make all foods taste better.
Toku-chan also makes a fully-dried version of Ishigaki no Shio called yaki-shio, or roasted sea salt. This is to enhance its everyday usefulness as a table salt. Another particularly powerful innovation is a rock sea salt that Toku-chan makes. Rock salts are typically only found on land where ancient sea beds have dried and compacted, producing salts composed of large crystals that contain land minerals and other additives. To make his rock salt, Toku-chan fills large brown jars with Ishigaki no Shio salt and adds nigari, the concentrated briny water that results from the boiling process. The jars (pictured in the title block above) are then nestled under the mangrove trees near the saltworks where they can receive both sun and shade and thus regulate their temperature over the seasons during the eight-year period in which the jars are left to brew a highly crystalized salt. During this time, the salt becomes one large massive crystal—an extremely pure sea salt in rock form, containing more salt than the powdered form of Ishigaki no Shio and also a greater complexity of minerals. It is particularly high in magnesium. For consumption, the massive crystals are cracked into smaller pieces, and at home they can be ground into smaller coarse crystals and used for anything that would benefit from a pure an nutritious crunch of salt — in and on breads, on chocolates and other desserts as well as fruits. It is excellent on meats. Its large crystals also make it good for slow-cooking and for making pickles and other fermented foods like miso.
Toku-chan’s enthusiasm for sea salt is matched by his hospitality and if you show an enthusiasm equal to his he is likely to invite you to come back in the evening after you have had a chance to buy some of Ishigaki Island’s famous wagyu beef and vegetables at the local farmer’s market to have a barbeque amidst the mangroves just outside his saltworks. He will provide the salt, creating a magical evening of pure Okinawan culture — fresh foods simply prepared, a star-filled sky, and the gentle sound of waves lapping the beach.
Story & Photos: Tom Schiller
Ishigaki no Shio 石垣の塩
1145-57 Arakawa, Ishigaki, Okinawa 907-0024
Tel: +81 (0980) 83 8711
Web: www.ishigakinoshio.com/top-1
The shop at Ishigaki no Shio is open every day from 9:00 to 18:00. All of the salts are available for tasting and purchase. It is the only place you can buy its unique rock salt, although if you call they may be able to ship it to you. The shop also sells bottles of nigari (the bittern left after the salt making process). This can be used to make tofu at home by simply adding it to soy milk and slowly heating it until it coagulates. Salt maker Tokuhige Togo is happy to give tours and recommends coming between 10:30 and 14:30 if you would like to do that. It may be best to call beforehand to be sure he is available and set up a time.
Getting There
There are direct flights to Ishigaki Island from several of mainland Japan’s major cities, including Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka. The flight time is between two and three hours depending on your starting point. From other mainland Japan cities, you need to fly first to Naha on Okinawa Island and then connect to a flight to Ishigaki. From the airport it is 28 minutes by car to Ishigaki no Shio.
Where to Buy
Ishigaki no Shio is available all food stores and most gift shops on the island. In Tokyo it can be found at the Okinawa prefecture “antenna” shop which carries many of the exotic fruits and vegetables and seasonings and spices used in Okinawan cooking. It also has Ishigaki wagyu beef, awamori liquor, and local crafts. The shop is open every day from 10:30 to 20:00.
Ginza Washita Shop
Maruito Ginza Building 1F, 1-3-9 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0061
