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Vegetables from Iga and Nabari, Mie, Japan

Iga shirouri teppō-zuke (melon stuffed and pickled in miso-tamari)白瓜の鉄砲漬け

In Iga, white melons (shirouri) picked in summer are cored, salted and sun-dried, then stuffed with miso and chopped salted vegetables such as ginger and shiso, capped and pinned with a skewer, and sunk in tamari soy sauce or miso. Yōkan-zuke matures in tamari for one to two years, while the milder Igagoe-zuke spends about two weeks in tama-miso and soy sauce.

Fully documentedVegetables14 days – 2 years

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedHousehold and maker recipes with no published amounts.
Shirouri white melonsIga basin summer crop; the top is cut off as a lid and the core removed[maff-sirouri]
SaltPut inside and rubbed on the outside before sun-drying[maff-sirouri]
MisoPacked into the hollow[maff-sirouri]
Ginger, shiso leaves and seeds, eggplant, carrot or radishFinely chopped and salt-rubbed, mixed into the miso; cucumber in some versions[maff-sirouri][maff-mie]
Tamari soy sauce or misoThe pickling medium[maff-sirouri]

Total time across the recorded steps: 14 days – 2 years

Start
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What changes: The top of each white melon is cut off as a lid and the core is pulled out

Step 1 of 5
Cut off the top and core the melon
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

In Iga, white melons (shirouri) picked in summer are cored, salted and sun-dried, then stuffed with miso and chopped salted vegetables such as ginger and shiso, capped and pinned with a skewer, and sunk in tamari soy sauce or miso. Yōkan-zuke matures in tamari for one to two years, while the milder Igagoe-zuke spends about two weeks in tama-miso and soy sauce. Made in 5 steps over 14 days – 2 years. The longest step, sink in tamari or miso to ferment and mature, takes 14 days – 2 years (MAFF にっぽん伝統食図鑑 (traditional foods) 2026).

Key numbers
Main step14 days – 2 yearsReported[maff-sirouri]Sink in tamari or miso to ferment and mature

What makes this one different

The melon is a container as well as the food. It is cored, sun-dried and filled with miso and vegetables before it goes into tamari and Iga's yōkan-zuke is matured in tamari for one to two years.

Related ferments

Variants

  • Yōkan-zuke (養肝漬)Matured 1–2 years in tamari; made by Miyazakiya, founded 1865.
  • Igagoe-zuke (伊賀越漬)About 2 weeks in tama-miso (soybean and rice both koji'd) and soy sauce, lighter in salt; made by Igagoe, founded 1873.

Safety

MAFF says the melon is matured for a long time to make it keep better. The melon is rubbed with salt and sun-dried until the water is gone before it is stuffed, and the milder Igagoe-zuke is made lighter in salt.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Iga households once pickled summer melons in home-made tama-miso to serve to guests. A story says the Tsu lord Tōdō Takatora kept it at Iga Ueno castle in the 17th century as field food to build up samurai spirit, which gave the name yōkan, 'nourishing the liver'. Miyazakiya's yōkan-zuke is also known for having been taken by a Antarctic research expedition.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
Microbes
No study we found names its microbes.
Temperature, salt and pH
The sources we found give no temperature, salt or pH figure for any of its steps.
  1. [maff-sirouri] MAFF にっぽん伝統食図鑑 (traditional foods), 白瓜漬け(しろうりづけ), 三重県; read 2026-10gov
  2. [maff-mie] MAFF うちの郷土料理 (regional cuisine), 野菜の漬物 (三重県); read 2026-10gov
  3. [s2] Japanese Wikipedia, 金婚漬 (養肝漬 comparison)wiki