Here we go again with this series called “The Jacques Cousteau” upon suggestion by Jaded Fork and forBread + Butter, and Elin who don’t mind being on a long haul! LOL
Surume Ika or Japanese Common Squid/Pacific Flying Squid is also called by regional names of Ma Ika, Matsu Ika or Kanzegi.
It caught off the shores of Northern Japan and south of Kyushu Island. Catches tend to vary widely. The Japanese squid can live anywhere from 5° to 27°C, and tend to inhabit the upper layers of the ocean. They are short lived, only surviving about a year. The fishing season for the Japanese flying squid is all year round, but the largest and most popular seasons are from January to March, and again from June to September. Gear used to catch the Japanese flying squid is mainly line and hook, lift nets, and gill nets, the most popular method being hook and line used in jigging. Most of it is turned into various pickled or dried cuttle fish/squid products. It is also much appreciated broiled or simmered.
In Japanese, squid is called “ika”. Japanese common squid or flying squid (surume-ika in Japanese) are in season from spring through to late autumn. Japanese spear squid (yari-ika) are in season from winter to early summer. The small-size firefly squid (hotaru-ika) are in season during the spring.
It caught off the shores of Northern Japan and south of Kyushu Island. Catches tend to vary widely. The Japanese squid can live anywhere from 5° to 27°C, and tend to inhabit the upper layers of the ocean. They are short lived, only surviving about a year. The fishing season for the Japanese flying squid is all year round, but the largest and most popular seasons are from January to March, and again from June to September. Gear used to catch the Japanese flying squid is mainly line and hook, lift nets, and gill nets, the most popular method being hook and line used in jigging. Most of it is turned into various pickled or dried cuttle fish/squid products. It is also much appreciated broiled or simmered.
Surume Ika or Japanese Common Squid/Pacific Flying Squid is also called by regional names of Ma Ika, Matsu Ika or Kanzegi.
Here we go again with this series called “The Jacques Cousteau” upon suggestion by Jaded Fork and forBread + Butter, and Elin who don’t mind being on a long haul! LOL
A cuttlefish squid is called Koh-ika or Mongo-ika because it has the original crest in its body. A crest is called Mon in Japan. It is also used not only sushi but other dishes. Especially, boiled it or grilled it with vegetables is delicious because it is thick and soft through cooking on a fire. The price of it is about 1,500 yen per kilogram (about 15 dollars per 2.2lb). The best season of it is from August to January.
A squid sushi is often used a sliced raw squid, but there are some squid sushi cooked on a fire. Ni-ika sushi is used a squid by boiling soy sauce, sugar, sake and sweet sake called Mirin. This sushi tastes stronger than raw squid sushi. Only good-old Edo-style sushi restaurants serve this sushi. In addition, Inrou-zume is a stuffed squid. It is a boiled squid dish, and stuffed with rice, legs of squid, vegetables and some seasonings.
You can enjoy various squid dishes including sushi when you travel Japan. If you like sushi and conveyor belt sushi restaurant, you can invest it. Food and life companies (TYO:3563) and Kura Sushi Inc (TYO:2695) are listed in Tokyo Stock Exchange. If you like Japanese squids, you can invest Kyokuyo Co. (TYO:3563) which is the largest fishery company in Japan. These companies are also included some ETFs for investing Japanese companies.
By the way, there are some squid dishes in Japan, Ika-somen, Ika-ichiyaboshi, Shiokara and more. Ika-somen is a noodle dish made from sliced raw squid. It is eaten with dipping noodle soup or soy sauce. This dish in Hakodate city of Hokkaido prefecture is very famous. Ika-ichiyaboshi is half dried squid by drying for a day. It is softer than dried squid. Shiokara is a squid marinated in salt and squids liver. It is a good nibble for drinks.
A bigfin squid is called Aori-ika in Japan because it swims with flapping its filet. Aori or Aoru means flapping. It is flat shape and meaty. It is said that this squid is most delicious squid since its taste and chewiness. Therefore, it is most expensive squid in Japan. The price of it is about 5,000 yen per kilogram (about 50 dollars per 2.2lb). The best season of it is from March to June.
Japan’s mysterious glowing squid
FAQ
What is squid in Japan?
What is squid called in Japanese food?
What do Japanese call calamari?
What is the name of Japanese squid sushi?
What are squid & cuttlefish called in Japan?
The group of squid ( tsutsuika-moku) and cuttlefish ( kouika-moku) is called ika in Japan and includes a large number of possible species of ten armed celaphods. More than 300 species are counted among the ika.
What is a golden squid called in Japan?
The golden squid is commonly called sumi-ika in Japan, sumi ( 墨) is the Japanese word for an inkstick, an important part of traditional Japanese calligraphy. Since they belong to the order of cuttlefish ( kouika-moku ), they are also called kou-ika. In addition, they also have the designation ma-ika, which in Japanese means “real squid”.
Which squid is most popular in Japan?
A Japanese flying squid is the most popular squid in Japan. There are other kinds of squid for cooking sushi, cuttlefish, sword-tip squid and firefly squid. A bigfin squid is called Aori-ika in Japan because it swims with flapping its filet. Aori or Aoru means flapping. It is flat shape and meaty.
What squid do Japanese eat?
A Japanese flying squid called Surume-ika is the most popular squid in Japan. The catch of it assumes 70% of the whole squid catch. It is used not only sushi but also other dishes, sliced squid called sashimi, boiled squid, grilled squid, deep fried squid and more. When Japanese called it only Surume, they say dried it or dried fish called Himono.