Winter’s Preparation　– Color variation of Hokkaido Food in winter –

When snow starts to fall on Mt. Yotei and Mt. Annupuri, preparations for the long winter in Hokkaido have begun. The time of twilight is getting faster, the land of Niseko sleeps quietly in the deep snow. However, there are plenty of ingredients that are in season even in winter.
You will fully enjoy the special winter menu created at this time of the year.

The first appetizer of the day was “Smoked mackerel from Nemuro with Yoichi’s apples and eggplant “.

Carefully selected seasonal mackerel that is rare in the cold sea and has plenty of fat. It weighs more than 1 kg. Smoke at low temperature to maintain its freshness. The apples used are “Kourin” from Yoichi, which harvested in November. It’s a dish similar to rolled sushi with apples and eggplant wrapped in mackerel.

The mackerel goes well with the eggplant plus the acidity of apples. Quite an unusual combination of ingredients but this is a special dish that will melt in your mouth to give you a full satisfaction.

The second dish is a warm appetizer. “Fresh squid from Iwanai and Niseko’s Sweet Potatoes”.
By making fine cuts in the squid and roasting the surface to the extent that the body bends, a contrast of aroma, sweetness, and texture is created.
In November, the mainstream sweet potato “Beniharuka” in Niseko has a high sugar content and is characterized by a moist texture when heated. The whole is slowly cooked in low-temperature oil for 1 hour to trap the scent of the skin and the moisture of the sweet potato. Squid’s internal organs and the “luxury tomato” from Niseko are combined to create deep richness of the ingredients. By stacking them in layers with Niseko soba, kale, and olive oil powder, you will be able to enjoy all the taste in one bite. This is the dish where all the sweetness, bitterness, sourness and richness are created to give you a surprise while dining this special cuisine.

Niseko’s powder snow is here to fascinate visitors from all over the world.
A time where you can enjoy the hot spring hotel and special cuisine only available at this time of the year.

Writer Yayoi Yoshida / Photographer Hajime Sakakiyama

Chef
泊谷 智史 Tomofumi Tomariya

Here I am on my 2nd winter in Niseko. By touching the ingredients in all season, I gradually became aware of the characteristics of Niseko’s agricultural products. Considering the compatibility between Niseko’s agricultural products and seasonal seafood available, it is the great pleasure to create dishes while checking the condition of the ingredients of the day.