Hokkaido

Excellent harmony of squid texture, flavour and traditional sauce

Ika Meshi

Ika Meshi rice-stuffed squid is a traditional meal made in Hakodate area. With the tentacles and all innards cut off and taken out, the squid is stuffed with rice and closed with a toothpick to keep the rice from spilling out, before being cooked in a soy sauce-based sauce. Common stuffing ingredients to mix with rice include chopped tentacles, bamboo shoots, and other mountain vegetables. It is a popular Ekiben boxed meal sold at stations in Hokkaido, as it features the local speciality ingredients. The excellent harmony created by the traditional sauce, distinctive texture of the squid, and the rice soaking up all the flavourful broth, is simply irresistible.