Learn Directly from Local Moms! “Snow Country Home Cooking” Using Seasonal Ingredients
“Gottsuo” means “feast” in the Tokamachi dialect. In this experience, you will cook home-style dishes using the most delicious seasonal ingredients available at that time, together with energetic local mothers (Ka-chan-sho) who know everything about the region. The menu changes with the seasons: wild vegetables in spring, local vegetables in summer, mushrooms in autumn, and traditional preserved foods in winter. Rather than tourist dishes found in guidebooks, this is a practical cooking experience where you learn “authentic countryside cuisine” actually loved at local dining tables by cooking alongside the mothers.
Wisdom to Survive the Harsh Winter: Learn the Culture of “Preserved” and “Fermented” Foods
Tokamachi, a heavy snowfall area, has a unique food culture rooted in spending nearly half the year with snow. It involves the wisdom of “preserved foods” and “fermented foods,” where the bounty of spring through autumn is salted or dried to serve as valuable nutrition sources during the winter. Through cooking, you will learn not only how to make dishes but also the stories and ingenuity of how ancestors lived in harmony with nature and survived the harsh winters. It is a valuable opportunity to touch upon the handling of ingredients unique to the snow country and the secrets behind their deep flavors.
Just Like Visiting Relatives! A Warm Dining Experience with Local Moms
Once the cooking is done, gather around the table with the mothers and say “Itadakimasu” (Bon appétit). The taste of the freshly made rice, miso soup, and three side dishes you made yourselves is exceptional. During the meal, you can enjoy a lively conversation about local life, history, and parenting, spending a heartwarming time as if you were visiting a relative’s house in the countryside. Instead of relying on formal recipes, the “taste of home” and “warm memories” you learn with your body through conversation and the sensation of cooking will be the best souvenir of your trip.
