In the latter half of November before the snowfall, there are often frequent occurrences of cold rain mixed with sleet and thunder, making it perhaps the most melancholic time of the year. Especially for those experiencing winter for the first time after coming from the Pacific side of Japan, it might lead to a downturn in mental well-being.
In Europe, too, it’s a gloomy, sunless winter. However, many of the people assigned to Niigata Prefecture expressed comfort in the absence of snow.
The customary agricultural work amidst this cold rain in early winter involves tasks such as preserving daikon radishes for winter consumption and gathering ginkgo nuts.
The soil storage and drying of daikon radishes.
① Soil storage of daikon radishes
Before the snowfall, daikon radishes harvested from the fields are lined up in a nearby plot of land near the house, buried in soil, and left there until spring. They are then dug out from beneath the snow and consumed.
To prevent the radishes from spoiling under the snow, sugars are released within the radishes to lower the freezing point of their cells. Thanks to this process, sweet and delicious daikon radishes can be enjoyed.
Every year, as about 1 meter of snow accumulates, we store the daikon radishes in the ground near the house. This way, we can enjoy sweet and delicious daikon radishes until spring.
②Drying daikon radish for pickling
Preparing radishes suitable for making Takuan. They are dried under the eaves. After about 20 days, they become soft, and it’s time to start the Takuan pickling process. They are soaked in rice bran along with coarse sugar, salt, kelp, and persimmons.
I tie four radishes together with straw and hang them to dry. At times, I used to dry around 50 radishes, but recently, I’ve reduced it to about 20 because we couldn’t finish them all.
③Dried radish strips
Deformed radishes are peeled and cut into uniform sizes, then hung on strings for cold air drying. Dried radish strips exposed to the cold wind are very delicious. They are also food that promotes gut bacteria.
Due to frequent rain, they are dried over about 10 days. They transform into crunchy radishes, perfect companions for Matsumae pickled herring roe and kombu. It’s a New Year’s feast.
Ginkgo nut picking and processing
This year again, as the winter winds blow, ginkgo nuts fall. We gather them, soak the flesh in water, wash it off, and remove the seeds. The final step involves washing them with neutral detergent to remove the odor before drying. While this process can be quite laborious, it’s done while imagining the delicious roasted ginkgo nuts to be enjoyed by the wood stove.
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