Pickles

Moriguchi-zuke Pickles—Crowned king
of Aichi, the Pickle Kingdom

Nuka-zuke, takuan, shiba-zuke, kasu-zuke, and all sorts of olden-time Japanese pickle varieties are an example of fermented foods. And believe it or not, Aichi Prefecture is known by another name: the "Pickle Kingdom", as it has long been home to a bustling pickle industry. With no shortage of vegetables, its pickle industry developed from the end of the Edo period (1603–1868) and Aichi at one time boasted the largest number of shipments around Japan. The prefecture continues to be hailed one of Japan's leading pickle production areas today.

Perhaps the posterchild of Aichi's pickles is the Owari region's Moriguchi-zuke Pickles. Moriguchi Daikon—recorded by Guinness World Records as the longest daikon in the world—are wrapped round and round into a spiral and marinated for a unique appearance you won't see anywhere else. The pickle phenomenon began during the Meiji period (1868–1912) when an entrepreneur in Aichi improved conventional pickling methods using sake lees to create what were then known as Moriguchi Daikon Mirin and Lees Pickles using sake lees and mirin lees. The daikon which act as the main component are grown in Moriguchi-zuke Pickles' home along the banks of the Kiso River with some growing more than 1.5 meters in size.
This traditional vegetable of Aichi offers diners a characteristic crisp and crunchy texture. Immediately after the crop is harvested, the radishes are salted before being slathered in not only a first but second marinade. After a long period in the lees, a deep yet mellow flavor is born.
Aichi also boasts traditional pickled and marinated foods like miso-marinated wild burdock, available in Western Mikawa, and Atsumi takuan, available in Eastern Mikawa.

Aged amber color and a unique circular appearance–A lesson in craftsmanship in the land of Moriguchi Daikon

Aichi's traditional Moriguchi-zuke Pickles are made from the longest daikon radishes in the world, rolled round and round into a circle, slathered in sake lees and mirin lees, and certainly one of the more unique pickle varieties. Those long Moriguchi Daikon are grown on the banks of the Kiso River in Fuso Town, with Fuso Moriguchi Foods the one and only factory to produce the food. Come and take a factory tour, pick Moriguchi Daikon during the harvest season, make your own Moriguchi-zuke pickles, and shop at the attached shop. In other words, Fuso Moriguchi Foods is the perfect place to experience, taste, and get a sense of Japan's traditional technology.

Experience traditional pickling in a secret lees mix

If you come out to the factory, you're definitely going to want to try making your own Moriguchi-zuke pickles (reservation required). These pickles are rubbed in the pickle marinade multiple times over the course of two years, but this special program lets you finish them off in the final phase. This important work is a deciding factor in the pickles' flavor and entails rubbing the slender wrapped up daikon in a secret marinade of aged sake lees and mirin lees. Moriguchi-zuke is a type of Nara-zuke pickling, but Aichi's custom of using mirin lees sets it apart from the rest.
Participants often comment on how the staff make it look much easier than it is and their astonishment regarding the numerous processes. Take your pickles home, and after two to four months of aging, they're ready to eat. Nothing beats the taste of your own pickles!
You can also cut up your preferred pickles and mix in sake lees (reservation required), take a factory tour free of charge, dig up daikon during the winter harvest season (reservation required), and a whole slew of other hands-on events.

Marinated five times from initial salting to the end result

Moriguchi Daikon, contract farmed along the Kiso River—The longest with a whopping 191.7 meter record!
Hands-on experiences and factory tours available on weekdays only when the factory is in full motion

Tasting products and finding that perfect souvenir is a blast in the attached shop

Right next to the factory is its Juhyoya Fuso Sohonke Pickle Shop with Moriguchi-zuke, melon, ginger, and other Nara-zuke pickles as well as Moriguchi Daikon Soy Sauce pickles and much more. You can taste the different products, so there's no gambling on whether you will like something or not.
And when it comes to souvenirs, the limited number of fresh items right from the factory each day, a single long Moriguchi-zuke pickle, homemade lees marinade, pound cake with Moriguchi-zuke pickles mixed in, and other unique items await your patronage.
Taking a trip out to enjoy cuisine incorporating Moriguchi-zuke Pickles at sister restaurants Juhyoya Inuyama Inoue-tei and Juhyoya Inuyama-an in the town around Inuyama Castle is another good idea. Savor the popular Moriguchi Soft Serve Ice Cream and fish prepared in a premium lees marinade.