Fukidawara (Butterbur Lead-wrapped Soybean Rice Balls) ｜ Our Regional Cuisines

Mie Prefecture

Fukidawara (Butterbur Lead-wrapped Soybean Rice Balls)

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Image provided by: Miyo Narita
Image provided by: Miyo Narita
Image provided by: Miyo Narita ※Fukidawara ingredients

Main lore areas

Iga food culture region, Nakanansei food culture region (primarily Matsuzaka City）
Main ingredients used

Rice, soybeans, butterbur leaves

History/origin/related events

Mie Prefecture is a center for the cultivation of rice varieties such as Iga-gome and Musubi-no-Kami. In many areas of the prefecture, events are held to pray for a good harvest each year. In the Iga region, for example, people offer fukidawara (butterbur bales) to the god of the rice fields along with things like Japanese pampass grass, which easily diverts water to the mouth of the waterway, and the branches of chestnut trees, which bear large fruit, to pray for a good harvest and give thanks to the god when rice is planted for the first time. Thirteen fukidawara are placed on a colander and offered to the gods, one for each of the months of January through December and one for the god of the rice fields. Fukidawara, which look like small rice balls, are also made as a light lunch (snack) for rice planting. Wrapping the warm rice in a butterbur leaf enhances the aroma of the butterbur and salty flavor of the soybean rice. Fukidawara can also be made from fava beans, which are said to bring good luck because they are the only beans that grow upward, or other peas. Fukidawara exemplify the wisdom of daily life as they can be eaten as a snack or light lunch while working in the fields without having to wash your hands, while the leaves can be returned to nature after eating. Furthermore, in the Nakanosho region (Matsusaka City), “saburagi gohan” is made by wrapping soybean rice in a butterbur leaf, then tying it with straw. The name is derived from the fact that the dish is made during the “saburagi (opening of the rice fields)” event to pray for a good harvest.
Opportunities and times of eating habits

At events held during the rice-planting season, fukidawara are offered to the corners of the rice field to pray for a bountiful harvest. The soybean rice is wrapped in the shape of a straw rice-bag with a butterbur leaf to ensure a large yield of rice grains as the size of soybeans.
How to eat

Cook the soybeans with rice, wrap the cooked soybean rice in a butterbur leaf, and fasten it using the butterbur stem instead of string. By shaping the rice balls so that they’re easy to carry around, fukidawara make for a quick meal in between farm work.
Efforts for Preservation and Succession

(Outline of the traditions, the preservation society, social media use, modern approaches at commercialization)
Fukidawara have long been enjoyed as an portable onigiri-like rice ball by using vegetable leaves to wrap the rice, but nowadays, it is often prepared as a festive food to pray for a good harvest. In Nabari City and the Nakanosho region, soybean rice that is not wrapped in a butterbur leaf is served as “saburagi gohan” in school lunches.

RECIPE

Ingredients (20 rice balls)

Rice 750g
Soybeans （dried） 130g
Salt A pinch
Butterbur leaves To your liking

How to cook

1. Roast the dried soybeans, soak them in water, and remove the skin the day before.
2. Add the rice together with the soaked soybeans and a pinch of salt to a rice cooker and cook. While the rice cooks, wash the butterbur leaves.
3. Spread a butterbur leaf out on the palm of your hand, place the cooked rice on top, and wrap the rice in the leaf while warm. The hotter the rice is, the more the color and aroma of the butterbur leaf will change and the tastier it will become.
4. Cut and tie up the ends of the parcel using the butterbur leaf stem.

provider : Recipe provided by: “Mie no Aji Sensai Mansai” （Mie Food Culture Research Society）

Recipes vary depending on the region and home.

Contact

Food Cultures Office, Overseas Market Development and Food Cultures Division, Food Industry Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Tel:+81-3-3502-5516

Fukidawara (Butterbur Lead-wrapped Soybean Rice Balls) ｜ Our Regional Cuisines

Mie Prefecture

Fukidawara (Butterbur Lead-wrapped Soybean Rice Balls)

Main lore areas

Main ingredients used

History/origin/related events

Opportunities and times of eating habits

How to eat

Efforts for Preservation and Succession

RECIPE

Ingredients (20 rice balls)

How to cook