In Sagae City, Yamagata Prefecture, local producers have started to process kimchi into kimchi in order to reduce the disposal of the hard and unsuitable parts of the local traditional vegetable "Kohime Imo".
"Kohime imo" is a taro that has been cultivated in Sagae since the end of the Edo period, and is characterized by its smooth texture and soft texture.
However, the relatively soft parts called koimo and magoimo are used for dishes such as imoni. 1 parent potato is discarded.
For this reason, the producers started working on processing parent potatoes into kimchi from this year, and on the 14th, they dropped the damaged parts of the peeled parent potatoes and cut them into pieces about 1 cm thick.
The kimchi, which is marinated in a seasoning liquid for about three days, has a crisp texture and a good balance of umami and spiciness.
Yuichi Kuroda, the representative of the Sagaeko Hime Potato Union, said, "I want you to eat these sweet potatoes without waste. I want you to try them because they have a new flavor that is different from imoni."
Kohime imo kimchi is scheduled to be sold from the end of this month at agricultural cooperative stores in the city and roadside stations in the prefecture.