When I think of Matsumoto in Nagano Prefecture, the first thing that comes to mind is “Sanzoku-yaki,” a boldly fried chicken dish. Because of this, when I visited Matsumoto Station this time, I also wanted to try a meat ekiben, so I picked up the “Rice Pork Meal”.
Meat specialties in Shinshu include “Shinshu Premium Beef,” “Horse Sashimi,” and the Sanzokuyaki introduced earlier, but there are also many brand-name pork products. One of them is “Shinshu Rice Pork,” which is also used in the ekiben we have chosen.
Shinshu Rice Pork is a brand of pork raised mainly in the Saku region of Nagano Prefecture. It is raised on feed containing brown rice, which is said to be high in oleic acid and characterized by its good meat quality and light, sweet fat.
The rice pork rice is served with Shinshu miso and shiote sauce grilled pork. When the lid is removed, the Shinshu Miso Yaki and Shiote Sauce Yaki are so thickly arranged that you cannot see the rice underneath. This is the best looking dish for meat lovers.
Shinshu Miso-Yaki is stained with the unique mountain yellow color of Shinshu Miso. It appears that loin meat with slightly less fat is used. The darker browning can be seen in some places, which is very appetizing.
The taste gives the impression of being relatively thick with miso. When you put it in your mouth, the flavor of Shinshu miso spreads at once, and as you chew, the flavor of Shinshu rice pork joins in. The pork’s distinctive porkiness is not at all noticeable, and the flavor of the meat is enhanced by the combination of the miso flavor. The strong seasoning of the pork makes the white rice underneath go down a treat.
Next is grilled with salt sauce. This one is the exact opposite, pale and white in appearance. It has a strip of fat in it, so it must have been made from ribs. When you put it in your mouth, the flavor of the salt sauce arrives with a bang. It is quite a strong flavor, but the sweetness follows it more and more, probably due to the fact that there is a lot of fat in the meat. The salty taste is neutralized by the sweetness of the meat, and the flavor spreads out. This dish also goes well with the white rice underneath.
Also, both meats were not tough and maintained their relative tenderness even when cold. Although they should taste even better when heated, our impression was that they were quite tasty even in their cold state.
And the accompanying nozawana raayu marinated in miso also does a great job. You can eat it by itself, but when combined with the meat, the flavor changes and you can enjoy a different taste. By adding a variety of flavors to the dish, you will never get bored of eating it.
The vinegared lotus root on top of the meat and the sweet hana-mame stew are also quite a nice chopstick rest, refreshingly resetting the lumpy mouth.
Anyway, I would say that it is quite an attractive ekiben for those who want to enjoy delicious pork with gusto.
© Source travel watch