Regions and Origins
Place is a flavour in fermented foods: the named regional styles of miso, the shoyu towns, and the pickles and fish that carry a map in their name.
The full list sits in the frame below - it scrolls inside the frame so the rest of the page stays close.
Shinshu (Nagano) miso
The national standard style.Sendai miso
The red keeping miso of Miyagi.Saikyo (Kyoto) miso
The sweet white miso of the old capital.Hatcho (Okazaki) miso
Soybean miso under stones.Edo sweet miso (Tokyo)
Sweet and dark at once.Tsugaru (Aomori) miso
The north's long-aged red miso.Shoyu regions
Noda, Choshi, Tatsuno, Shodoshima, Chubu.Shibazuke (Kyoto)
The purple pickle of Ohara.Kusaya (Izu Islands)
Fish from an heirloom brine.
The national standard style.Sendai miso
The red keeping miso of Miyagi.Saikyo (Kyoto) miso
The sweet white miso of the old capital.Hatcho (Okazaki) miso
Soybean miso under stones.Edo sweet miso (Tokyo)
Sweet and dark at once.Tsugaru (Aomori) miso
The north's long-aged red miso.Shoyu regions
Noda, Choshi, Tatsuno, Shodoshima, Chubu.Shibazuke (Kyoto)
The purple pickle of Ohara.Kusaya (Izu Islands)
Fish from an heirloom brine.
Sources: Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), 'Traditional Foods in Japan'; JAS soy sauce standards; Umami Information Center; Kikkoman official information; Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Checked 6 November 2026.
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