Oyaki (Japanese Tacos) Oyaki is a favorite home dish of Nagano and families make their own variations. Any person will tell you that his or her home makes the best oyaki. This dish is made by adding water to flour and leaving it to ferment. Vegetables such as beans, egg plant, and pumpkin are wrapped in this dough, baked, and steamed. A shop named "Ogawa no Shou" (The Village Headman of Ogawa) is making a hit with this dish and has set up branches in front of Zenkoji and Nagano Station, selling one for 150 yen. "Ogawa no Shou Oyaki Mura" at Hishagihongo, Ogawa-mura, Kamiminochi-gun, Nagano Prefecture 　TEL:026-269-3760

Miso and Miso Soft Ice Cream

Nagano is famous for Shinshu miso (bean paste). The miso shop "Suyagame" sells soft ice creams using this miso. Miso for the soft ice cream is specially prepared for this purpose and its processing technique is a shop secret. This ice cream has a unique taste.

Suyagame Miso Shop:625 Shinmai-dori, Nishigo-cho, Nagano-shi
　TEL:026-2235-4022

Apple and Apricot The entire North Shinano district centered around Nagano City is an apple and apricot growing area. Apricots are then dried or made into jam and used in sweets. Tourists buy them as gifts of Nagano. In spring, you can see their beautiful flowers.

The Blended Spices of Yahataya Isogoro The blended spices of Zenkoji is very famous in Japan. The Yahataya Isogoro Shop dates back 250 years to the Yedo period and over eight generations. People bought the blended spices (7 different kinds including red pepper) as a proof of their being at Zenkoji when they passed through the samurai checkpoints on their way home. The hottest mixture is called Ichimi Tougarashi which means containing only one spice namely red pepper. The standard Chukara (medium blend) contains 60 to 70% red pepper. The mildest blend is the Shohkara and is made up mostly of the other six spices and therefore is greenish brown rather than red. You won't miss this shop because it has a big replica of a red pepper hanging at the entrance. Near the Nioh Gate of Zenkoji Temple 　TEL:026-232-3966