Friendly to people and nature
Yaeyama Islands and Ishigaki salt
The material is “rich forest and sea”
More than that What can humans do?
Salt making in Ishigaki
in island dialect
#04
The nature of the Yaeyama Islands has created it.”
"We're not making
We craftsmen are looking at the sea in the distance!
"Salt" is born from the wisdom of craftsmen as if they were gentle with nature.
coral reef
You can tell if the ocean is healthy by looking at the coral reefs.
#04
First of all,
Taking seawater from Nagura Bay
Making stone wall salt
The traditional old methods are inherited as they are, and modern technology is used well within the range that does not burden nature. How to make "Ishigaki Salt".
Certified by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Patent Office's Monodzukuri Grand Prize! I am very considerate of the environment.
Hermit crabs playing innocently on the beach behind the workshop
eyes tooA sneak peek.sun setting, west direction
towardsthin pipe laidI will.
The water intake pipes are essential for making salt in the stone wall, which is sunk in the sea far offshore, forming a "<" shape in places.Nagura Bay is where the seawater is pumped up.Seaweed beds, coral reefs and ecosystems are diverse in the shallow sea.
There are a lot of corals in the sea, so first of all, I try not to disturb them by running water intake pipes away from where they are.
After a typhoon, the pipe always comes off.
Each time, we all have to “start over” from scratch.
#04
Boil down seawater in the pot on the first day
There are methods such as ``sun-dried salt'' and ``cooking in a kettle.'' Sun-dried salt is a method of evaporating water by sunlight using a salt field. On the other hand, kamataki is boiled down in a kettle to crystallize the salt.
There are many ways to make salt in Ishigaki, but this time we will introduce the method of cooking in a pot. First, seawater taken from 1.5 km offshore is filtered of impurities such as algae and temporarily stored in tanks. Next, it is transferred to a small plastic tank, and Ozzy, who is in charge, pours it into a huge pot that seems to be 1m in diameter. When it was full until the 8th minute, I closed the lid and ignited. This is where the painstaking work begins.
"It's just salt, but it's salt.
It takes 3 days to boil down.
Today, technological innovation advances and mass production is possible. I wonder if it is also used in large machines ... .... “We start by slowly boiling it in a large cauldron.” When drying it in the sun, it often takes three days in the summer and one month in the winter.
#04
"Even salt, along with island time,
I'm breathing~"
The second day, boil down more slowly
Day 2! ....Open the lid of the heavy kettle and check the condition inside. "...It's about time for a little bit of white crystals to form on the surface."This is the “egg-like” state of salt.”Close the lid again as if time had stopped...
Time passes slowly on the second day with the island breeze caressing your cheeks.
The largest butterfly in Japan. Idea gomadara
It flutters through the green.
#04
third day
Many times. politely.
"Come on." When I opened the lid, a faintly sweet steam spread all over the place. "Oh, it's done, it's done!" "This is 'freshly made' salt." When I licked it with my fingers, the taste that ``this itself could be a side dish'' suddenly spread in my mouth. crispy. crispy. Ozzy just keeps scooping salt.
The craftsmen of "Ishigaki no Shio" carefully find and remove impurities that we cannot see with our own eyes. Studio manager (voice) “In the end, no matter how much you try to mechanize, the only thing you can rely on in the end is human hands. Because it will break for some reason (laughs).” in the end. It's a simple path to arrive at after trying many things.
Ozzy uses a wooden mallet to carefully crush the salt that has been dried in the sun according to the customer's request.
#04
to more special salt.
Seawater is usually steamed in a “multi-stage evaporating dish,” which is made by stacking flat pots in three layers, to extract salt crystals. This is the most popular product of "Ishigaki no Shio", but there are also salts that can be made with even more care. That's the next level "grilled salt". After several hours of roasting in an oven, the salt becomes as smooth as powder. It is a salt that is said to be familiar with Japanese food.
After a certain amount of water is evaporated and crystallized in a cauldron, the salt is slowly exposed to the sun in a plastic greenhouse where the temperature can reach over 70 degrees Celsius in the summer. Because it depends on the sun, it can be completed in a few days in the summer when the sun is strong, but it can take more than a month in the cloudy winter. There are many fans who can't stop eating it because it is a special salt that the craftsman spends time and effort until it is completed. The bittern is removed differently from low-temperature dried salt, so the taste is also different.
#04
Let's make it faithful to nature
There is no waste in seawater.” “Then, what about seawater after removing the salt?” “That is bittern. Even if the volume is the same, bittern is heavier than water. Wow wonder! When I looked into the pot, the seawater was just beginning to make a gurgling noise before the bittern and salt had yet separated.
“No matter how we change shape, nature always tries to return to its original shape. It's hard for me to start over from scratch, but don't you think that's a healthy state of the ocean? But we are using the sea water in a healthy state like a young man.Salt made from the sea water full of vitality without adding anything artificial.This is the sea. It's a gift from
Today as well, we will continue to make salt in Ishigaki, making salt that is friendly to people and nature, with a contrail under the blue sky and a quiet smile in the green of the beach.
