Miyajima Salt – Sacred Island Craft Seasoning
I’m always on the look out for new ventures and high-quality made-in-Hiroshima products to introduce, so it is exciting to find this new craft salt product which is actually made-in-Miyajima.
Making natural, artisan and high-quality unique products on our sacred island of Miyajima is especially appealing as it comes from the seas watched over by the three goddesses on our UNESCO world heritage isle.
I ventured to the less visited side of the island to seek out Hiroshima’s newest salt-making partners who founded the FRAME business to find out more about how they are making Miyajima Salt.
Miyajima Salt is founded by Hayashi-san and Kawamoto-san who have been planning and preparing for this year’s launch for the last four years. This included time learning the salt making trade in Oita, doing a crowd-funding campaign from May to June this year as well as finding and renovating a property to set up operations. They only finished construction on their workshop this year during the Golden Week holidays, so things are now moving fast to their business launch.
It was wonderful to see how stylishly they have reused two old Akiya abandoned houses on the island. Hayashi-san told me how she can envision how welcoming this space will become to visitors in the future as they expand operations to include a shop as well as a workshop.
To create the workshop, they renovated one of the old houses into a big open space with high ceilings. This allowed them to bring the huge salt-making machine from Oita to Miyajima piece by piece. Having drove up the narrow streets to their workshop I have great respect for them being able to navigate such a huge delivery to this location.
I had the chance to meet this salt-making couple at their workshop in the beginning of November when they were just getting set up and sales of their salt are on schedule to be available from the end of the month. Although they were busy getting things ready, they welcomed me in to see the space and Hayashi-san was generous with her time in telling me about the process and some of the challenges of the trade at this location.
It is incredible to hear that to make Miyajima salt, they transport 60 tons of seawater in giant plastic tanks from the quieter side of the island over a winding mountain road to their location for each batch. The process, Hayashi says, takes 3 weeks from start-to-finish to make their high-quality flaky salt.
Some of the processes takes 3 days to simmer down the seawater to salt. The craftmaking skills involve the techniques of using the machines and manipulating temperature, but also knowing what to look for, and how to make adjustments in the processing along the way.
The finished product, Hayashi says, is a flaky craft salt which has the versatility for light seasoning of grilled meat, fish, or vegetables but has the diversity to also be used with success in making sweets and ice-cream.
I drove over the narrow road to see where they source their seawater which brought back memories of coming here for music festivals many moons ago. The water they source comes from a remote part of Miyajima’s less visited side in front of the small Takanotsura shrine.
Looking out at the glistening sea from there you can take in the little islands off the coast and I saw a group of SUP stand up and paddle boarders enjoying the calm bay.
Hayashi-san told me they filter the seawater before processing it to take out impurities, the long process of boiling and making salt also takes out further impurities. I find it incredibly inspiring that they are taking the abundant seawater resource to create a high-quality and high-value product of craft salt. Good local salt is something essential to our everyday lives, foods and dining experiences. Miyajima made salt will also be a great souvenir to gift to friends and family from the sacred isle.
Official Website of Miyajima Salt | Miyajima Salt on Instagram
Join the Campaign to Reduce Plastic Pollution in Hiroshima’s Seas & Beaches
It is important to mention that even Miyajima’s sacred beaches are not immune to the plastic pollution problems of the Hiroshima oyster industry – the beaches, even this remote area, are littered with the plastic tubes, discs and styrofoam used under the floating bamboo rafts that especially should not be on this sacred island. As Hiroshima residents, consumers and visitors we should ask the oyster farmers and ask the government to regulate a return to using bamboo, wood and natural materials which they used traditionally instead of plastic. Especially when standing on this remote side of Miyajima, you can imagine how it was once untouched by pollution it is possible to envision a return to its more natural beauty again someday.
A return to using natural or biodegradable non-plastic options would enhance the value of Miyajima famous oysters, eel and fish as well as new ventures like this craft salt. Even the tourism and leisure experiences of locals and visitors would be improved as those who enjoying kayaking, swimming and SUP sports – would appreciate a reduction in ocean plastics around the sacred island. Please sign the petition here.
We can also lend a hand and collect a bagful of the plastics on the beaches whenever we visit. If you are interested in joining me once a month for a beach cleanup in Hiroshima, please drop me a message here or at [inboundambassador [atmark] gmail.com] and we can set a time and location to work together.
