Soba-gome zosui (buckwheat groats porridge)Wi
Iya region of Miyoshi City, throughout the prefecture
Long ago, the Iya region of Tokushima was surrounded by mountains, in a climate said to make growing rice difficult...
TOKUSHIMA
Tokushima Prefecture
The surveyed city is Tokushima. Of all 394 items in the household survey, Tokushima Prefecture stands out most for Sweet potatoes — 2.0× the national average (Tokushima 2,564 JPY / national 1,293 JPY).
2.0×Biggest standout
Sweet potatoes
per household / year
Sweet potatoes
per household / year
1Items ranked #1 nationally
30Regional dishes
RANK
Furthest above the national average
All figures are annual spending/quantity per household (not per person). 2023–2025 average, showing Tokushima’s value as a multiple of the national average.
| Item | vs. average | Tokushima | National | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweet potatoes#1Fresh Vegetables | 1.98× | 2,564JPY | 1,293JPY | #1 |
| Baby formulaDairy & Eggs | 1.96× | 1,835JPY | 938JPY | #3 |
| School lunchDining Out | 1.58× | 12,274JPY | 7,756JPY | #12 |
| Fish cake tube (chikuwa)Seafood | 1.55× | 3,150JPY | 2,028JPY | #2 |
| Other citrusFruit | 1.54× | 3,387JPY | 2,200JPY | #3 |
| YellowtailSeafood | 1.46× | 4,124JPY | 2,818JPY | #6 |
| SauceOils & Seasonings | 1.41× | 1,914mL | 1,357mL | #3 |
| Dried bonito flakesSeafood | 1.40× | 249g | 178g | #6 |
| WatermelonFruit | 1.38× | 3,907g | 2,834g | #7 |
| Sports drinksBeverages | 1.37× | 2,187JPY | 1,595JPY | #2 |
| Wakame seaweedDried Foods, Seaweed & Soy Products | 1.37× | 970g | 708g | #7 |
| Fresh shiitake mushroomsFresh Vegetables | 1.35× | 1,945g | 1,436g | #2 |
#1
Where this prefecture ranks #1
Items where Tokushima ranked #1 among the 52 surveyed cities.
- Sweet potatoes
LINK
Where regional dishes meet the statistics
Ingredients used in regional dishes here that also show up as standout spending in the household survey — cross-referencing MAFF's regional-dish database with Japan's Statistics Bureau data.
Shusse-imo (taro or sweet potato with red beans)
Main ingredients: Taro or sweet potato, azuki beans
→ Sweet potatoes is 1.8× the national average in Tokushima (4,801 g, #1 nationally)
Barazushi with kintoki beans (scattered sushi)
Main ingredients: Rice, kintoki beans, konjac, carrots, burdock root, chikuwa fish cake, whitebait, grilled fish, and more
→ Fish cake tube (chikuwa) is 1.6× the national average in Tokushima (3,150 JPY, #2 nationally)
Narae (seven-ingredient simmered vegetables)
Main ingredients: Daikon radish, carrots, fried tofu, sesame, lotus root, dried shiitake mushrooms, konjac, and more
→ Dried shiitake mushrooms is 1.3× the national average in Tokushima (50 g, #10 nationally)
Dekomawashi (skewered potatoes and dumplings, Iya style)
Main ingredients: Potatoes, konjac, tofu, and more
→ Tofu is 1.2× the national average in Tokushima (6,317 JPY, #3 nationally)
Irimeshi (stir-fried rice with dried sardines)
Main ingredients: Dried baby sardines (chirimen), shiitake mushrooms, konjac, rice
→ Fresh shiitake mushrooms is 1.1× the national average in Tokushima (2,236 JPY, #5 nationally)
DISHES
30 regional dishes from Tokushima Prefecture
From Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) “Regional Dishes to Pass on to the Next Generation.” Each dish name links to the MAFF page.
Bouze no sugatazushi (whole-fish sushi with butterfish)Au
Southern region, throughout the prefecture
During the autumn festival season, Tokushima is known for "sugatazushi," sushi made by leaving various fish whole in their original shape...
Dekomawashi (skewered potatoes and dumplings, Iya style)Au
Iya region of Miyoshi City
Bite-sized potatoes, soba dumplings, rock tofu, and round konjac are skewered and coated with a miso sauce...
Handa somen (thin wheat noodles)AuWi
Handa district of Tsurugi Town, throughout the prefecture
Handa somen, made in the Handa district of Tsurugi Town, has a long history...
Iya soba (buckwheat noodles)Su
Iya region of Miyoshi City
The Iya region of Miyoshi City is a renowned soba-producing area. It's said the Heike clan, defeated in the Genpei War, fled to Iya...
Shusse-imo (taro or sweet potato with red beans)Sp
Kaiyo Town, southern Tokushima
During times of rice shortage, people in southern Tokushima, including Kaiyo Town, often ate potatoes in place of rice...
Awa uiro (steamed rice cake)SpWi
Throughout the prefecture
Along with "Nagoya uiro" and "Yamaguchi uiro," "Awa uiro" is known as one of Japan's three great uiros...
Han-goroshi (half-pounded sweet rice)
Aioi district, Naka Town
Naka Town, formed in 2005 from the merger of five towns and villages in Tokushima, is 90% forest...
Oshizushi (pressed sushi)Wi
Kaiyo Town (Mugi and Kainan areas)
Tokushima has many local sushi specialties, including bouze sugatazushi, kakimaze-zushi, and amego-zushi...
Irimeshi (stir-fried rice with dried sardines)
Saga district, Sanagochi Village
Chirimen (dried baby sardines) seasoned with vinegar and soy sauce is stir-fried with ingredients like chikuwa fish cake, shiitake mushrooms, konjac, and burdock root...
Barazushi with kintoki beans (scattered sushi)
Throughout the prefecture
Kintoki beans simmered sweet with soy sauce and sugar are mixed into vinegared rice along with seasonal ingredients...
Uchigae zoni (New Year's soup, Iya style)Wi
Iya region of Miyoshi City
Distinctive New Year's zoni are made all across Japan, and among them, the one made in the Iya region of Miyoshi City is called...
Narae (seven-ingredient simmered vegetables)
Throughout the prefecture
Made with seven ingredients: daikon, carrots, fried tofu, sesame, lotus root, dried shiitake mushrooms, and konjac...
Yubeshi (steamed citrus confection)SpAu
Naka Town (upper Naka River), Katsuura region, Kamikatsu
Naka Town in Tokushima is especially known for growing yuzu. Heavy rainfall and large swings between daytime and nighttime temperatures...
Omiisan (miso rice porridge)Wi
Throughout the prefecture
"Omiisan" refers to a rice porridge seasoned with miso. In the past, miso was called "mii"...
Chagome (sweet bean rice)Wi
Throughout the prefecture
"Chagome" is rice sweetened with beans, cooked together with roasted fava beans and coarse sugar...
Denbu (simmered kintoki beans and vegetables)Wi
Throughout the prefecture
In Tokushima, local dishes using kintoki beans, such as barazushi and mame-tendama, are widely enjoyed...
Yuzukan (yuzu jelly sweet)
Naka Town
In Naka Town, Naka District, Tokushima, a yuzu variety called "Kito yuzu" is widely grown...
Ise ebi no misoshiru (spiny lobster miso soup)
Minami Town
Spiny lobster is generally known as a luxury ingredient, but this miso soup is a homestyle...
Imomochi (sweet potato rice cake)AuWi
Throughout the prefecture
Sweet potatoes are widely grown in Tokushima Prefecture; the most nationally famous variety is "Naruto Kintoki"...
Shima somen (fish-broth somen noodles)
Mugi Town
"Shima somen," eaten in Mugi Town, Tokushima, differs from ordinary somen in that it's served in a broth made from simmered fish...
Awa no itokoni (simmered sweet potato and red beans)Wi
Throughout the prefecture
"Itokoni" refers to a simmered dish of azuki beans and vegetables. It's often made with kabocha squash, but the Awa version...
Taimeshi (sea bream rice)
Throughout the prefecture
"Naruto tai," caught in Naruto City, Tokushima, is one of the finest luxury fish in Japan, tumbled by the whirlpools of the Naruto Strait...
Shiro miso zoni (white miso New Year's soup)SpWi
Throughout the prefecture
Tokushima's zoni dishes come in great variety; for example, the "uchigae zoni" eaten in Iya uses dried sardines...
Tsutsumi-meshi (rice wrapped in fried tofu)
Western Tokushima, Awa, Handa, Sadamitsu, Tsurugi Town
Long ago, rice was scarce in farming villages, and in Tokushima a local dish using buckwheat groats as a substitute was well loved...
Zukigashi (taro stem sweet)SuAu
Throughout the prefecture
"Zuiki," the leaf stem of the yatsugashira taro variety, is a common ingredient in Tokushima's local cuisine...
Ayu rousui (whole sweetfish rice porridge)Su
Katsuura Town
"Ayu rousui" refers to a rice porridge made with a whole sweetfish; "rousui" is a corrupted form of "zosui" (rice porridge)...
Hirara-yaki (fish and vegetables grilled on a hot stone)
Iya region of Miyoshi City
"Hirara-yaki" is made by heating a flat stone and grilling fish and vegetables on it with miso...
Hota-youkan (steamed brown sugar cake)
Throughout the prefecture
"Hota-youkan" is a sweet similar to a steamed bun. In the Tokushima dialect, "hota" refers to the hollow space that forms inside...
Hasuimo no kuki no sunomono (vinegared taro stem)SuAu
Southern Tokushima
"Hasuimo," eaten mainly in Tokushima and Kochi, is a type of taro said to originate in Southeast Asia...
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