Akita Kiritanpo Nabe Roasted Rice Hotpot (Hinai-jidori Chicken Broth) & Silky Inaniwa Udon

In Akita Prefecture—celebrated across Japan for its pristine water and prized *Akitakomachi* rice—autumn harvests and snowy winter evenings revolve around **Kiritanpo Nabe**, a dish originally created by mountain lumberjacks and *Matagi* hunters in northern Odate and Kazuno. Freshly harvested *Akitakomachi* rice is steamed and pounded halfway so individual grains retain their bite, molded into hollow cylinders around skewers of fragrant Akita cedar, and toasted upright around an open *irori* hearth until golden-brown and nutty. These toasted *Kiritanpo* rice cylinders are sliced on the bias and simmered in a rich golden stock brewed from **Hinai-jidori**—revered as one of Japan’s Three Great Native Chicken Breeds, prized for its firm, gamey meat and intensely savory amber fat. Cooked alongside wild *maitake* mushrooms, shaved burdock root (*gobo*), green onions, and whole *seri* (Japanese parsley including its aromatic roots), the porous rice tubes soak up the deep chicken umami without falling apart. In southern Akita’s Yuzawa region, master artisans since 1665 have perfected **Inaniwa Udon**, acclaimed alongside Sanuki and Mizusawa as one of Japan’s Three Great Udon Noodles. Unlike thick, knife-cut udon, Inaniwa Udon is crafted over four days through repeated hand-kneading, twisting, and hand-stretching (*te-nobe*), yielding slender, ivory-flat ribbons with a satin-smooth glide and micro-air pockets that deliver a crisp, refined chew whether served chilled over ice with sesame dipping sauce or in hot dashi.