[Aomori Prefecture] I went to the original Nokkedon Aomori Gyosai Center! Now to the ocean of ingredients

Have you ever seen or heard about Aomori's "Nokkedon" on TV, in magazines, or on SNS?

Since I came to Aomori this time, I thought I would try ``Nokkedon'' for the first time in my life. I always admired it when I saw it on TV travel programs, and I thought, ``This is what I would do if it were me!''

This is my first challenge! This may ask you to have good taste, but do as you like! Luxury! I think I'll enjoy it. Of course, I will also touch on the history of Aomori's market and Nokkedon, so please join me for a while.

Aomori's original Nokkedon! Ancestor? Did you ride it?

This time, I will try ``Nokkedon'' at Aomori Gyosai Center, a 5-minute walk from the east exit of Aomori Station.

Nowadays, you can see the Nokke-don banners and the tourists are conspicuous here, but it was originally the Furukawa Market Fish and Vegetable Center, which has been a thriving kitchen for Aomori citizens since the 1960s.

Aomori Fish and Vegetable Center's ``Nokke-don'' originated when the Aomori Chamber of Commerce and Industry started ``Nokke-don'' as a tourism promotion initiative in 2010, when Shin-Aomori Station on the Tohoku Shinkansen opened.

Due to the interestingness of the project, it was featured in the local media and has now grown into a very popular spot visited by many people visiting Aomori.

Today, you can experience ``Nokkedon'' in various places across the country, but the originator is Aomori Gyosai Center in Aomori City.

“Original Nokkedon” tasting report!

The Aomori Gyosai Center where you will experience "Nokkedon" this time will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

As it is a market, it opens early in the morning and closes at 4:00 pm, but since the ingredients are fresh, many stores close as soon as they run out of ingredients.

If you check in advance, it seems that some popular restaurants close before noon, so it might be a good idea to head there early in the morning for breakfast or lunch.

The regular holiday is currently every Tuesday (2023/3), but be sure to check the business days in advance.

Previously, the Aomori Fish and Vegetable Center used to first buy a bowl of rice for 100 yen, then go to each fresh fish store and buy their favorite ingredients with cash, but now they have to buy a ticket first and then buy each dish. It's like exchanging tickets for ingredients at a fresh fish store.

First, buy a ticket

You don't need a ticket to buy only fresh ingredients, but if you're looking for Nokkedon, you'll need to buy a ticket first.

First, purchase the ticket you want at the information desk inside the Aomori Fish and Vegetable Center.

You can purchase a single ticket or a set of 10 tickets, with 10 tickets priced at 2,000 yen and individual tickets priced at 200 yen.

I bought ingredients with 10 tickets first, but I still don't have enough! Don't worry, you can purchase an additional single ticket and create your own luxurious Wagamama bowl, making it more luxurious than anyone else.

You can also purchase tickets! First, enjoy a bowl of rice!

First you need a bowl of rice, right? There are currently three shops within the Aomori Gyosai Center where you can purchase rice bowls.

After purchasing your ticket at the information center, the information center will give you the "meal exchange location (information card)" pictured above along with your ticket, so head to the food exchange location with the number written on the information card. Sho.

What's nice is that the information center staff doesn't randomly hand out a "meal exchange place (information card)".

The staff at the information center will check the cooking time and the amount of rice remaining, and hand out a guide card to guide customers to the quickest and fastest rice restaurant so that they can get their bowl of rice as quickly as possible. Masu.

Aomori Fish and Vegetable Center store MAP

The inside of Aomori Gyosai Center looks like the attached map above. There are five large and small rest areas where you can eat Nokkedon, and there are about 20 to 30 stores where you can buy ingredients.

The ingredients on sale are not only seafood, but also Aomori's specialty, ``squid mince'', and you can also eat purchased ingredients over charcoal. Alcohol is also sold, so you can have something luxurious like drinking beer with some squid mince and eating nokkedon.

Here we go! To the ocean of seafood ingredients!

First, use one meal ticket and exchange it for a regular bowl of rice.

It is possible to have a large meal, but in that case, you will need to exchange two meal tickets.

Preparations are complete! From now on, I will walk around the market with a bowl of rice in hand.

Oh, and by the way, in front of the information center, you can also find the miso soup of the day.

If you order miso soup first, the meal will be a little loose, so order it last. Miso soup can also be exchanged for meal tickets.

I'm really confused because each store has a variety of ingredients.

I don't want to worry too much about it, so first I'll choose 1 piece of bluefin tuna (2 meal tickets) and 2 pieces of flounder (1 meal ticket) as shown in the photo above.

You can rest assured that all the ingredients will be picked up by the store staff.

For the third item, I chose extra-large natural tiger prawns.

I don't know much about food or cooking, but this extra-large meal ticket can be exchanged for just one meal ticket.

One meal ticket = 200 yen, isn't it cheap?

At this point, I'm thinking, ``This is a good start.''

The 4 items will be exchanged for scallops (1 meal ticket).

I like shellfish, but it's expensive and hard to eat in inland areas, so I thought, ``I'll definitely have scallops on top.''

I think I spent about 15 minutes wandering around the market as I was having trouble deciding which ingredients would be good.

In the middle of the market, I found a golden tamagoyaki at the back of the market, so I had no hesitation in ordering it.

The 5th item, Golden Tamagoyaki, can be exchanged for 1 meal ticket.

At this point, I have used 7 meal tickets and only have 3 left...

One piece is exchanged for miso soup at the end, so there are actually two pieces left in exchange for ingredients.

I'm already worried.

You can purchase additional meal tickets sold separately, but at this point, you just have to endure it for a long time, use up the meal tickets cleanly, and go on a final voyage into the ocean.

On the way, I drooled while looking at the fresh fish.

As I looked at it, I suddenly remembered, "That's right! I haven't chosen those ingredients yet!"

It was a dangerous place, yes, squid (1 meal ticket). Don't forget this.

I remember being astonished by the deliciousness of squid when I visited Aomori on a club expedition when I was in junior high school.

I think this seafood bowl is a good choice for me.

There are other ingredients I'd like to add, but I'll finish them up here.

Finally, the finishing touches! Finish with salmon roe (1 meal ticket).

Take a look, I think I have created a tasteful ``Nokkedon''.

If there was a "Your Nokke-don Grand Prix 10 Meal Tickets Category", this seafood bowl would definitely rank high in the rankings.It's the best seafood bowl that not only looks good, but also has a good balance of flavor, sweetness, saltiness, and stimulation.

I am proud of myself.

At the end, I exchanged the meal ticket I saved for some miso soup with style and elegance.

perfection.

All you have to do is sit down at the rest area and eat. Soy sauce and wasabi are prepared on the table.

20 minutes to choose ingredients, 10 minutes to eat.

I'm very satisfied. No need to explain, it's a rice bowl topped with fresh ingredients, so you can't go wrong with it! It was the best.

Later, I heard from locals that it used to be cheaper.

However, I still think the price is quite satisfactory. I think it was too cheap in the past.

This time, I only had the ``Nokke-don'' and couldn't enjoy any other side dishes, charcoal-grilled rice, or beer, but next time I'd like to enjoy not only the ``Nokke-don'' but also the charcoal-grilled squid minced meat to my heart's content.

Please be sure to stop by when you come to Aomori. It may be a classic, but I highly recommend it.

For this time's "Nokkedon", I purchased a set of 10 meal tickets,

Bowl of rice (1 meal ticket) / Big bluefin tuna (2 meal tickets) / Flounder (1 meal ticket) / Extra large wild tiger prawn (1 meal ticket) / Scallop (1 meal ticket) / Golden egg roll ( (1 meal ticket) / Squid (1 meal ticket) / Salmon roe (1 meal ticket) / Mozuku miso soup (1 meal ticket)

It was a meal using a total of 10 pieces.

The trick is to walk around the market first and get a clear idea of ​​what your ``Nokkedon'' will look like.

Come to think of it, I saw a couple in line behind me at the information desk who had bought a set of 10 tickets for two people and were splitting them up, and I was impressed and thought, ``That's certainly possible.''

INFORMATION

• Name: Aomori Fish and Vegetable Center
• Address: 1-11-16 Furukawa, Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture, 030-0862
• Business hours: 7:00-16:00 *Nokkedon business hours
• Closed: Tuesdays (closed during tourist season)

GOOGLE MAP

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@neft_tohoku I experienced "Nokkedon" for the first time at the Aomori Gyosai Center near Aomori Station! #Aomori Prefecture #Aomori Station #Aomori Fish and Vegetable Center #Seafood Bowl #Nokkedon ♬ Get You – Official Sound Studio