Okuhida Yamanomura Kanboshi Daikon

"Okuhida Yamanomura Kanboshi Daikon" has long been produced as a valuable preserved foodstuff during the winter in the Yamanomura District, an isolated area with an elevation of 1,000m.
　Boiled, round slices of radish are air-dried in the production area where temperatures reach -20°C during the coldest period of winter. Repeated cycles of nighttime freezing, daytime thawing under the sunlight and air-drying result in "Okuhida Yamanomura Kanboshi Daikon" developing their characteristic, amber-colored appearance, concentrated sweetness, and crunchy texture. Their texture are produced by drying thick, round slices of radish.

In the production area, all the processes from radish cultivation to production of dried radishes are conducted.
　Producers grow radishes with using a variety of Aokubi Daikon. Thereafter they store harvested radhishes in the soil or a storage room in order to maintain freshness, then wait for midwinter when the temperature to drop below freezing.
　From around late December to January, the stored radishes are carefully washed one by one, and then cut into 1.5 cm-thick to 2 cm-thick, round slices and boiled in a large pan.
　Next, producers skewer the boiled radish slices, then dry them naturally outside for about 30 days. After an additional drying process inside the facility and quality check, "Okuhida Yamanomura Kanboshi Daikon" are shipped to market.

An essential condition for the production of "Okuhida Yamanomura Kanboshi Daikon" is the outside drying process which takes place in a below zero temperature with cold wind. Yamanomura District is an area of heavy snowfall, located at elevation of approximately 1,000m. In midwinter, the temperature falls below -20°C. It is therefore well-suited for producing "Okuhida Yamanomura Kanboshi Daikon", which need a cold wind-drying period of over a month. Further, during winter, Yamanomura District is covered with around 2m-thick of snow. This prevents dirt from sticking to the radishes while they are dried outside. Such climatic conditions make the region well suited for producing high-quality cold-dried radishes.
　Using the severe winter of the Yamanomura District to their advantage, local producers have been making cold-dried radishes as a preserved foodstuff from long ago. Up to today, the traditional manufacturing methods which are developed during the region's long history has been inherited in the producing area.
　In Yamanomura District, cold-dried radishes have been produced by local households for house hold use. However, after the producers' group, "Suzushiro Group" unified production methods, sales of cold-dried radishes began in 1986 under the brand-name of "Okuhida Yamanomura Kanboshi Daikon".