We conducted a survey about onigiri nori seaweed among customers who use the Yamamotoyama online store!

Among our customers, those in the Kansai region tend to purchase flavored seaweed, while customers east of the Kanto region tend to purchase roasted seaweed.

So, what are the differences between the nori seaweed used in onigiri rice balls, a home-cooked dish that we are familiar with from childhood, in the east and west?

This time we'll be looking at the "onigiri nori" situation in both the east and west!

3-cut: 25% 8-cut: 15% Full size: 10% 4-cut: 11% 6-cut: 3% Other: 2%

Half-cut: 28% 6-cut: 10% 3-cut: 14% 4-cut: 8% Full-cut: 5% Others: 0%

Hojicha: 25% Genmaicha: 11% Bancha: 6% Others: 4%

Sencha: 26% Genmaicha: 24% Bancha: 11% Others: 3%

Triangular onigiri were the norm nationwide, but in western Japan, bale-shaped onigiri were more popular.

While seasoned seaweed is more prevalent in western Japan, roasted seaweed is more prevalent in eastern Japan. And the crunchy seaweed used to wrap rice balls was popular in both the east and west.

There were many people who learned about triangular rice balls for the first time after coming to the Kanto region, and were surprised to find that the rice balls sold at convenience stores in Kansai were made with flavored seaweed.

While the East enjoys the flavor of the seaweed itself, the West places more importance on dashi and sauces made from kelp and bonito, which may explain why flavored seaweed is so popular.

Even something as simple as onigiri seaweed can be enjoyed in a wide variety of ways depending on the region, making for some very interesting results!