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Round clam ligaments (Kobashira)

【Nigiri sushi: Kai】
What is Kobashira?
This is the adductor of Aoyagi. There are two adductors per clam. The bigger one is called ‘Ooboshi’ and the smaller one is called ‘Koboshi’. It is an expensive sushi ingredient with a crisp texture and sweet taste. It is often made as Gunkan maki. Koboshi is mainly used by tempura restaurants and Ooboshi is used by sushi restaurants. The Kobashira in Tokyo Bay is considered beautiful with its orange tint, but those from Hokkaido are more widely distributed in recent years.

【Points to note when preparing】
When rinsing kobashira, sometimes salt water is used rather than fresh water. It has about 3 to 4% salt concentration, called Tatejio, about the same as seawater. On the other hand, shellfish contain about 0.8% salt. The salt content of raw fish is about 0.2%, so washing with fresh water will not affect the taste. However, when shellfish is rinsed in fresh water, the water penetrates the surface of the shellfish, making it taste watery. Rinsing shellfish in tatejio prevents this from happening.It is not only used to rinse shellfish but to flavor fillets of fish. it does not dehydrate the fish and cause it to shrink, and the salty flavor penetrates the fish evenly.

【Temperature of vinegared rice (shari) and sushi toppings】
36℃/18～20℃

【Related contents】
List of Shellfish (Kai)

(Revision date: June 5, 2025)