Shojin Ryori Study by Culinary Arts Students from Hawaii
On June 6th, 2025, aspiring chefs from the Leeward Community College Culinary Arts Program (LCC) visited Yamagata to spend a week studying the traditional food culture of Northern Japan. At the center of this program was a climb up Mt. Haguro and a stay at Saikan with Chef Shinkichi Ito to study the Shojin Ryori cuisine of the Dewa Sanzan Mountains.
These 2nd and 3rd year culinary students spent over 2 years fundraising for their visit to Yamagata Prefecture as part of LCC’s efforts to broaden the skills and opportunities for its students. For many of these students, this trip represented their first time traveling off of their island of Oahu and their first time being immersed in a foreign culture.
Their study of Shojin Ryori on the Dewa Sanzan started with changing into the shirosozoku robes of the Yamabushi at the Ideha Cultural Museum before hiking up Mt. Haguro with one of its Yamabushi guides.
Along their hike they were introduced to the over 1,400 years of history and spirituality of the Yamabushi and the Dewa Sanzan Mountains. LCC’s culinary instructors were happy that his students could learn and experience the parts of the incredibly deep foundation behind the cuisine of the Yamabushi as they reached the Dewa Sanzan Shrine.
After making a prayer at the Dewa Sanzan Shrine, the students checked into Saikan, temple lodging adjacent to the shrine at the top of the mountain. Here they met Shinkichi Ito, a specialized chef who has dedicated his life towards the preservation and innovation of Shojin Ryori cuisine.
Together with Chef Ito, the students learned to identify and harvest a variety of wild vegetables on Mt. Haguro. Students also learned more about how this ancient cuisine evolved over the centuries from a cuisine of survival to its spiritual and medicinal foundations.
Please note that any and all forms of harvesting and collecting natural resources on the Dewa Sanzan is normally strictly forbidden.
Following this the students learned about the many ways these mountain vegetables are cooked and preserved in the kitchen of Saikan together with the chef. Many of these students practice traditional Hawaiian cuisine and remarked how there are many similarities between shojin ryori and their native culinary culture including the use of mountain vegetables.
This gave them new ideas for not only how to incorporate Shojin Ryori techniques into their own culinary career, but also how to innovate on their existing recipes and knowledge base.
At the end of their week-long program, the LCC Delegation made a visit to the governor where they expressed their heartfelt thanks to the people of Yamagata. Their study with farmers, fishermen, locals, and many other chefs had given them a whole new view of the culinary arts of Japan.
Leeward Culinary Arts Director Matthew Egami expressed his wish that the chefs of Yamagata visit Hawaii and for his students to make regular visits to study in Yamagata.
This program was arranged by The Hidden Japan, a local Yamagata-based inbound travel producer that focuses on experienced travel.
