Omicho Market Tour & Cooking Class

From Omicho Market to a Traditional Kanazawa Machiya

After approximately 45 minutes at Omicho Market, walk to IN KANAZAWA HOUSE. The cooking class takes place inside a restored traditional Kanazawa machiya townhouse that was formerly used as both a residence and a dyeing workshop. Moving from the energy of the market into the quiet wooden interior of a historic townhouse creates a natural transition from discovering ingredients to preparing them.
 

Hands-On Japanese Cooking Class in Kanazawa

Now it is time to cook. Your instructor will introduce the basic techniques behind Japanese home cooking and traditional washoku. Depending on the seasonal menu, you may learn how to prepare dashi, handle Japanese ingredients, use a kitchen knife correctly and arrange dishes according to Japanese dining traditions.

No previous cooking experience is required.

The class is designed for international visitors who want to understand Japanese food beyond restaurant dining.

 

Learn the Importance of Dashi

Dashi is one of the foundations of Japanese cuisine. Rather than relying primarily on strong seasoning, many Japanese dishes build flavor through umami-rich stock. During the cooking class, learn how dashi works and how it contributes depth and balance to soups and other dishes. Understanding dashi provides a useful introduction to the principles behind Japanese cooking.
 

Prepare an Ichiju-Sansai Style Meal

Your meal is inspired by ichiju-sansai, a traditional Japanese dining structure built around rice, soup and several accompanying dishes. The exact menu changes according to season and ingredient availability.

Typical components may include rice, soup, fish or sashimi, egg dishes, vegetables and dishes inspired by Kanazawa’s culinary traditions. The goal is not simply to prepare several recipes, but to understand how Japanese meals balance flavor, texture, nutrition, color and seasonality.
 

Vegetarian Options Available

A vegetarian cooking class can be arranged with advance notice. Depending on the season, dishes may feature ingredients such as Kaga lotus root, Goro-jima sweet potato, kinjiso, tofu, fu wheat gluten and seasonal vegetables.

Please inform us of allergies and dietary requirements when booking so that we can determine what accommodations are possible.

 

Enjoy the Meal You Have Prepared

After cooking, sit down together and enjoy the meal you have prepared. Dessert and Kaga bocha, Kanazawa’s traditional roasted tea, are also served. By this point, you will have experienced Kanazawa food from several perspectives: seeing ingredients at the market, learning about their cultural background, cooking them and finally sharing the meal.

 

Learn from Kanazawa Food Expert Naoko Taniguchi

Your guide and cooking instructor is Naoko Taniguchi, a Kanazawa native and food researcher with deep knowledge of the region’s culinary culture. She has spent many years studying and sharing the food traditions of Kanazawa, including seasonal ingredients, local vegetables, home cooking, food customs and the historical background of regional cuisine. Her expertise allows this experience to go beyond a standard market visit or cooking lesson.

At Omicho Market, she explains how local people and professional cooks select ingredients, what is in season and how different foods are used in Kanazawa cuisine. During the cooking class, she connects those ingredients with practical techniques such as preparing dashi, handling seasonal produce and composing an ichiju-sansai style meal.

She also introduces the cultural background behind the dishes, including the relationship between Kanazawa’s castle-town history, tea culture, traditional crafts and cuisine. Naoko has also been involved in education and lectures related to food culture, helping visitors understand not only how to cook Japanese dishes, but why those dishes developed in Kanazawa. For guests who want to understand the city through its food, learning directly from a local food expert adds depth to every part of the experience — from the market to the kitchen and finally to the dining table.
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