“Nobunaga Gourmet” in Gifu
(a.k.a Nobunaga-labelled food items that actually has nothing to do with Nobunaga)
Gifu is probably the “Nobunaga capital” in Japan. He’s more celebrated there than places that can claim to be his “hometown” like Nagoya or Kiyosu. As such there are many food and other products that are named Nobunaga, but actually has nothing to do with him.
It’s not a novelty product, or even a recreation of historical food from the Sengoku. It’s just that the name Nobunaga is so catchy, that people can’t help but use it.
This article reports on three such products (accompanying video can be watched on Youtube).
Nobunaga Banana
Some legends say that the Europeans introduced the first bananas to Japan as part of the gifts they presented to Nobunaga, but this is not some sort of medieval cultivar. It’s actually a specialty strain bred to be sweeter than normal bananas, and with skin so thin that they claim you can eat it without peeling (like you would an apple).
The reporter did give it a try, and he said that it’s true! The inside is so sweet, and the skin thin enough that the texture and astringency didn’t detract from the flavour.
The farm that grew this breed said they named the banana “Nobunaga” in the hope that they can be successful in marketing and selling their produce, just like Nobunaga had succeeding in expanding his territories.
As it happens, the restaurant in the Kinkazan ropeway (the ropeway that leads to Gifu Castle museum on top of the mountain) supplies their menu with these bananas as well.
Nobunaga Shiitake mushrooms
(left: standard shiitake, right: Nobunaga shiitake)
These mushrooms are apparently not specifically bred. It’s just that due to the good farming environment, sometimes the mushrooms would just naturally grow that large. The farmer then decided to specifically pack the large ones together as a separate product than the standard-sized shiitake.
The name Nobunaga was actually rather arbitrary. When naming his product, the farmer gave it the name Nobunaga without really thinking, but it turns out to be rather popular, so it stuck. The reporter jokingly said “Gifu people must really love Nobunaga that much”.
Nobunaga Ten-don (tempura rice bowl)
There’s a tempura specialty restaurant called Yanagase Tempura Club 柳ヶ瀬天ぷらクラブ in Yanagase Shopping Street in Gifu city. Among the many tempura rice bowl sets that they offer, they have this special menu that boasted a jumbo-sized prawn tempura 25 cm (about 9.8 inches) long.
They wanted an impactful name that matches such an impressive-looking food item (the tempura is so huge it’s bigger than the bowl), so they named it “Nobunaga”. The massive tempura is flanked by two regular-sized prawn tempura, which they call “Hideyoshi” and “Mitsuhide”.
They also have a “Dousan Ten-don”, featuring a conger eel tempura to represent the Nagara River and various seasonal vegetables for a rich and flavourful menu (inspired by the legends of Dousan being originally an oil merchant).