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Ohaw (Ainu soup)

cep ohaw · cepohaw

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A four-serving cep ohaw recipe from the former Ainu Museum café in Shiraoi, documented in 2015.

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Shiraoi cep ohaw, a clear salmon soup with potato, daikon, carrot, kombu and diagonal long onion.

Scope of this record

This entry records one Shiraoi version of cep ohaw: the former Ainu Museum café recipe supplied to Hokkaido Museum in 2015. It does not describe one canonical Ainu soup or a preserved-fish method.

The Hokkaido Digital Museum describes Ainu soups made with fish or meat, vegetables and seaweeds, with regional food differences and continuing cultural change. A separate Biratori Ainu Culture Preservation Association recipe uses a different set of ingredients. These sources support keeping local versions distinct.

Sources for this section

Method and safety limits

The Shiraoi PDF supplies a four-serving method and a roughly ten-minute salmon simmer, but it does not quantify water, salt, oil or onion. It gives no temperature for the soup and no internal fish temperature. Salting fresh salmon is described as a way to firm the flesh, not as a measured cure.

FDA general seafood guidance recommends a finfish internal temperature of 145°F (63°C) and careful separation of raw seafood. The method needs a thermometer-based fish check before it is suitable as a complete home recipe; the source's time and vegetable cues do not establish that endpoint.

Sources for this section

History

The Hokkaido Museum says the former Ainu Museum café in Shiraoi served cep ohaw as a popular menu item and that the café supplied the recipe text and photographs in 2015. The recipe PDF says it was prepared while the Ainu Museum was open; the museum closed in 2018. This documents one museum-café recipe and its publication history, not the origin of ohaw or one formula used by all Ainu communities.

Ingredients

Yield 4 servings · Scaling: source batch only

KombuAbout 20 cm long.
1 sheet
Daikon
½ root
Carrot
1 piece
PotatoesSource specifies potatoes about 7–8 cm; it recommends May Queen because they are less likely to dissolve.
2 pieces
Salted salmonThe source prefers aramaki salted salmon for firmer flesh and broth. If using fresh salmon, it says to salt it first, without specifying amount or duration, then halve the portions.
4 pieces
Long onionSlice thinly on the diagonal.
Amount not stated
as needed; source gives no amount
Salt
Amount not stated
to taste; source says salted fish contributes salt and recommends adjusting at the end
Salad oil
Amount not stated
one circular pour around the pan; exact amount unspecified
WaterPlace the kombu in the water.
Amount not stated
enough for soup; source gives no volume

Method

Risks and precautions · Standard risk
Raw or undercooked salmon

CDC notes that raw or undercooked fish can cause anisakiasis. The recipe cooks the fish in soup but gives no internal temperature; its ten-minute cue is not a measured endpoint.

Hazard source
Cross-contamination from raw fish

Handling raw fish can transfer bacteria to ready-to-eat foods, utensils and surfaces.

Hazard source

As general finfish guidance, cook to an internal temperature of at least 145°F (63°C); this is not stated in the museum recipe.

Control source

Keep raw seafood separate from ready-to-eat foods and wash hands, utensils and surfaces after handling it.

Control source

The source's instruction to salt fresh salmon before cooking gives no amount or duration. It describes preparation, not a validated preservation or parasite-control step.

The source's approximate 10-minute simmer is not a measured fish safety endpoint. No leftover storage duration is supplied.

  1. If using fresh salmon, salt it first to firm the flesh, then halve the portions; the amount and duration are unspecified.
  2. Cut the daikon and carrot into rough chunks. Peel and halve the potatoes. Slice the long onion thinly on the diagonal.
  3. Add the kombu, daikon and carrot to the pot and simmer.
  4. When the kombu is soft, cut it into large pieces and return it to the pot.
  5. When the daikon turns translucent, add the salted salmon and simmer for about 10 minutes.
  6. Add the potatoes and cook until a skewer passes through easily. Skim foam as it rises.
  7. When the potatoes are tender and the foam has reduced, season with salt to taste.
  8. Pour a circular measure of salad oil around the pot; the source gives no exact quantity.
  9. Serve with thinly sliced long onion. Alternatively, simmer the onion briefly in the pot after adding the oil.

Conditions

Yield4 servings

Places

No source in this record establishes a place.

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Sources