Application of the Shimonoseki local traditional vegetable ‘Hikoshima-haruna’ powder to fish paste products

‘Hikoshima-haruna’ (Brassica rapa var. narinosa) is a local traditional vegetable in Shimonoseki (Yamaguchi, Japan). The mature leaves are edible and much of the harvest is processed into pickles for consumption in the Shimonoseki area. To expand the consumption of ‘Hikoshima-haruna’, we verified the use of ‘Hikoshima-haruna’ powder in fish paste products as a part of the utilization research. We prepared heated gels (Kamaboko) mixed with 0-10% ‘Hikoshima-haruna’ powder and measured their breaking strength. The Kamaboko containing 1.0-4.0% powder exhibited a bright green color, preserving the characteristics of ‘Hikoshima-haruna’ as a plant with bright green leaves. Although the breaking strength of the two-step heating (30℃ for 30 min followed by 85℃ for 20 min) gels tended to decrease with increasing powder concentration, the 1.0% powder concentration exhibited a slightly greater breaking strength than the other concentrations. Therefore, when applying ‘Hikoshima-haruna’ powder to fish paste products, its use as Kamaboko at a powder concentration of 1.0% was considered appropriate.