Kayaki Miso

Kayaki Miso, or grilled miso scallop, is a country-style dish in which sea scallops and eggs seasoned with dashi broth and miso are grilled together in a large scallop shell.
Dating back to the Meiji period, fishermen in the Shimokita region of Aomori began the tradition of cooking scallops and seasonal local ingredients with bonito or yakiboshi dashi, miso, and beaten eggs. In the Tsugaru region where, in that period, eggs used to be valuable and hard to come by, miso kayaki with eggs was reserved only for when a person was sick or for postpartum nourishment.
As it is believed that the seashells improve with continuous use, most households in Aomori keep a few well-seasoned scallop shells in their kitchen.
Kayaki miso is still a popular food in the Shimokita region where it is known as “miso kayaki,” and in the Tosei area of the Tsugaru region as “hotate kayaki miso.”