Benikomachi Sweet Potato (紅小町)

Benikomachi is a Japanese sweet potato cultivar closely associated with Chiba Prefecture. Written 紅小町 in Japanese, it has dark reddish-purple skin and pale yellow flesh. Cooked, it develops a floury, fluffy texture and mild sweetness, a clear contrast to the moist, high-sugar cultivars now common at specialist yakiimo shops. Once a Chiba specialty grown on thousands of hectares, it now comes mainly from one district. That is the Kurimoto area of Katori City, where a roadside station carries its name. First, this guide explains what Benikomachi is, how it came to be, and why it nearly disappeared. It also covers how it tastes, how to cook it, how it compares with better-known Japanese sweet potatoes, and where a visitor can still find it. This article draws mainly on Chiba Prefecture’s cultivation guidance, national cultivar-area data, official food-composition tables, and local sources from Katori City and Kurimoto. TOCWhat Is Benikomachi? Benikomachi is a table-use cultivar of Japanese sweet potato, or satsumaimo, officially released in 1975 after development through a national breeding program in Chiba Prefecture. Specifically, it crosses Kokei No. 14, the classic western Japanes...