"Today's Menu is Takeshima Seafood Curry"... Appears Again in Japanese Government Cafeteria

Rice Shaped Like Dokdo with Flags of Jukdo (竹島) and Iljanggi Inserted

On February 22, Shimane Prefecture in Japan re-released the "Takeshima Seafood Curry" to mark "Takeshima Day" (the name Japan claims for Dokdo). Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported that the dish was launched at an underground cafeteria in the Shimane Prefectural Office and was sold in a limited quantity of 110 servings on February 20-21.

The dish features a curry sauce with seafood such as squid and horned turban shell caught in the waters of the Oki Islands, Shimane Prefecture, topped with rice shaped like Dokdo made using a 3D printer. A flag with the characters "죽도 (竹島)," meaning "Takeshima," is planted on the rice.

[Image source=NHK News]

A Shimane Prefecture official said, "Since I have never had the chance to see Takeshima in person, I was able to imagine what it looks like through this dish, and it made me want to study the Takeshima issue."

Chef Ishikura Ken said, "I tried hard to faithfully reproduce Takeshima, and although there may not be many opportunities to think about the Takeshima issue, I hope this dish can serve as a chance to do so."

"Takeshima Day" is a day unilaterally established by Shimane Prefecture, a local government in Japan, on February 22 every year to claim sovereignty over Dokdo. Shimane Prefecture has held events annually to commemorate this day, and the Japanese government has been sending vice-ministerial level officials to attend these events since 2013.

[Image provided by Professor Seokyung Deok]

Earlier, Professor Seo Kyung-duk of Sungshin Women's University criticized the "Takeshima Seafood Curry." In October 2021, he posted on his social media (SNS), "This kind of measure is a typical trick strategy to raise awareness among Japanese citizens that Dokdo is their territory," adding, "Does this make Dokdo Japanese land? It's truly pathetic."