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The origin of narazuke pickles is thought to be kasuzuke, which is considered to have existed since very old times. It is said that, about 1,200 years ago, a divine priest in Nara accidentally discovered how to make narazuke, and presented the pickles to the imperial family, which gave it its name. Narazuke was then mainly made by Buddhist monks, later introduced to samurais as a preserved food during wartime. About 370 years ago (in the Keicho era of the Edo period), a doctor from Nara named Itoya Sosen began to sell gourd pickled in sake lees in town. A sake dealer Kikuya Jizaemon succeeded to this narazuke production, promoting it widely through delivery to the Edo government. Narazuke has special flavor and taste, created by ripening juicy pickling melons and cucumbers in sake lees over a long period of time.
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