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Sweet shrimp (Amaebi)

【Nigiri sushi: Ebi/Kani】
Just as the name suggests, Amaebi has an elegant sweetness (‘ama’ means sweet in Japanese). Amaebi is actually just an alias for this shrimp and the official name is “Hokkoku akaebi (Alaskan pink shrimp or northern pink shrimp)”. Amaebi is found along the Japan Sea coast from Toyama Bay northward and on Hokkaido coasts. They are about 10 cm long and live up to 1000 meters deep in the sea and spawn once every two years. The umami increases from autumn to winter and the egg-retention period is from January to February. This is the time to try the blue-green eggs with the shrimp.

It is also called Northern shrimp, Alaskan pink shrimp, Northern (pink) shrimp, deepwater prawn, or deepwater shrimp.