The shogoin turnip is said to have started when a farmer in Shogoin, in the northeast of the city, brought back seed of the omi turnip being grown near Otsu during the Kyoho era and planted it here. A large one goes over four kilograms, which is less a vegetable than a piece of furniture.

That turnip is shaved so thin that the count runs into the thousands, and the name is taken to come from exactly that: a thousand sheets. The invention is credited to a cook at the imperial palace, in 1865. His name is written differently depending on which source you consult, which is worth noting rather than smoothing over.

Originally it was salted and left to ferment with lactic acid bacteria. The problem with that was appearance and smell. The white turnip went yellowish and picked up the odor of fermentation.

So the method changed. Vinegar replaced the fermentation, and the white version became the standard: sliced thin, salted, then packed with kombu and dried chili in vinegar, sugar, and mirin. It can only be made while the turnips exist, November to March, which is why it is a winter pickle and not available the rest of the year. A pickle that gave up fermenting in order to stay white.