What Is Kobako Gani? Kanazawa's Nov 6-Dec 29 Crab

What is kobako gani? It's the small, egg-carrying female snow crab, only in season in Ishikawa Prefecture from November 6 through December 29 — a 54-day window the prefecture's own fishers set to protect breeding stock. Buy or order it in Kanazawa at an Omicho Market seafood stall, a nearby izakaya, or a ryokan kaiseki course; a 1-minute walk from the market itself puts you at SOKI Kanazawa if you want to be there for the morning opening. Land after December 29 and kobako gani is finished for the year — ask for kano gani, the male snow crab, which stays in season through March 20.

What Kobako Gani Actually Is

Kobako gani is the female of the same species Ishikawa markets as kano gani, its branded male snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio). She's much smaller than the male — small enough to fit in a palm — so market stalls and restaurants sell her whole rather than by weight of leg meat. What sets her apart is two kinds of roe: uchiko (内子), a bright orange roe held inside the upper shell before it's been laid, and sotoko or gaikoshi (外子), a darker, more granular roe she carries externally under the abdominal flap once it has been laid and fertilized. Both are eaten alongside the leg and body meat, and each has a distinct texture — the uchiko dense and rich, the sotoko popping between the teeth.

I've eaten kobako gani cracked open at an Omicho Market seafood counter, and once at a friend's home in Fukui — in both cases nearly whole, not picked apart from a leg-only course the way kano gani often is.

Kobako Gani vs. Kano Gani

Why the Season Is Only 54 Days

The short window is a resource-protection rule, not a national law. Ishikawa's fishing cooperative, JF Ishikawa, explains that the prefecture's own fishers voted to cap the female catch at December 29 starting with the 2014 season, on top of the November 6 opening that applies to the whole fishery — a stricter rule than the male season needs, because a female caught later in winter is closer to spawning. Boats leave port the night before and the catch begins at midnight on November 6, so the first kobako gani of the year typically reach Omicho Market stalls within a day or two of the opening.

Where It's Served in Kanazawa

Market-counter kobako gani is the least formal way to eat it: a stall boils or steams the crab and sells it whole to eat on the spot or take back to a hotel room. Izakaya near the market add a kobako gani set to the menu once the season opens, usually alongside kano gani leg courses. Ryokan kaiseki dinners in the wider region fold kobako gani into a multi-course menu rather than serving it alone — our guide to reading crab kaiseki plan names covers how to tell a whole-crab plan from a half-crab one before you book.

Deciding whether to base yourself at the market or at a ryokan further out changes the trip more than the crab does — our Kanazawa-or-Kaga-Onsen comparison breaks that down by cost structure. For lodging specifically built around the market, our Omicho Market hotel guide and the broader Kanazawa where-to-stay guide cover the options; getting to Kanazawa from Tokyo, Osaka or Komatsu Airport is covered separately.

The Season In Numbers

Counting the calendar days from Ishikawa's November 6 opening to its self-imposed December 29 close puts the 2026 kobako gani season at 54 days — a little under a seventh of the year, and well under a third of the roughly 135-day kano gani season the male crab gets over the same winter (dates per JF Ishikawa, checked September 2026). Miss the window and there's no extension: unlike the male season, which runs into spring, the female season closes on the same date every year regardless of how the catch has gone.

Where to Eat It Near Omicho Market

Market hours run shorter and shops close earlier around the New Year: expect a scaled-back market on December 31, most stalls closed for the first few days of January, and a fuller reopening by around January 5, based on Omicho Market's own New Year notices in past years. The market posts its exact 2026–27 holiday dates closer to the season, so confirm before planning an early-January trip around it.

Trip Essentials for Kanazawa

Things worth booking before you land, all in English:

• eSIM — Airalo's Japan eSIM: install it at home and data works as soon as you switch off airplane mode at Komatsu Airport.
• Tickets and day trips — Klook covers Kanazawa day tours and trips to Shirakawa-go; booking ahead skips the ticket-window line.

FAQ: Kobako Gani

How long is kobako gani season in Ishikawa?

54 days: November 6 through December 29, 2026. That's a self-imposed rule Ishikawa's fishers adopted starting with the 2014 season, separate from the November 6 opening that applies to the whole snow crab fishery. The male kano gani season, by contrast, runs through March 20, 2027 — about four and a half months.

What's the difference between kobako gani and kano gani?

Kobako gani is the female snow crab, small enough to fit in a palm, prized for two kinds of roe — the orange uchiko held inside the shell and the darker, more textured sotoko carried externally. Kano gani is the larger male, with a carapace to roughly 15 cm, prized mainly for leg meat and kani miso.

Where can I eat kobako gani near Omicho Market?

Market seafood stalls sell it whole, cooked to order, from around 9am while the day's catch lasts. Izakaya near the market add it to evening menus once the season opens. SOKI Kanazawa sits a 1-minute walk from the market itself, if you want to be there when the stalls open.

What time does Omicho Market open, and is it open around New Year?

Most stalls open around 9am. Expect reduced hours from December 31 through the first few days of January, with most shops back open by around January 5 in past years — the market publishes its exact 2026-27 holiday schedule closer to the date.