If you have an adventurous palate, get ready to entertain your taste buds with this new take on sushi!

Train stations and airports in Japan take great pride in their boxed lunch (bento) offerings, many of which make use of local specialties to tempt hungry tourists to the area. It seems that one such gourmet bento from Chitose City on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido has recently gained considerable attention online for its unique combination of ingredients which pack quite the culinary punch.

The bento in question is called the Nama-Hamu De O-Sushi (生ハムDEお寿司), and it pretty much flips much of the traditional notion of sushi on its head. Consisting of five slices of uncured ham adorning bite-sized blocks of vinegared rice and touched with a hint of Italian dressing, the description alone makes it sound like an unappetizing fusion of western and Japanese cuisine. Even more bizarre, instead of dipping the pieces in soy sauce (as is usually the case), diners of this bento sprinkle their sushi with ikura (salmon roe)!

Not convinced of its appeal? Just take it from the following Japanese Twitter users, who were all floored by its exquisite taste:

▼ “This…this is it…the nama-hamu de o-sushi…it was ridiculously delicious…uncured ham on top of sushi rice and instead of soy sauce you cover it with salmon roe…it’s accented with Italian dressing and would be wonderful accompanied by alcohol beverages…I want to eat more…amazing sushi…amazing sushi 2016…”

▼ This net user also raved about the taste, saying the salty flavor was good enough to make her thirst for a glass of wine to pair with it.

▼ Another Twitter user concured about craving some wine.

The only drawback of the Nama-Hamu De O-Sushi appears not to be related to taste but to its distribution. Sales seem to be limited to Chitose City and New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido; however, orders can be placed through ham manufacturer Sapporo Barnabas Foods and JTB Foods, where it sells for 850 yen (US$7.50). Perhaps if enough people spread the word, net users could manage to get this bento sold in Tokyo for a start.

Source: Togetter
Featured image: Twitter/@takeyuki800