Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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(ginnan),
asparagus wrapped in bacon
(asparagus bacon), green peppers
(piman),
mushrooms (various kinds), potatoes
(jag-
abataa),
and just about any kind of fish.
You can also usually get skewers of beef or
chicken as well as a stew of meat and pota-
toes
(nikujaga)
—delicious during cold
winter months. Some restaurants offer set
meals. If ordering is only a la carte, you'll
just have to look and point (some restau-
rants display all their foods available for
grilling).
SASHIMI & SUSHI
It's estimated that
the average Japanese eats 38 kilograms (84
lb.) of seafood a year—that's six times the
average American consumption. Although
this seafood may be served in any number
of ways, from grilled to boiled, a great deal
of it is eaten raw.
Sashimi
is raw seafood, usually served
as an appetizer and eaten alone (that is,
without rice). If you've never tried it, a
good choice to start with is
maguro,
or lean
tuna, which doesn't taste fishy at all and is
so delicate in texture that it almost melts
in your mouth. The way to eat sashimi is
to first put wasabi (pungent green horse-
radish) into a small dish of soy sauce, and
then dip the raw fish in the sauce using
chopsticks.
Sushi,
which is raw fish with vinegared
rice, comes in many varieties. The best
known in Tokyo is
nigiri-zushi:
raw fish or
seafood placed on top of vinegared rice
with just a touch of wasabi. It's also dipped
in soy sauce. Use chopsticks or your fingers
to eat sushi; remember, you're supposed to
eat each piece in one bite—quite a mouth-
ful, but about the only way to keep it from
falling apart. Another trick is to turn it
upside down when you dip it in the sauce,
to keep the rice from crumbling.
Also popular is
maki-zushi,
which con-
sists of seafood, vegetables, or pickles
rolled with rice inside a sheet of nori sea-
weed.
Inari-zushi
is vinegared rice and
chopped vegetables inside a pouch of fried
tofu bean curd.
Typical sushi includes tuna (maguro),
flounder
(hirame),
sea bream
(tai),
squid
(ika),
octopus
(tako),
shrimp
(ebi),
sea eel
(anago),
and omelet
(tamago).
Ordering is
easy because you usually sit at a counter,
where you can see all the food in a refriger-
ated glass case in front of you. You also get
to see the sushi chefs at work. The typical
meal begins with sashimi and is followed
by sushi, but if you don't want to order
separately, there are always various set
courses
(seto).
Pickled ginger is part of any
sushi meal.
By the way, the least expensive way to
enjoy sushi is
chiraishi,
which is a selec-
tion of fish, seafood, and usually tamago
on a large flat bowl of rice. Because you get
more rice, those of you with bigger appe-
tites may want to order chiraishi. Another
way to enjoy sushi without spending a
fortune is to eat at a
kaiten sushi
shop, in
which plates of sushi circulate on a con-
veyor belt on the counter—customers
reach for the dishes they want and pay for
the number they take.
SHABU
SHABU & SUKIYAKI
Until
about 120 years ago, the Japanese could
think of nothing so disgusting as eating
the flesh of animals (though fish was
okay). Considered unclean by Buddhists,
meat consumption was banned by the
emperor in the 7th century. It wasn't until
late in the 19th century, when Emperor
Meiji himself announced his intention to
eat meat, that the Japanese accepted the
idea. Today, the Japanese have become
skilled in preparing a number of beef
dishes.
Sukiyaki
is among Japan's best-known
beef dishes and is preferred by many West-
erners. Sukiyaki is thinly sliced beef
cooked at the table in a broth of soy sauce,
stock, and sake, with scallions, spinach,
mushrooms, tofu, bamboo shoots, and
other vegetables. All diners serve them-
selves from the simmering pot and then
dip their morsels into their own bowl of
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