6 UNIQUE JAPANESE SWEETS YOU MAY NOT KNOW
Shiso maki, Hittsumi-jiru, Harako meshi, ... unique dishes are discovered by CNN culinary expert Anthony Bourdain in the Honshu region where there is a long and varied culinary scene.
With a long-standing and diverse cuisine, Honshu Island has very special and nutritious traditional dishes. Many dishes here are quite famous in Japan, but not all Japanese culinary devotees in the world know it. CNN Culinary specialist Anthony Bourdain will help you discover 6 unique dishes here.
Shiso maki: Walnut and miso roll perilla
Walnuts, a local specialty of Tohuko, north of Honshu Island. The seeds after being baked and mashed will form a particularly fragrant mixture. This mixture, combined with another local specialty called miso paste, and roasted sesame blends to create the nutty ingredients of shiso maki. This savory sweet filling can be added with a little shichimi togarashi (7 flavor chili powder) for a hint of pungency. This dish is especially popular in the summer, the season of perilla leaves. The attractive filling is made into small pieces and wrapped in perilla leaves and deep-fried in sesame oil to make the perfect maki shiso. Shiso maki can be made as a snack with iced beer, cold sake or hot green tea.
Hittsumi-jiru: Pork noodles
Hittsumi-jiru is a traditional dish and is often present at events or festivals here. Hittsumi means "pinch" in the local language and is the word that describes how to make noodles. To make noodles, a chef "pinches" each dough and then puts it in the pot of broth, but another cooks the shape and simulates the noodles and then puts it in the soup right before eating. Noodles that are not boiled when put into the pot will soften the broth and make the broth thick, a bit like Vietnamese cakes. If the pasta added to the pre-boiled broth is usually harder and chewy, the broth is also thinner. Therefore, depending on the taste of the person eating, the noodles will be processed in different ways. A bowl of Hittsumi-jiru noodles is full of pork, green vegetables, mushrooms and other vegetables with a thick, delicious broth.
Harako meshi: Salmon and roe rice
More than 5,000 years ago, the people of Tohoku started to fish for salmon. Therefore, salmon plays an important role in the cuisine here and harako meshi is a prime example. This dish seems to be very popular and many people have been tried, but here, each family has its own recipe. Usually, salmon is shredded and mixed in a rice cooker a few minutes before the rice is cooked. After that, a bowl of harako meshi salmon mixed rice will be finished with a spoonful of red caviar sprinkled on top. However, on special occasions, this dish will be served on a large plate, garnished with a few slices of cooked salmon and a few caviar.
Kaki no dote nabe: Oyster hotpot
This dish is named nabe (oyster hotpot) dote (riverbank) because from the outside, the hot pot is surrounded by a dense miso paste like a miniature riverbank. As the broth starts to simmer, the miso sauce is gradually seasoned into the broth, little by little, to thicken the broth (like riverine silt mixed with the water after a heavy rain). Vegetables can be placed in the pot in the first place. Oysters work best if they're undercooked, and served with miso paste around the sides of the pot.
Matsu no mi shira ae, khaki utsuwa: Pink stuffed fruit with pine nut sauce
The persimmon is cut the head, into a small bowl containing the persimmon or along with other autumn fruits such as grapes, pears or apples. The filling is sprinkled with a traditional shira ae sauce consisting of pine nuts and tofu. To make a creamy sauce, some chefs just mash tofu and add mirin and usukuchi shoyu (light colored shoyu). Some other chefs will add tofu mashed sweet miso or a teaspoon of sesame sauce. The chef will add the ground pine nuts to highlight their shira ae.
Shake no kobu maki: Fresh seaweed rolled with salmon
Seaweed is wrapped and tied with a ribbon made from gourd or squash. This dish is enjoyed throughout Japan, especially on New Year's Day. In Tohoku, the filling of shake no kobu maki is migaki nishin - dried salted herring. This is a appetizer during the holidays in Tohoku, accompanied by sake. These seaweed rolls are also enjoyed as a side dish at dinner.
Source: dulichrongachau
Seaweed is wrapped and tied with a ribbon made from gourd or squash. This dish is enjoyed throughout Japan, especially on New Year's Day. In Tohoku, the filling of shake no kobu maki is migaki nishin - dried salted herring. This is a appetizer during the holidays in Tohoku, accompanied by sake. These seaweed rolls are also enjoyed as a side dish at dinner.
Source: dulichrongachau