I used to be glued to the tube when the Food Network
first debuted since it was a channel devoted exclusively to the art of the
kitchen. From Emeril’s “Bam” to Mario Batali’s rustic Italian dishes to the
informative and entertaining Alton Brown who combined theatrics along with
actual technique. But like any media - especially television – change isn’t
always for the better. But who am I to harp on just the Food Network?
Television today seems to simply consist of “reality” shows or shows featuring
competition. What happened to the M*A*S*H, Taxi and Cheers where there was a
real story line that made you laugh and cry at the same time? Granted, when the
original Iron Chef series first aired, it was interesting since it was the only
cooking competition at the time. But now it seems every other cooking show is
either a cupcake war or cake war or kids cooking competition or even grandma
cooking competition. So I simply tend to gravitate to Parts Unknown to learn
about food from other cultures. And sometimes Bizarre Foods.
Bizarre Foods
I’ll admit that when I view Bizarre Foods, it’s more to
learn more about another country’s food culture than it is to actually sample
those food items. I mean, camel meat “preserved” in its own fat for months at
less than ideal temperatures leaving you with slowly decomposed meat in rancid
fat. Uh, no thank you, I’m vegetarian… Or South American yucca beer that starts
its fermentation with the women of the village chewing cooked yucca to
introduce their own salivary amylases to initiate said fermentation. Uh, thank
you but no, I’m Mormon…
But sometimes Andrew Zimmern does highlight foods that I
would love to sample especially of the nose-to-tail dining or cultural dishes
almost lost to modernization that usually take days to prepare. And that’s when
I realized that Nihonjin also have a
fair assortment of bizarre foods.
Sushi’s Forefather
No, the original sushi
wasn’t California Roll or even your basic futomaki
or nigiri version. It actually was
something a lot more sinister where the rice wasn’t even meant to be consumed.
Rice was simply the vehicle to start fermentation and acid production that
preserved the adjacent slice of fish. And the fish didn’t start out as the
best, fatty portion of otoro or maguro. It wasn’t even as peasant as the
basic snapper. No, the original sushi
employed carp. Yes, that carp that usually is considered less than edible
because of its soft texture and muddy flavor. Funazushi, a rare type of narezushi
is the forefather of modern sushi
definitely would qualify as a bizarre food. A specialty of the Shiga
prefecture, fermented buna or Carassius auratus grandoculis is first
tightly packed in salt for about 1 year then dried and mixed with rice to
“ferment” for up to 3 more years. As you can imagine, it has an overpowering
aroma and a sharp, vinegary taste. Make that a double bizarre food.
It’s Not Snot (or
it snot snot)
Yamaimo or the
mountain yam might look innocuous on the outside shaped like your usual large
tuber but once it’s prepared, it creates a whole ‘nother ballgame with its
unusual texture. Slimy and gelatinous, it resembles what bubbles out of your 2
year old nephew’s nostrils when his allergies flare. And it definitely doesn’t
have much of a taste so it’s primarily consumed because of the “hanabata” consistency. Another bizarre
food.
Tori Sashimi
Everyone knows that when you prep chicken or turkey in
the kitchen, the key is proper hygiene making sure to use a separate cutting
board, separate knife, separate bowl and washing all items in hot, soapy water
lest we cross contaminate other foods items and give diners the dreaded
salmonella poisoning. But what about serving chicken sashimi style? WHAT!? You should never consume chicken or turkey
until the thigh juices run clear. NEVER BLOODY! But chicken sashimi is exactly what some izakaya serve back in the motherland.
You see, not all chickens are infected with the salmonella bacterium even
Stateside. But because a small percentage are, the USDA doesn’t want to take
any chances and allow any chicken or turkey to be served anything less than
well done and even frowns upon the consumption of runny egg yolks which aren’t
really cooked but simply warmed. However, in the Motherland, there are poultry
producers that raise hens that were never exposed to other hens who might
harbor the dreaded salmonella bacterium where undercooked or even raw morsels
won’t harm your intestinal tract. And this is one bizarre food that I’d be
willing to sample… As long as it were in the Motherland…
Fish for
Adrenaline Junkies
I’m convinced that diners who sample the flesh of Tetraodontidae species are simply like
those who seek the fastest roller coasters or love to skydive. They simply do
it for the adrenaline rush they experience when the ride or the dive ends and
they’re still alive. Personally, I’ll only exit a perfectly sound airplane even
with a parachute at anything more than 35 feet elevation if the alternative was
a fiery crash that surely would end with death. Otherwise, I’ll remain in the
confines of said craft with the pilot.
But skydiving is like consuming fugu or pufferfish. I think it’s purely to consume something that
could’ve killed you but you end up still alive. Because from what I’ve heard
from those who have tried it, it doesn’t have much of a taste or texture. It’s
one thing to sample the absolute best thing you’ve ever eaten or drank even if
in doing so puts you at risk for a premature demise but to risk it for a
nondescript white-fleshed fish. Bizarre food.
Hanabata and Toe-jam
Probably at the top of the list of bizarre Japanese foods
is that slimy, smelly bean, natto.
You know that it wasn’t intentionally created that way. Especially since the
Japanese have refined their cuisine so that subtle flavors are the rule and
strong flavors and textures are avoided. You know someone way back when had to
have steamed some soybeans, placed it in a straw wrapper to consume later that
day but inadvertently forgot where it was placed. Then eventually found that
packet of soybeans after B. subtilis
worked its “magic” on it and created something with the consistency of snot
that left “threads” from your lip to the plate not unlike the threads that
linger after you spit at the dentist’s office with the aroma of used gym socks
left in your car trunk for a week. But someone did consume that first creation
of natto… someone likely so hungry
that it was either starve to death or eat it…
Though I still feel that by itself, it simply tastes like
used coffee grounds, natto creates
magic when mixed with cubed raw tuna and fukujin-zuke
with a little light or white shoyu on
sushi rice. Or when creative chefs
incorporate natto into
non-traditional dishes that you’ll find on Natto
Day (July 10th) here in the 50th. This year’s event will
be the 6th Annual Natto Day
dinner organized by the natto-obsessed
trio of Scott Pang, Mari Taketa and Greg Sekiya though this year I plan on
sharing my special natto dessert…
Or if you plan on visiting the 50th
anytime soon, get a table at Gyotaku to sample their Nattochos featuring fried
wonton chips topped with raw ahi,
avocado, negi, nori and not just natto
but also grated yamaimo… yes, bizarre
Nihonjin nachos…
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