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Eel (unagi)
***** Location: Japan
***** Season: See below.
***** Category: Humanity
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Explanation
eel, unagi, 鰻、うなぎ, Aal
Anguilla japonica
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pike conger eel, hamo 鱧
..... Hamo sashimi, a speciality of the Kyoto area in Summer. It is hacked very finely because of the many small bones and takes an experienced cook to prepare it properly.
Hamo 鱧 pike conger eel History and Food
both are kigo for all summer
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Doyo eel, doyoo unagi 土用鰻 (どよううなぎ)
day of the eal, unagi no hi 鰻の日（うなぎのひ）
kigo for late summer
Yatsume unagi 八目鰻 (やつめうなぎ, 八つ目鰻) lamprey (eel)
Lampetra japonica
Despite its name, this in not a member of the eel family.
kigo for winter
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aounagi, ao-unagi アオウナギ, アオ鰻、青鰻
blue eel
a speciality of the Bizen Kojima Bay, Okayama prefecture
It has been eaten in Osaka since olden times. This eel can be caught all year round, but it is hard nowadays to feed them properly. The fish likes the mix of seawater and river water that he has in the wetlands of the bay. Fishermen go out to catch small prawns during the ebb tide and put it back into the water to feed the eels, but this is very hard work.
(I was lucky to meet Mr. Shimizu who is a famous fisherman and catches them.)
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
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mizore-ae みぞれあえ (霙和え) with grated radish
The fish is blanched. A dressing is of vinegar and soy sauce. Decorated with grated rasish and cucumbers.
Mizore-ae is also used for other ingredients like chicken meat.
unagidon, unagi don, unagi donburi うなぎどんぶり ( 鰻丼/ うなぎ丼) grilled eel on rice
One of the most famous eel dishes. Here the sauce is poored directly over the eel and the rice.
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gegrillter Aal auf einer Schüssel mit Reis.
unagimeshi, unagi meshi うなぎめし(鰻飯) eel with rice
manmeshi 鰻飯（まんめし)
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unagi no kabayaki うなぎのかばやき ( 鰻の蒲焼き/ うなぎの蒲焼)
skewered grilled eel with a soy and mirin sauce, charcoal-broiled eel
Sometimes the eel is served in a separate laquer box and the rice, soup and pickles come in separate dishes.
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Grillaal, gegrillter Aal
more : japanesefood.about.com: Japanese Eel Recipes
unagi manjuu うなぎ饅頭 bun with eel filling
from Mishima, Shizuoka.
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unagisuupu, unagi suupu うなぎスープ 鰻スープ eel soup
unagijiru ウナギ汁, kimo sui 肝吸い
Often with red miso. Or a clear broth with some eel liver.
. . . CLICK here for kimosui clear broth Photos !
Aalsuppe
unagi no tare うなぎのたれ (鰻のたれ)
sauce for eel
Many restaurants have a sauce which is the strict secret of the generations.
Ready-made sauces are also available in the stores.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
unagiya うなぎ屋 (鰻屋) eel restaurant
The characters on their kanban shop signs are usually very typical.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
Aalrestaurant
unajuu うな重 (うなじゅう)
grilled eel on rice in a square box, grilled eel on a rice bed
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gegrillter Aal auf Reis in einer Lackschachtel
gegrillter Aal auf Reis in viereckigem Kasten
Uzaku うざく(鰻ざく) Uzaku eel with vinegar dressing
A dish from the Kansai area.Similar to mizore-ae, but the fish has been broiled. The sauce is quite sweet. Sanbaizu vinegar is used.
Yahata-maki やはたまき (八幡巻き) anago roll
The fish is rolled around pieces of goboo burdock.
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yahata maki can also be made with other ingredients like pork meat or dojoo loach.
Fresh burdock from the area of Iwashimizu Hachimangu 石清水八幡宮 is usually used. A speciality of Yahata town, Kyoto.
This kind of perparation dates back to the area of the warring states, maybe invented by the merchant Yodoya Joan (Yodoya Jooan)
淀屋常安 （よどやじょうあん）.
Many eel dishes are flavored with
Sansho, Sanshoo, Japanese pepper, "Mountain pepper"
Lake Hamana 浜名 near Hamamatsu, Shizuoka is famous for its eel farming. Many shirasu elvers are raised here.
shirasu no kama-age しらすの釜揚げ boiled shirasu.
they are boiled in salt water, which can be heated a bit higher than 100 degrees centigrade. After skimming off the foam various times they are put on nets to dry.
CLICK here for PHOTOS !
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Worldwide use
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Things found on the way
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HAIKU
う なぎやのうの字 鰻のように書き
unagiya no u no ji man no yoo ni kaki
the letter U
of the unagi restaurant
written just like the fish
Kaboo 佳宝
鰻屋のうの字 三尺余り伸び
unagiya no u no ji sanshaku amari nobi
the letter U
of the unagi restaurant ...
almost one meter long
Tennan 天南
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サービスの肝吸い肝が見当たらず
saabisu no kimosui kimo ga miatarazu
this free liver soup
does not have one bit
of eel liver !
Ganjiroo 頑治郎
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Related words
***** Donburi 丼 Bowl of rice with topping
hamo 鱧 (はも) pike conger pike, pike eel Muraenesox cinereus. dragontooth
***** WASHOKU : FISH and SEAFOOD SAIJIKI
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Posts
4 comments:
Thank you for many kind topics on eel that I like very much.
Especially Unagi haiku is excellent!
You are truely expert of cocking.
sakuo.
Thanks for your consistent wonderful haikus. Mouth-watering, too.
"sivasunattu"
Dear Gabi Greve, i like the 'free liver soup"-made me laugh,
Jewel
Daily Yomiuri Online
(May. 2, 2009)
fresh taste of spring straight from the sea
Though shirasu, or whitebait, usually refers to the fry of katakuchi-iwashi or Japanese anchovy, there actually are two other kinds of sardine fry--ma-iwashi, or Japanese sardine, and urume-iwashi, or round herring.
Nama-shirasu, or raw shirasu, refers to shirasu that have been washed in water. Kamaage-shirasu are shirasu lightly boiled in salted water and drained. Chirimenjako are dried kamaage-shirasu. When nama-shirasu are molded on postcard-sized wooden frames and dried, they are called tatami-iwashi.
West of Miura Peninsula and the Shonan coastal area, including waters off Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, are good places to catch shirasu.
The shirasu fishing season began on March 11, and in early April shops put up signs proclaiming "Shirasu in stock!" The signs are an annual spring feature of the area.
I recently visited Kanhama Suisan, a company that processes and sells shirasu at Koshigoe fishing port, located at the western edge of Kamakura.
Fresh shirasu caught near the fishing port by Nobukazu Mizushima, the third-generation president of the company, were being brought into a shed in refrigerated boxes.
Mizushima's wife, Yoshie, sat in front of a huge steel pot as big as a bath and added natural salt to the boiling water, before placing washed shirasu into it and quickly closing the lid. A few minutes later, after peering inside the pot, she removed the lid and scooped out the shirasu using a long-handled strainer.
"Experience is the most important thing when boiling shirasu. The amount of salt and the boiling time differ each time," Yoshie said. "I don't use a watch. I just look inside the pot when I think it's about time."
I tasted some of the freshly boiled shirasu and the light seasoning of salt really brought out the excellent flavor of the fish.
If you are keen to taste fresh shirasu, I recommend you visit the areas where they have just been caught, as nama-shirasu caught on the day is seldom available elsewhere.
As nama-shirasu spoils quickly, it is best consumed within 12 hours after being landed.
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/photos/seasonal/seasonal090507.htm
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