Friday, October 29, 2010

Jaunt to Japan


Let us take a small jaunt to Japan shall we? We deserve it after all and before the holidays is the perfect time for a trip. This way, no lines, no waiting! I will explain the reason for this trip in a second but you're going to need to take the hand of the person on each side of you. Whether you like them or not, grab their hands and let's go! A close of the eyes and a snap of the fingers and we are now on the island of Mishima Japan. Neat trick huh?

I have brought you to Mishima for the beef; the finest in the world. Known as Mishimagyu in Japan it is well known to be better than Kobe beef by miles, and it is. Most of us outside of Japan will never taste or see this beef but today you will through me.

These beasts live on the isolated island of Mishima and are Japan's only thoroughbred beef. They feed on the lush grasslands and have no natural enemies other than man. The calming sea breezes flow over the island where there is more than enough room to roam, feed and rest.

Mishimagyu is fully marbled, including the tenderloin which is never seen in the West. This marbled richness is pure white and lends itself wonderfully to being eaten raw. The fat, so pristine, is often fried and added to scallion or garlic fried rice. When cooked the fat is light in flavor and texture; nearly translucent and is prized for eating. The fat is very close to melted at room temperature and is much more healthy than the beef tallow anywhere else.

This beef is so succulent, unctuous and sweet that many call it 'sweet beef.' It lends itself wonderfully to raw, briefly stir fried with sugar and soy and shabu-shabu (sliced thin and quickly dipped in boiling water or soup) applications. Were we to go to a Japanese restaurant to sample this savory delicacy we'd run approximately $18,000.00 per head. This is NOT your granny's meatball beef!

Sweet reward for having to grasp hands I'd say. Here is an authentic Japanese recipe for Mishimagyu using our beef tenderloin. Even better if you can get your hands on some Wagyu beef.

Mishimagyu Tenderloin Sweet Stir Fry

1 pound beef tenderloin, cut into 1" cubes

2 Tablespoons flavorless oil

3 scallions, finely minced

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 cup stock (chicken or beef)

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

Heat a large frying pan or wok over medium high heat and add oil. Ass the beef cubes and saute the beef while stirring it occasionally 4 minutes. Add scallions and garlic and fry for 2 minutes with the beef.

Add into the beef the stock, soy and sugar. Continue to fry and stir until the liquids have reduced to a glistening gem of a sauce; approximately 5 minutes. You may want to adjust the salt by adding salt or more soy and you may want to add pepper though for this dish in Japan, pepper would not be used.

Serve with rice. You could serve this with udon noodles but again, rice would be the Japanese option.

Please buckle up for landing into a wonderful authentic taste sensation!

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