Must love it raw

When someone asks about Japanese food, the first two things that pop up in my brain are sushi  and sashimi.  Maybe unknown to most natives, but a typical gaijin  would always associate these foods with almost anything Japanese. Sushi is a popular dish made from vinegared rice (sumeshi) and other ingredients typically (but not necessarily) raw seafood. Sashimi  on the other hand is a sliced fresh meat or fish sliced into thin pieces. I must admit though that before coming to Japan, I was not really a fan of these delicacies and for someone who didn't have a developed palate for anything raw, I was always reluctant to eat them whenever an opportunity comes and would rather go for the usual tempura, tonkatsu  and other cooked Japanese dishes.

 But then I was wrong. 

After I set foot on Japanese soil, I have slowly acquired the taste of these two dishes. It didn't happen overnight though, but I must say peer pressure have helped so much in pushing  through the barrier. My taste buds now crave for these dishes on a regular basis and that makes me a certified sushi and sashimi fan. (Yay!) 

But wait, there's more.

Just when I thought I had it all covered and ready to do doya (proud face), my naive definition of raw foods was thrown out of the window when this dish was introduced to me by a Japanese friend. 

It is called torisashimi (I need correction here in case I didn't get the name correctly). It is a thinly sliced raw chicken meat served with wasabi  and ginger (I also have to compliment the presentation). To eat it, one gets a thin piece of meat, spread it flat and put a little wasabi  and/or ginger, fold it, dip in soy sauce and voila! Once you begin to chew, it gets a little mushy and slimy with smell of raw chicken meat (if you've tried smelling one) and the strong flavours of wasabi and ginger fighting each other inside your mouth. It didn't taste bad but didn't taste good either. It was probably because I was a little drunk when I ate it that my sense of taste had been compromised by alcohol intoxication. For me a large gulp of beer is appropriate every after intake of this food. However, even after drinking, a distinct raw chicken aftertaste would remain until you nimble other foods to get rid of it. Because we usually order it after we have consumed alcohol, torisashimi  has taken the reputation of being  "the food I will only eat when I'm drunk". But of course, I'd love to taste it when I'm sober; I just didn't have the chance. (big grin)

For those who are used to eating raw meat or exotic foods, you might find raw chicken meat too mainstream. In my case, it will take a lot of getting used to and much peer pressure to make me love it too!

Torisashimi  is served in a restaurant/bar in Onohara called Issun.