Japan, Japan. Land of the rising sun, and homeland of the consumption of raw fish products… Tonight, I shall partake in cuisine from thy bounty…Thus, keeping with the theme of seafood, for tonight’s meal I enjoyed a small platter of Unagi (sea eel) sushi.
As a college student, good sushi can often be both hard to find and beyond my budget. Fortunately enough, the on-campus food court, Cox Hall, provides a small array of pre-made sushi options. Though the sushi is not freshly made (as all sushi should be!!) it is usually good enough to sate that incessant craving. Alas, I ventured to the depths of the refrigerated section and emerged with my nourishment for the evening.
Opting to be a little healthier I chose the brown rice sushi option. The sushi roll consisted of six components: brown rice, eel, cucumber, sesame seeds, nori (seaweed) and eel sauce. You can choose to eat the roll as is, but personally, I like to eat my sushi with all the accompanied condiments. That is, with soy sauce, wasabi (spicy Japanese horse radish) and a bit of pickled ginger afterwards for a refresher. Now, as I mentioned before, the sushi already comes drizzled in the sweet “kabayaki” or eel sauce. Therefore mixing in all the condiments can be risky business. For some people, the flavours of both the soy and eel sauces contrast too greatly and thus drown out the flavor of the sushi altogether. But for me, it’s all about finding the balance. With the right amount of soy sauce, the two tastes can actually compliment quite nicely. To avoid excessively dousing with soy sauce, I prefer to actually drizzle a bit of sauce right from the packet or container instead of dipping the roll directly in it. A little bit of salt and sweet combined never hurt a soul, did it? Sea-salt toffee anyone?
Well, with my great experience and ample practice, I managed to make the perfect combination of soy and eel sauces which tickled my tongue in the most pleasant of ways. In addition the cucumbers remained surprisingly crisp despite the long expanse of time from creation to consumption. The eel however could not meet the same standard. Though eel (especially the way the Japanese prepare it) always has a tendency to be chewy, the long refrigeration period left the meat very rubbery in texture. But nevertheless, the roll was redeemed by the sesame seeds on top, which resulted in a somewhat earthy aftertaste and a satisfying crunch.
Additionally, I eat a piece of pickled ginger after every bite serves to cleanse the palette. This is so that in between each bite of sushi, your taste buds ‘forget’ the flavours of the previous bite, so you experience the unique burst of flavor again and again for multiple first taste experiences! A+ idea Japan.
Overall, the entire sushi experience was not ideal, but did its justice nonetheless.
Taste (with condiments): **** ½
Texture: **½
Tummy Happiness: ***½
As a college student, good sushi can often be both hard to find and beyond my budget. Fortunately enough, the on-campus food court, Cox Hall, provides a small array of pre-made sushi options. Though the sushi is not freshly made (as all sushi should be!!) it is usually good enough to sate that incessant craving. Alas, I ventured to the depths of the refrigerated section and emerged with my nourishment for the evening.
Opting to be a little healthier I chose the brown rice sushi option. The sushi roll consisted of six components: brown rice, eel, cucumber, sesame seeds, nori (seaweed) and eel sauce. You can choose to eat the roll as is, but personally, I like to eat my sushi with all the accompanied condiments. That is, with soy sauce, wasabi (spicy Japanese horse radish) and a bit of pickled ginger afterwards for a refresher. Now, as I mentioned before, the sushi already comes drizzled in the sweet “kabayaki” or eel sauce. Therefore mixing in all the condiments can be risky business. For some people, the flavours of both the soy and eel sauces contrast too greatly and thus drown out the flavor of the sushi altogether. But for me, it’s all about finding the balance. With the right amount of soy sauce, the two tastes can actually compliment quite nicely. To avoid excessively dousing with soy sauce, I prefer to actually drizzle a bit of sauce right from the packet or container instead of dipping the roll directly in it. A little bit of salt and sweet combined never hurt a soul, did it? Sea-salt toffee anyone?
Well, with my great experience and ample practice, I managed to make the perfect combination of soy and eel sauces which tickled my tongue in the most pleasant of ways. In addition the cucumbers remained surprisingly crisp despite the long expanse of time from creation to consumption. The eel however could not meet the same standard. Though eel (especially the way the Japanese prepare it) always has a tendency to be chewy, the long refrigeration period left the meat very rubbery in texture. But nevertheless, the roll was redeemed by the sesame seeds on top, which resulted in a somewhat earthy aftertaste and a satisfying crunch.
Additionally, I eat a piece of pickled ginger after every bite serves to cleanse the palette. This is so that in between each bite of sushi, your taste buds ‘forget’ the flavours of the previous bite, so you experience the unique burst of flavor again and again for multiple first taste experiences! A+ idea Japan.
Overall, the entire sushi experience was not ideal, but did its justice nonetheless.
Taste (with condiments): **** ½
Texture: **½
Tummy Happiness: ***½
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