Duringthecoldermonths,theicywatersaroundJapanhelp
oceanfishlayerontastyfat,makingit a bountifultimefortuna.
InthefishingvillageofMisaki,onthesoutherntipoftheMiura
peninsula,anhouranda halfsouthofTokyobytrain,winteris
thebesttimeforbluefinandbigeyetuna.AccordingtoKosuke
Aihara,seniormanagingdirectorforlocaltunawholesaler
NishimatsuCorporation,Misaki’sfamoustunais besteaten
assashimi,whole-headtunaorshabushabu.“Youcanalso
eatunusualpartsofthetunasuchascheeksteakortuna-heart
sashimiinMisaki,somethingthatis quiterare,”saysAihara.
Winteris alsopeakseasonforsnowcrab,orZuwaigani,a
delicacyfoundintheicydepthsoftheSeaofJapanandonly
permittedtobefishedbetweenlateNovemberandMarch.The
spindlycrustaceanis knownforitssweetfleshandrichumami
innards.BecauseofitsproximitytotheSeaofJapansomeofthe
bestcrabis foundonthesouthernendoftheislandofHokkaido
oraroundthenorthernKyotoPrefectureonHonshu.Whenthefirst
snowcrabsarepulledfromthesea,restaurantsalloverthecountry
fill their menus with thisadoredingredient,andmanytownshold
crabfestivalstocelebratetheirarrival.The
luxuriousNishimurayaHotelShogetsuteiin
thespatownofKinosakiOnseninHyogo
Prefecture,servesa multi-courseMatsuba
crab(thelocalnameforsnowcrab)dining
experiencethatfeaturesthecrustaceans
servedboiled,grilled,sukiyaki-style,with
leftoversmadeintozosui,orricesoup.
Rootvegetablesareattheirbestduringthecoldermonths
includingthecrunchy,milddaikonradish,commonlyeatenina
simplebraiseofsoysauceanddashiknownasdaikonnonimono.
Theperforatedrootofthelotus plant, or renkon, is also eaten
this way during autumn.●W i n t e r
Whenthefirstsnowcrabs arepulled
fromthe sea,restaurantsfilltheir
menuswiththisadored ingredient
and many towns hold crab festivals.Clockwisefromleft:
fishersontheMiura
peninsula;Zuwaigani,
or snow crab; fresh tuna.GOURMET TRAVELLER 111PHOTOGRAPHY GETTY IMAGES.