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Ayu and Matsutake Parcel-Grilled

This is the grilled course. For the ayu and matsutake parcel-grilled, the ayu is butterflied open along the back and lightly salted; the bones are…

Hoshiko Tofu

Appetizer. Hoshiko tofu (dried sea-cucumber ovary): grill the hoshiko, soak in equal parts sake and water, then blend with egg yolk and potato…

Young sweetfish fried in a white-fan batter, curled into a Naruto swirl; twisted deep-fried sea urchin and lotus root

For the fried course, everything fried this time is done in a light egg-white batter.

Japanese whiting grilled with water-pepper miso, beltfish grilled with white asparagus

This is the grilled kisu with tade miso. Since tade discolours easily, we mix in komatsuna or spinach as blending greens to help fix the color. For…

Fat greenling, fukurin-style, in soy-milk broth

This is a soup course. Quinoa is currently popular among women and said to be rich in amino acids, so we tried using it here. It is made soy-milk…

Ise Lobster Simmered in Saffron, Winter Melon Stuffed with Sea Urchin

This is the simmered course. For the Ise lobster simmered in saffron, using too much saffron throws off the balance with the other dishes, so I keep…

Tofu and pheasant, miso-glazed grill

This is the grilled course. For the tofu and pheasant miso dengaku, meat scraped from the carcass bones is coarsely minced and simmered in sweet red…

Abalone with Its Own Liver, Green Chili Tofu, Duck and Barley Simmer

This is the appetizer course. For the abalone with its own liver: the abalone is first steamed in sake, then the liver is removed and pressed through…

Ainame Teika-ni

Uruka shinjo

Next comes the soup course. The uruka shinjo is made from mako-uruka, raw fish paste, wheat starch, egg white, and yamato-imo, set in a box mold and…

Sesame Tofu

The appetizer's sesame tofu is a version with a little miso worked into it. I put miso, sake, and mirin in a pot over heat and work it for about…

White wood ear mushroom and somen noodles

Moving on to the soup course. This one is a softshell turtle (suppon) soup. I first take a stock from the softshell turtle, then combine it in equal…

Tilefish firewood-bundle roll

The fried course is tilefish (amadai). Ohara-gi maki — thin strands of ingredients tied into a bundle to resemble the firewood bundles once carried…

Sesame tofu

First, the appetizer course. At the restaurant, we don't serve these together under one single 'appetizer' heading — we present each one separately…

Seared scallop, squid scored in a fawn-spot pattern, vinegar-rinsed horse mackerel

The vinegared dish is carpaccio-style. It's served with olive oil drizzled over it.

Shira-ae of spiral-cut and briefly dried white melon

Eel in checkerboard pattern

For the grilled dish, the eel ichimatsu: burdock and carrot are cut into thick strips and sautéed kinpira-style with a sweet-savory seasoning, then…

Ise Lobster Grilled with Shuto

For the Ise lobster grilled with shuto — fermented bonito innards — I remove the head, split the body lengthwise pear-style without separating it…

Wicker-pattern fried sweetfish and long-armed river shrimp

For the fried course's wicker-pattern fried sweetfish, I first cut potato into a coarse julienne and fry it. I make a light white batter from egg…

Flounder green-breeze grilled and beef Yoshino-style grilled

For the sauce on the flounder grilled 'green breeze' style, I combine water pepper, sake lees, and white miso; if it doesn't come out quite thick…

Satsuki tofu

For the appetizer I made satsuki tofu — really a shuto tofu, meaning tofu mixed with fermented bonito innards. I named it satsuki, the old name for…

Simmered dried skate

Next is the simmered course. Karakai-ni uses karakai — a long-standing dried skate preserve made in Yamagata's landlocked interior, far from the sea…

Koshu simmered abalone, pumpkin steamed glutinous rice

This is the palate-refresher course (shinogi). For the Koshu nigai and pumpkin okowa, since Yamanashi is also famous for kabocha squash, I made the…

Wind-dried pike conger

This is an appetizer course. All the fish are salted and lightly wind-dried. For the vegetables, we tried combining dried vegetables with vegetables…