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Simmered monkfish liver with deep-fried shrimp-shaped taro, soaked in broth

The prep method for the ankimo is one I learned at a restaurant I worked at previously. Vacuum-sealing the ankimo to draw out the blood results in a…

Monkfish liver in citrus vinegar sauce, green peas in tofu dressing, dried sea cucumber roe, oval coin-shaped savory castella, steamed abalone, yuzu and cheese terrine

This is the appetizer course. For the monkfish liver in chiri-zu, the monkfish liver is cleaned and soaked in water, then steeped in milk for 20…

Noshi-style pressed abalone and black beans, monkfish liver rolled in a tree-ring pattern, roe-bearing rolled shrimp with caviar, butterbur himuro-style, arrowhead bulb castella, grilled dried squid roe, sweetfish kombu roll

This is the celebratory tray course. For the noshi abalone, abalone that has been steamed until tender is folded and pressed firmly for a while, then…

Dried persimmon, golden sea cucumber, and walnut salad, monkfish liver wine terrine, smoked silver-shimmer fish styled as a winter camellia, yellowtail sushi fingers rolled kimono-sleeve style, snow crab deep-fried and wrapped in yuba, dried roe deep-fried in a fan-shaped coating, vegetables in a sweet-and-sour achara pickle, freeze-dried konjac and a prized fatty whale cut simmered Yamato-style

For the dried persimmon, golden sea cucumber, and walnut salad, I use a local specialty dried persimmon. The golden sea cucumber is thoroughly…

• ¥950

• Cook time 3 hr

Monkfish liver simmered in lemon, spring sea bream roll with vegetable-and-tofu filling, baked sea bream roe, cherry-blossom miso-pickled tofu, octopus head cracker

A seasonal dish. For the monkfish liver simmered in lemon, we add lemon juice and lemon rounds, and simmer the blood-drained, steamed monkfish liver…

Monkfish liver and turnip terrine

This is monkfish liver and turnip terrine, an appetizer (sakizuke) that makes use of monkfish liver as an end-of-season ingredient for March. Ankimo…

• Serves 1 · ¥300

• Cook time 2 hr

Mochi-kujira whale in vinegar-miso dressing, chicken breast in steamed white-loin style with yuzu chili paste oil, pressed vegetables, arrowhead bulb balls, wax-glazed grilled shrimp, monkfish liver kintsuba, Omi konjac, whelk deep-fried in seaweed batter, lily bulb monaka, plum-flesh swirl, layered egg

As for the mochi-kujira in vinegar-miso dressing, whale is rarely used these days because of the whaling ban, but since it's a nostalgic ingredient…

Pine-cone-cut tokobushi abalone simmered for long life, bamboo-cut celtuce pickled in miso, bottarga and cheese pressed in layers, miso-pickled plum-blossom tofu, layered plum-blossom salmon, two-ingredient herring roe roll, candied baby sardines with a kombu knot, layered crab and sea urchin fish-paste dumpling scored and grilled, crab cracker, monkfish liver rolled in sweet-pickled daikon, sake-lees plum blossom layered into an auspicious plum shape, debira dried flounder in a sweet vinegar marinade, kosode-style salmon grilled in a citrus-soy marinade, and mountain yam wrapped in paper and cooked

These are celebratory hors d'oeuvres. For the miso-pickled celtuce, we pickle it in Saikyo miso. Since the celtuce is peeled into one continuous thin…

Arrowhead bulb castella, monkfish liver monaka, persimmon and lily bulb, mole-shaped taro, barracuda kimono-wrap sushi, brandy-cured bottarga

This is an appetizer course. There is a tenth-night custom of making a straw gun from bundled straw and beating the ground with it to drive away…

• Serves 200 · ¥250

• Cook time 2 days

Persimmon tofu dressing, bamboo-leaf grilled conger eel, monkfish liver bonito-flavored simmer, bamboo-leaf sushi

This is the hashi-osame, the finishing course before the rice. For the persimmon shira-ae, pour an appropriate amount of salt into thick soymilk and…

• ¥169

• Cook time 30 min

Monkfish liver, monkfish jellied broth

This is part of an effort to cope with rising food costs. At the restaurant where I work in Oarai, Ibaraki, monkfish is an ingredient we use often…

• Serves 1 · ¥350

• Cook time 2 hr

Cherry-blossom Mineoka-style tofu, monkfish liver rolled into a straw-bundle shape, duck-wrapped Kyoto garland chrysanthemum roll, cherry sea bream kombu-cured sushi wrapped kosode-sleeve style, kuruma prawn in a firewood-bundle presentation, and sprout-wrapped sea bream roe

A seasonal dish. This time the ankimo tsuto-roll is wrapped in paprika for a splash of color. For the duck-wrapped kyo-shungiku roll, the duck is…

Chrysanthemum and grated daikon salad, octopus simmered with adzuki beans, monkfish liver in savory aspic, morel, papaya, and white kidney bean tofu dressing, Tatsutagawa tofu, served in a kabosu shell, hagi shinjo

For the octopus simmered with adzuki beans, briefly parboiling the octopus in tea first turns it a deep red color. I then simmer it slowly in…

Herb-and-Breadcrumb Baked Oysters, Conger Eel Yawata-maki, Monkfish Liver in Butter-Soy Sauce

This is an introduction of dishes paired with Japanese white wine. This is a grilled dish. For the herb-and-breadcrumb baked oysters, the oysters are…

• Serves 1 · ¥550

• Cook time 1 hr

Monkfish liver mousse, sockeye salmon confit, fugu with medicinal-herb dressing

Starting with the appetizer course, the sockeye salmon confit. Confit refers to low-temperature cooking; to keep the salmon tender, it is cooked at…

Foie gras savory steamed egg custard, frozen konjac layered Hakata-style, monkfish set in jelly, mackerel sushi wrapped kosode-sleeve style, plum-shaped arrowhead tuber, kuruma prawn lightly simmered in dashi Edo-mae style, egg-bearing baby octopus simmered in a savory sauce, lettuce stem, Chinese yam, and crab with plum rice porridge, and rapeseed blossoms with mustard dressing

For the appetizer course's foie gras chawanmushi, the foie gras is broken up into pieces before being used.

Barracuda grilled Tanba-style, monkfish liver nest-style, chicken gizzard with chrysanthemum dressing, maple-leaf naruto-swirl fried in a bread-crumb coating, soba sushi, fig deep-fried in a sesame coating, namerō crepe

This is the clear-soup course. For the mochi-wrapped oyster, I clean raw oysters and simmer them sweet-and-salty, the way you would simmer a…

• ¥950

• Cook time 1 hr

Akudo-Imo Grilled with Miso Sauce, Hokkigai and White Maitake Koshu-Style Grilled, Ankimo Steak, Dried Persimmon Karukan Fritter, Sweet Shrimp Shiokara Topped with Ikura, Fugu Shirako Soup

This is the appetizer course. As for the Akudo-Imo Grilled with Miso Sauce: this taro variety has a rich, mellow flavor whatever you do with it…

• ¥4,000

• Cook time 15 min

Good-Fortune Cod Milt Nuta in a Yuzu Shell, Monkfish Liver and Celtuce Kinuta-Maki, Yorou Smoked Salmon Hakata-Style, Fugu Cracker, Sake-Grilled Squid Bonbori-Style

This is the seasonal course. The good-fortune cod milt vinegared-miso dressing served in a yuzu shell uses seven ingredients, following the tradition…

Dual-purpose ingredient dish: crispy black-purple rice

During the pandemic there was a period when ingredients were hard to come by, so I had to cook with whatever limited ingredients I had on hand. I'd…

• Serves 1 · ¥575

• Cook time 20 min

Yellowtail and Turnip Sushi, Cold-Smoked Yellowtail and Monkfish Liver Monaka

This is a use of the winter ingredient yellowtail. This is the hashi-hajime, the first course eaten with chopsticks. For the yellowtail and turnip…

• Serves 2 · ¥600

• Cook time 1 weeks

Seared bottarga, miso-pickled celtuce, grilled oyster with apple, jellied monkfish liver, salmon and turnip sushi, scallop and milk terrine

This is the appetizer course. For the seared bottarga, we first wash the mullet roe sacs thoroughly in salted water, then rinse away the blood…

Yellowtail and daikon

For the buri daikon, the daikon is first parboiled and rehydrated, then placed on kombu. The yellowtail is marinated in sandō-wari and grilled. The…

Monkfish tomozu

At the restaurant where I work in Oarai, Ibaraki, monkfish is an ingredient we use often during its harvest season, from November through March. By…

• Serves 1 · ¥350

• Cook time 40 min