Food Spotlight: Yakiniku

Yakiniku, ah!
A-ah, yakiniku, ah!
Yakiniku, ah!

(See this page for origin of this haiku, which I have so masterfully adapted.)

When it comes to delicious food in Japan, I can't think of anything that makes me happier than yakiniku. It's a good social meal, and every time I finish it I come away saying 'ahh, ureshii' (I'm so happy). ^_^

Yakiniku (焼肉, literally 'grilled meat') actually originates from Korea, and is also called Korean barbecue. It's quite popular in Japan. When you go to a yakiniku restaurant, there will be a grill on your table, usually a charcoal barbecue. You can then order a variety of meats or vegetables to barbecue on the grill.

My favourite yakiniku restaurant is 'An An' 安安. This is a chain; I used to go to the one near Kawasaki station - if you exit La Zona and go down the street past Muza, it's near a Lawson, I think). I favour 'An An' because it's the cheapest I've found, and alcohol is pretty cheap too.

This becomes a consideration because yakiniku is not a cheap eat. If you're with another budget-minded person, you can keep the costs down. However, I have never been to yakiniku with a Japanese person who has ever said, 'well, dish _x_ costs _y_, so we probably shouldn't get two of them'. Everyone I've been to yakiniku with has ordered with reckless abandon. ^_^

Your menu will have a variety of different meats and cuts. Some types of meat can be quite fatty (this seems to suit Japanese tastes), and there are also types of offal. Beef and pork are common, and you can usually find some kind of seafood. One dish of meat is usually pretty small - with perhaps 6-8 small, thin slices of meat to fry - so you can sample a few different sorts. Usually you'll put a few different things on at once, wait for them to cook, then dip them in a sauce, the most common being soy sauce-based.

SO GOOD!!

In this picture you can see: a dish of meat waiting to be cooked (almost empty ^_^), a dish of Korean-style vegetables (salad), the grill in action, and a lemon sawa (a cold alcoholic beverage is an important accompaniment ^_^). In front of me are a couple of small dishes; one has sauce and is to dip the cooked meat; the other is for personal helpings of salad etc.

Since you are slowly cooking a few bits at a time, you can savour each item, and it lends itself to a long meal. That's why it's a good social opportunity. ^_^

For those of you who don't like fatty meat or offal, here are my personal recommendations:

• karubi (galbi) - short ribs? but doesn't have bones
• ro-su (roast) - loin, tends to be less fatty than most
• harami - meat around diaphragm - though it could be considered 'offal', it tastes good, not like other offal
• ton (tounge) - usually eaten with lemon juice, this is actually pretty good, if you cook it really dark ^_^
• vegetables. For example, onions, piman (green peppers), cabbage, carrots, corn, mushrooms. Since they usually aren't really marinated, they will get burnt rather black before they cook properly, but they make a nice bit of variety to having only meat.
• salad. Again, a cold salad - I recommend Korean vegetables - can help refresh you when you're eating nothing but grilled meat.

At An An, the restaurant I've been to most, you can get mushrooms or corn in a foil packet with butter. You wrap the foil tightly and put it on the grill. As it cooks, the butter makes the mushrooms or corn soft and juicy and delicious.

It's nice later in the meal to have some bibimbap (a Korean rice dish with kimchi and other Korean vegetables), spicy soups, or plain white rice. This is one reason it's good to go to yakiniku with a larger group, so you can sample more things without breaking the bank.

Another reason I particularly like yakiniku is that Japanese cuisine tends not to have much red meat in it. After weeks of eating noodles, seafood and rice balls, sometimes you just crave a good barbecue. ^_^

If you are a vegetarian, however, there probably won't be much to excite you. You can order vegetables and fry them (although you'll be frying them on the same grill that's covered in juices from the meat), also salads and rice are available.

I've just been to yakiniku tonight, so I'm feeling very contented with life. ^_^