Fish of the Week: Hiramasa
We are receiving Hiramasa (3–4 kg fish) on Saturday morning, October 10. It is slightly less fatty than yellowtail (Buri/Hamachi) and offers a bit tighter flesh, a good pick if you find Hamachi too rich. Hiramasa is also one of the parents of the Burihira hybrid we describe in our wild vs. farmed fish guide. Our other items are as usual.
Market: Three Typhoons, Scarce Scallops
The weather briefly recovered after weeks of consecutive typhoons, but three new typhoons are now near Japan. As of 3:00 am JST on October 7, per the Japan Meteorological Agency:
- Typhoon No. 27 (Choi-wan), strong, is east of Japan moving north-northeast at 55 km/h. Central pressure 970 hPa, maximum sustained winds 35 m/s (gusts 50 m/s). It is expected to become an extratropical low later on October 7.
- Typhoon No. 28 (Noro), strong, is near Wake Island moving west at 45 km/h. Central pressure 970 hPa, maximum sustained winds 40 m/s (gusts 55 m/s).
- Typhoon No. 29 (Koguma) is over the Marshall Islands moving west-northwest at 10 km/h. Central pressure 994 hPa, maximum sustained winds 23 m/s (gusts 35 m/s).
Hokkaido Scallops are scarce and expensive this week. The harvest season has ended in Miyagi Prefecture, and Hokkaido is experiencing Oshike (extra-high tide).
This Week's Lineup
Besides the Hiramasa, we carry the usual items: Bluefin Tuna, Sasshu Salmon, Hokkaido Bafun Uni, Hokkaido Scallops (limited), Kinmedai, Madai, Unagi Kabayaki, Saba, Shiso, and fresh Wasabi.
Closed Wednesday, October 14
Sashimi DC will be closed on Wednesday, October 14. Monday, October 12 is a national holiday in Japan, Sports Day (スポーツの日), so the fish delivery is delayed by a day and arrives Thursday, October 15. The holiday began as Health and Sports Day (体育の日) on October 10, commemorating the opening ceremony of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. It moved to the second Monday of October in 2000 and took its current name in 2020.
Classes: Oct 11 and Oct 25, and a Wine Pairing Class Planned for Oct 17–18
We added two more dates of the Knife Sharpening and Sashimi Slicing Class: Sunday, October 11 and Sunday, October 25. Bring your own knife, sharpen it on whetstones with Keita, then slice sashimi-grade fish. We are also planning a small cooking and wine pairing class for the weekend of October 17–18; details will follow on our Events page.
Thank You
In place of our weekly shout-out, two thank-yous this week.
Fox Mill Elementary PTA. Fox Mill Elementary School offers a Japanese language immersion program, and its PTA organized the Onigiri Action – Fall Family Meetup on October 2. We took part alongside YUUZ and Umé Reserve. It was a lively event, and the kids were so energetic. The happiest moment of the day for us was a small girl who returned to our sampling table more than five times for the bluefin tuna sashimi. Each time she asked, with a shy smile, if she could have more. Seeing our fish bring her that much joy was the best reward we could have hoped for.
The House at 1229 and Novella Wines. We hosted a wine × fish pairing program at The House at 1229 together with Jen from Novella Wines, and had a great time with the guests over four pairings. We reshaped the courses to make a better experience and may offer the upgraded wine × fish pairing program in the future. See our wine and fish pairing guide for the science behind it, and our earlier post on the relaunched program.