Tasting all the Fermented Flavors of Okinawa | Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern | Travel Channel

Tasting all the Fermented Flavors of Okinawa | Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern | Travel Channel

isaka poow can be found in the gritty Saka Machi neighborhood of okawa’s capital naha city behind the counter is Sato Yamashiro who began learning the art of cutting fish at 17 years old now with almost 50 years of experience he creates Treasures on a plate that showcase his Mastery of the local seafood offerings it’s like watching a surgeon perform an operation on somebody’s eyes he knows where every bone is Naomi huji wara is a certified Yuen instructor she’s an expert in this ancient practice that considers all food to be medicinal and crucial for personal Wellness you want to get the tuna eye we should have a tuna eye with okanawa holding the record for the planet’s longest living citizens Naomi is well versed in a number of local Healing Foods one of her favorites is Goya a local bitter melon known to reduce cholesterol and boost immunity this ingredient cools your body it doesn’t only cool your just your body body but your heart because it’s thumping very fast and it especially cools your heart heat so that’s the reason okan prays for it during the summer the whole point of traditional Eastern medicine from this part of the world is a lot of Yin and yangang it’s a lot of heating and cooling speeding and slowing the trend in Western restaurants towards small plate dining has been the way food has always been served at Isiah small portions allow you to taste many different different dishes at a sitting Taman would you like to try the Taman it’s an okan fish sounds great the special fish of the day is Taman for which there is no real English name except what translates to white black fish jez Louise wa beautiful that’s [Music] impressive that’s beautiful it has the best aspects of maai red snapper really good red snapper but it’s a little chewier which I like it’s got texture oh the eye yes the tuna eyes are brazed to Perfection with a mix of soy Rock Sugar Saki and Dashi you have this fatty gelatinous ring around the eye that protects it and there is all that muscle meat behind the eye that I think is the best tasting muscle on the tuna when it’s cooked because it has so much fat it’s remarkable as a nation Japan has one of the highest rates of fish consumption per capita and the eye is a beloved part of that diet I’m sorry bone marrow people tuna eyes are where it’s at I mean just by a factor of about 300 while tuna eyes might be a little shocking to westerners every okan isaka will offer a version of their national dish called Goya champuru this is the Goya traditional know and monster looking vegetable PA’s champuru is a mix of tofu scrambled eggs and fish cakes with Goya you’ve probably eaten almost every day of your life there a staple food in in Okinawa champuru Loosely translates to something mixed and often also refers to the culture of okanawa this really is remarkable and the quality of his Goya is insane because it’s both bitter and sweet at the same time I can’t stop eating this good Pao provides a glimpse into how the stunning marine life of the East China Sea can be converted into nightlife favorites of okanawa to see the remarkable diversity of produce that this island has to offer look no farther than Mishi Market Nice from porene perfection I mean look at that to The Uncommon to the downright unique you can even get your face with chilies known as okawa’s kitchen Bishi Market in the heart of naha city was born out of postor War II chaos when people had to take to the streets to buy and sell needed merchandise because there were no buildings left from the [Music] bombings here you’ll find the most essential ingredient in Japanese cooking the katsuobushi dried fermented and smoked Bonito a small skipjack tuna to me this is the the king of all Umami ingredients it’s indispensable in Japanese cookery along with KOMU a species of seelp the Bonito shavings make the ingredients for Dashi the Cornerstone of Japanese cooking so you have to have the head towards you and then shave [Music] it when it’s shaved fresh you can pick up the tiniest little bit of moist just gorgeous texture if you want the thicker one then you would have to steam it a little bit how long does he steam it for 5 minutes after boiling by steaming the Bonito first it rehydrates the fish and allows for thicker slicing no way the aroma it’s like the best fish jerky you’ve ever had that is amazing amazing mix the thicker slices carry a robust flavor and will not break down as quickly in longer cooking soups and sauces I learned something brand new today preserve foods are fundamental okona in daily life around the corner kirata pickle shop is overflowing with fermented flavors because it’s hot here in okanella it was easier for us to pickle things for nearly 70 years the harata family has been providing multitudes of pickled offerings to the masses there’s scallions with katsu abosi it’s got that great sort of acidy flavor from the scallion just the perfect compliment together spicy pickles fermented Goya dried octopus pickled plums pickled pigier with vinegar oh that is really really good stop kin is home to Camp Hansen an American Military Base employing some 6,000 Marines the streets are littered with familiar American signage but there’s still a few places in kin holding on to their distinctly okan Traditions despite them wrapping those traditions in two different packages restaurants like this one have a foot in two cultures really on this side it’s wo’s lunch counter CCA 1952 and on that side it’s traditional okanawa anytime over the last 300 years this is heam matu a small Cafe maintaining its cultural uniqueness in the face of the inevitable decision to make their Cafe visually appealing to American soldiers looking for a meal Here Comes Uncle Joe from petty coat Junction thank you very much I love your overalls owners Satoshi Yoshino and his wife chizuko are renowned for serving classic okan dishes like Chi Richa a pigs blood stew pigs blood fried with carrots and cabbage mix in fresh cut pork meat and Globs of pig lard a generous dollop of garlic and the stew is served with white rice in a side of udon soup oh and there’s quite the collection of condiments here because I’m a lover of all things pork cooked in its own blood I’m just going Southern homeboy on this plate right here why even mess around white rice hot sauce huge puddles of pig fat some blood I’m very happy wow there’s no blood taste at all it’s super delicious braze pork with a gravy thickened with blood meat just melts in your mouth such diversity of cultures represented in kin I don’t know who this guy is but I’m jealous of his hair for

Andrew travels to Okinawa, Japan for ancient eats like pig’s blood and tuna eyes. Naomi Fujiwara, a Yakuzen instructor well-versed in the ancient practice that considers all food medicinal, takes Andrew to Izakaya Payao. Chef Tsutomo Yamashiro, with 50 years of experience, serves them local taman fish, braised tuna eyes and goya chompuru. The country’s national dish, goya chompuru is a mix of tofu, scrambled eggs and fish cakes with goya melon. Heading to Makishi Market, Andrew and Naomi sample dried fish shavings, sea kelp, pickles from 70-year-old Hirata Pickles Shop, fermented fruit and dried octopus. At Kin, Andrew experiences a collision of cultures when he’s served Okinawan fried pig’s blood stew from a local man in classic American overalls at a diner-style lunch counter. Andrew truly experiences the secrets of Okinawans’ famed well-being on his bizarre foods journey.

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