- Статьи
- Society
- The possibility of an island: how Japanese cuisine is growing in popularity in Moscow
The possibility of an island: how Japanese cuisine is growing in popularity in Moscow
Bursts of interest in Japanese cuisine periodically cover the Russian capital like tsunami waves. And now we are again witnessing a clear revival around this distinctive national culinary tradition. Izvestia found out where Japanese classics are prepared in Moscow, what Tokyo cuisine is like, how the nikkei direction is presented, what is remarkable about the omakase chef's set format and which Japanese street food is especially popular with a young audience.
Meditation with taste
Akami and Japanese perch sashimi, nigiri with sweet shrimp, scallop and o-toro, tyawanmushi with sea urchin caviar, miso soup with salmon, kushiaki chicken hearts, gyoza with shrimp and wagyu kamameshi. This is just a small part of what you can taste at the IMA restaurant, a new project by the famous restaurateur Arkady Novikov, which opened on Varvarka in mid—March. The unusual name in Japanese means "now", in other words, exactly the moment that is worth living slowly and with pleasure, jumping out of the daily hustle and bustle.
Assorted sashimi
Unlike many other Novikov establishments, IMA turned out to be surprisingly intimate, cozy and quiet — with excellent service, high-quality products and a truly reverent attitude towards authentic Japanese food. The experienced Takumi Wada-san, who once cooked for the Crown Prince of the UAE and other respected people, is responsible for the kitchen.
Chicken Kushiaki
The menu features Japanese classics, stylish, sophisticated and minimalistic. So much so that the dishes sometimes look too restrained, however, as is often the case, such restraint is deceptive. It hides not only a masterly mastery of traditional techniques, but above all an exceptionally accurate understanding of the original product and a well-balanced balance of tastes.
Fish cheeks in teriyaki sauce
Among the undoubted successes of Maestro Takumi, we note nigiri wagyu with an ideal serving temperature for rice and meat, delicate dobinmushi soup with transparent dashi broth with seafood, exemplary miso, moderately dense unazyu rice with eel in sweet and salty caramel glaze, mighty hamachi cheeks with pickled ginger shoots and yuzu meringue for dessert.
There are practically no bright accents in the dishes that attract attention. Everything is based on nuances, shades and semitones, and the taste of the main ingredient is clearly discernible in each serving — this is especially important in the case of raw fish. In short, such food requires attention and concentration, but it can give real pleasure.
Japan on style
Another completely unexpected version of Japanese cuisine was presented at the Motto Azabu restaurant, which opened in Teatralny Proezd a couple of weeks ago. We are talking about a new project by restaurateur Denis Ivanov, a long-time admirer and true connoisseur of the rich gastronomic heritage of the Land of the Rising Sun.
Nikkei dorado with tiger milk
However, Motto Azabu is not so much about traditions that go back in time as about the current cuisine of a modern Japanese metropolis. They cook here the way it is customary today in popular restaurants in the most prestigious areas of Tokyo. Chizuko Shirahama, Ivanov's wife, is responsible for the overall ideology of the gastronomic component of the project. The experienced chef Vadim Malkov is responsible for the direct implementation.
Krispy abi wasabi
The menu is divided into two — the one that is closer to tradition with its restrained aesthetics and attention to the purity of the taste of the original product (waseku), and the one that has experienced a strong Western influence, equally in the field of ingredients and technology (yeseku).
Mentaiko spaghetti in cream sauce
For the first one, for example, steamed sea devil liver (ankimo) with fresh persimmons and lime juice, gelated dashi-yuzu with sea urchin caviar, edamame scallop soup with dashi broth and unagi donburi are responsible. All the dishes are delicate and delicate, built on a complex game of semitones and shades of taste.
Stewed beef in demiglas sauce with crispy potatoes and sweet onions
For the second, beef tartare with fresh horseradish, Caesar salad with trumpeter, dorado with tiger milk (curtsey to nikkei), borushichi (an island version of Russian borscht) with wagyu and spaghetti in cream sauce with pickled pollock caviar. Of course, we are not talking about blindly copying popular foreign dishes. Each position has been reinterpreted taking into account Japanese realities, products and tastes, as well as, of course, the special aesthetics of serving. However, the first principle is quite recognizable. But it is all the more interesting to observe the interpretations.
There is also a twist on the famous Chaliapin steak on the menu, which has been consistently prepared at Tokyo's Imperial Hotel since 1936. However, in Motto Azabu, the fillet is not beaten off, but pre-marinated in koji for softness, and the "cap" of finely chopped caramelized onions is prepared separately.
Trans-Pacific Partnership
The Ikura restaurant on Rozhdestvensky Boulevard has undergone an extensive menu update. The establishment positions itself as izakaya nikkei, i.e. as an authentic Japanese tavern, but focused on the Japanese-Peruvian gastronomic heritage. From the first, there is a wabi—sabi-style interior that allows for conscious imperfection and is designed to emphasize the fleeting beauty of the surrounding world. From the second, there is a very specific selection of ingredients, flavors and techniques.
Assorted kushiyaki
Tacos with Kamchatka crab and green apple, salmon ceviche with tamarind sauce, and Haku roll with scallop and milk yuzu sauce have now appeared in the cold appetizer section. Itameshi pasta with tuna, wagyu beef stroganoff with wasabi puree and the most tender stewed rib on truffle rice were added to the assortment of hot items.
However, the restaurant's menu is quite spacious, so you can always choose something to suit your mood. The mighty sepukku plateau with rolls, nigiri and spicy sushi, wasabi shrimps with golden mango, yellowtail tiradito with yuzu dressing, teriyaki salmon with sesame cucumbers and shrimps with tomato salsa in the form of a kushiaki kebab, and wagashi with sturgeon caviar for dessert deserve attention.
Gastronomic Theater
In recent years, the Japanese version of the omakase chef's table has become particularly popular in the Russian capital. Translated into Russian, this word means "I completely rely on you," and the action itself resembles a chamber gastronomic set, when the chef improvises with the initial set of products and prepares a series of compact positions for a small group of guests (usually from 2 to 4 people) located in front of him. At the same time, the process of creating dishes is accompanied by stories about the features of selected seasonal ingredients and the intricacies of working with them. An interesting variation on the omakase theme appeared at the end of March at the Oshi Izakaya Emperor restaurant on Petrovka, and the main focus of the set is on Japanese wagyu beef of the highest grade A-5, cooked on a traditional teppan roaster.
Wagyu with rice noodles, erings, bok choy and sukiyaki sauce
—Wagyu is a delicacy that has a lot of subtleties in fat content, each cut differs in its taste, texture and optimal cooking temperature, which is what we want to show our guests first of all," Mikhail Chagai, the brand chef of the project, told Izvestia. — In the set, we also offer to feel the game of the taste of meat with seafood and other seasonal products at the peak of their freshness.
Wagyu, eringi and bok choy for omakase
The set consists of 10 serves, and as a refreshing warm—up, guests are offered a sweet starter - soaked wild wakamomo peach with notes of sake in the taste. Next, light seafood snacks come into play: moderately salted pollock caviar seasoned with shichimi togarashi with young dried kombu seaweed and chutoro sashimi from the tender, less fatty part of tuna.
Donburi with wagyu, ikura, sea urchin caviar and rice
The introduction to wagyu begins with a handroll, where slices of marbled beef are slightly fried using the omori method to a medium state, balanced with a light saltiness of black caviar and rubbed with truffle for a subtle mushroom flavor. This is followed by sushi aburi made from a thin slice of wagyu rib-eye, slightly fatter and more delicate in texture.
Roll with raw wagyu, black caviar and truffle
Before the main meat dishes, there is a break for a creamy steamed omelet of chavanmushi with leek and dashi broth and a pleasantly sour appetizer of watermelon radish, celery and pumpkin pear marinated in a mixture of mirin, sake and soy sauce.
Next, work begins with the meat on the teppan. Wagyu strip is sliced, fried in a roasting pan along with bok choy and mushrooms, and served with starchy rice noodles and sukiyaki sauce. The author's version of donburi is prepared with thicker beef chunks, and their fat content is balanced by caviar, sea urchin caviar and wasabi. The thickest pieces of wagyu strip are fried in the manner of juicy mini steaks and accompanied by lightly fried asparagus on teppan. To gently smooth out this very greasy part of the set, a bowl of miso soup with silk tofu is served next. And the final refreshing chord is rice waffles made from mochi dough with ice cream and raspberries in between.
Little Japan
Japanese street food is another gastronomic phenomenon that has taken root well in modern Moscow realities and is especially in demand among a young audience. Among the most notable projects in this area is the J'PAN bistro chain from the LB Group restaurant group, which already has eight outlets. Their creators did not directly copy their foreign counterparts, but relied on the most vivid and memorable elements of Japan's distinctive street culture, with its small cafes with kawaii desserts and chamber establishments in residential areas where you can quickly and deliciously eat after school or work. Guests are offered recognizable dishes from the daily diet of the Japanese (ramen, donburi, katsu, onigiri, mochi), only with a recipe adapted to Moscow tastes and a slightly more thoughtful visual component.
Yaki udon with beef
This approach is clearly reflected in the updated spring menu of the project. The set of hot appetizers includes crispy smoked tofu, juicy karaage chicken and shrimp, and combines several textures and flavors familiar to young metropolitan gourmets in one plate. In udon with scallop and truffle, traditional Japanese noodles are combined with European elements: fragrant mushrooms, parmesan cheese and creamy sauce. Gyu-katsu curry with juicy beef, crispy panko breading and light sweetness in the sauce shows the features of the "comfort food" popular among Muscovites. The strawberry and tapioca matcha drink is an example of how the project works with trends: tapioca balls once became widely famous on social networks. In J'pan, expressive accents were added to them with the help of delicate matcha foam, the sourness of strawberry puree and the oiliness of coconut milk.
Original desserts, often made in the images of cartoon characters by Hayao Miyazaki, or symbols of Japan, such as Mount Fuji, play a separate role. At the same time, the sweets are not only visually remarkable, but also represent first-class confectionery products with well-designed fillings and textures. Totoro is made from hodzich mousse with pear compote, a cake with the face of the project's mascot, shiba inu, is made from lychee mousse with raspberry coulis and adzuki paste, and the new cherry chocolate dessert uses vegan cherry mousse with chocolate cream.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
