Fishing Forum

Hawaii people must have their fresh sashimi for new years parties.
Wanda Adams writing in the Honolulu Advertiser reports.....
A sign that Island sashimi lovers may be becoming more knowledgeable and finicky is that a number of stores were using Japanese terms to describe types of sashimi-grade 'ahi.
Abura, a term that means "fat," is used to indicate a cut that is particularly oily. It is not a section of the fish but a descriptive term, explained Takenaka. Toro, however, defines a section of the fish, the layer of fat that sits just inside the skin in the belly area. Chu toro is the place deeper within where the belly fat mingles with the red flesh; the character chu means "middle," said Tamashiro. However, he said that in Hawai'i, the terms chu toro and toro are often used interchangeably. Some toro is cut horizontally, so that the entire piece is belly fat. Some is cut in cross section, so that both the light-colored fat and the deeper-colored chu toro are included.
At Marukai, the membership store where many Japanese nationals shop, chu toro was $22.99 a pound yesterday morning and chu toro block was a whopping $49.99 a pound. And if you wanted to grate your own fresh, imported wasabi to go with it, those little green knobs of delicious heat were selling for $69 a pound; a package of three short pieces — enough to accompany a platter of sashimi — weighed out at about $11.
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You want to know the funny thing about that? Tuna doesn't make the best sashimi, Wahoo does. I lived on Guam for a couple of years, and I came to find that a fresh small Wahoo makes the most delicious Sashimi, way better than even the highest grade Ahi'. We use to rent the boats from the Navy base there on the island. We'd always come back with atleast a dozen wahoo, many in the 50 pound range. I always gloated since a 50 pound wahoo around there was a trophy. With a little Eastern US tactics, I was plowing a 70+ pounder atleast once or twice a week, on top of the consistent dozen or more I caught every trip. I was on the fishermans Co-op there on the island, so I sold the majority of the larger fish, which paid for the gas, boat, and beer. We usually kept one of the medium sized ones to steak out, and we'd keep a runt to make into sashimi. There was a little resteraunt/bar/marina close to the navy base on the south side of the island; damn, I can't remember it's name. But we use to tip the cook a ten spot and he'd take that runt and cut the entire thing up for us into sashimi. That's alot of cutting for only a 10 dollar tip. We even gave the dude a couple steaks off the big daddy to take home for his family.

I'm telling you, if you haven't tried Wahoo prepared like sashimi, you're missing out. And not just missing out a little, but A WHOLE LOT!!!!!!!!!! LOL[cool]
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The fresher the better. There are only 2 spices that I love more than anything in the world (except fishing).

1 Fresh ground Horseradish

2 Fresh fround Wasabi.

You just can't beat that fresh taste or sensation.[crazy]
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[font "Lucida Console"][#ff4040]I couldn't agree with you more TubeN2![/#ff4040][/font]
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Mmmm, I have to disagree with you on the favorite spices. Just about everything I cook gets a shot of Garlic Powder and some fresh ground sea salt. Those are my two favorite. Some people don't count salt as a "seasoning," so if I had to pick a second, it would be thyme.[cool]

But, if we are strickly going "asian" on the spices, Wasabi and Kikomans Soy sauce is a must.
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Did I forget to say the "Whacky Spice" category?? My bad.
Those are the ones I love best with Sushi.

My best "Go To" spice for almost any type of fish (whole or fillet) would be 1. fresh ground Garlic 2. Tarragon and 3. (not a spice) Fresh squeezed lemon.[cool][cool]

That's when life gets good.[]
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Lemon may not be a spice, but it's deffinately a "seasoning." With out lemon, some fish just wouldn't taste right. Like King Mackerel for instance. If you didn't add lemon juice into the cooking process, rather grilling or baking, the meat would be way too strong for the taste buds.
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That is soooo true!

I was taught by an old Asian dude:

Lemon not a spice but always very nice![cool]

It is also a good way to distinguish the difference between a good meal and fertilizer for your garden.[laugh]
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