 |
 |
Nabe
Nabe is basically a Japanese hot pot, where food types are added to a boiling pot of flavored broth. Sukiyaki and shabu-shabu are both versions of nabe, as are lesser-known variations like oden and chanko-nabe. The restaurants listed here, with the exception of Hakkei, are shabu-shabu houses, where items are added raw by diners themselves to a boiling pot right at the table, and are great for fun, healthy dining in small groups. The ingredients can be thin slices of any raw meat or seafood, tofu, noodles, and vegetables, such as Chinese cabbage, onions, leeks, or mushrooms, which are cooked in the broth and then dipped in sauces.
The trick is to get things cooked to the perfect level of done-ness, particularly with meats. As far as vegetables go, you can darn well almost eat them raw, but with meat the situation changes. Of course, you want to make sure you cook chicken all the way through, and also pork, to a lesser degree, but with beef, you have room to play. If undercooked and too red, it will have a slightly chewy consistency; if overcooked it will be tough and dry. Seconds make the difference here, and you want it just at that sweet spot when the meat is in transition between the two extremes. It takes practice! Remember to carefully swish, swish the meats back and forth in the boiling pot, as the term swish swish is roughly translated to shabu shabu in Japanese. The broth itself can be very light, almost like water, to very flavorful, where dipping sauces may or may not be used. Seasonings for the broth can consist of dashi with bonito and konbu, shoyu, miso, kim-chee, spicy garlic, and other flavors that differ from store to store. Other restaraunts that are not exclusively shabu-shabu stops, but have an excellent shabu-shabu are Imanas-Tei from the Izakaya section and Sushi Bistro Shun, from the Sushi Section, with Chef Benkei-san's killer all-you-can-eat prime rib shabu-shabu!
 |
This is your brain. |
 |
This is your brain on drugs. At Ichiriki, you'll be trippin' at how that paper bowl doesn't break from the stresses of a propane flame on one side and a boiling broth full of goodies on the other. |
Hakkei. 1436 Young St. in McCully/Moiliili. 944-6688. Lunch only upon special group reservations, dinner daily except closed on Monday. Parking outside store. Prices: $$$. Map. Famous Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto was soundly defeated by challenger Seiya Masahara, the executive chef of a traditional hot-spring Inn in Japan called Yubara. When it was announced that Masahara-san was coming to town with a new restaurant, the tuned-in crowd in Honolulu was absolutely abuzz. His project, Hakkei, has since opened, and even the most critical of critics have been more than impressed with his elegant dishes. They are clean, simple, and sophisticated offerings, with an emphasis on oden, which is a type of nabe that simmers various foods in a soy/dashi hot pot for longer periods of time than the shabu-shabu-style dining mentioned above. This allows for a deeper saturation of broth into the daikon, gobo, konyakku, tsukune, and other such items available for a softer, more exquisite, and flavorful end product. You can go ala carte or choose set-course menus (recommended!) that still offer room to pick from different items in the pot of oden, which your waitress will lead you to before beginning the meal. A daily menu of specials are posted on their site at www.hakkei-honolulu.com. Even though oden is a traditional Japanese comfort-food, you won’t find any dishes casually or haphazardly put together here - the level of skill and artisanship used is honed to a razor-sharpness that is absolutely delightful, kinda reminding me of Rokakku, at the Ala Moana Shopping Center. It seems every dish presented has not a single slice of daikon out of place, a shred of grated carrot without purpose, nor a single ingredient that does not harmonize with the other ingredients perfectly. You will find yourself impressed and well-satisfied!
