Sukiyaki mountain at Sukiyaki Mori!
Yakiniku lunch at 298 Nikuya Room
Every once in a while, I have a conversation with a foodie friend that involves are deciding what food group we've most be able to give up. As someone who really loves seafood (particularly in the form of sushi) and has been known to voluntarily dine on vegetarian food (and is aware of the high nutritional value of vegetables), I reckon that I'd be most willing to give up eating land meats.
At the same time though, not all land meats are equal to my eyes (and taste buds). For example, I must admit to not yet having been blown away by any of the venison that I've had and really don't care much for ostrich meat at all (despite having tried it in various forms, including as a grilled steak and also in hotpots). And while I do get yearnings to eat yakitori every once in a while and do adore the roast goose at Yat Lok, I think that I'd be far more willing to give up eating fowl over mutton (be it from lamb, sheep or goat), mutton over pork, and pork over beef.
In short: beef is my favorite land meat by quite a long chalk; and this especially so if it's genuine wagyu -- that is, Japanese beef! So I count myself very fortunate to have sampled wagyu in Japan, including Shiga Prefecture's celebrated Omi beef at a restaurant in Hikone this past January, and also as part of an absolutely delicious kaiseki dinner at the wonderful Gora Kansuiro ryokan in Hakone a couple of years ago.
It also is no small thing to me that when I get the urge to feast on some wagyu in Hong Kong, there actually are places where I can do so deliciously. Adding to the pleasure is that the likes of Sukiyaki Mori and 298 Nikuya Room actually serve up pretty generous portions of juicy beef flown in from Japan at pretty competitive prices if you go there for lunch. Indeed, even while it's true enough that there were vegetables under them, my friend and I couldn't help but gasp when beholding the sight and size of the meat-covered sukiyaki dish she was presented with at our most recent lunch there! ;b
10 comments:
Hi There,
If only beef is concerned, I like grass fed beef over grain fed. Grass fed ones are more lean and tasty. Er... I have an odd appetite to eat beef\steak well done.
And yes, if I must choose between Cha Siu and steak, I would choose Cha Siu (with a bit of fat, preferably made with pork collar cuts, Mui Tau in Cantonese) everytime.
T
Hi T --
Interesting palette you have! I like cha siu but would definitely choose wagyu over it (even the fei cha, which is my preferred cut) -- and beef should most definitely not be well done as far as I'm concerned. In fact, with wagyu, I'm partial to eating it raw and as tataki as well as grilled, in sukiyaki and in shabushabu... ;b
Hi There,
Sparingly I do eat beef tartar or that Italian style raw beef (what do you call it?) curling the thin pieces up and drizzle with olive oil? Or the Korean style raw beef with pears and eggs. But I do like it best well done. In my own very much biased opinion beef is much tastier when cooked well done.
I tend to put restaurant chefs to the test sometimes too. :-P
T
Hi again T --
For the Italian dish: do you mean beef carpaccio? Sounds like you either go for raw/very rare or well done with regards to beef -- whereas I am more in the raw/very rare/medium rare range.
I'm curious now: have any restaurant chefs refused to cook your beef well done? ;b
Hi There,
At least Mr Yeung of the then Louis' Steak House agreed to do it more than once quite a few years ago.
I do cook my own steak sometime, if I could get good meat. I have not had those raw beef dishes for about a decade though.
T
Hi once again T --
If you happen at some point in the near future to go for sukiyaki, shabu shabu or Chinese style hotpot, maybe you could try cooking a strip of beef to medium rare and see if you may like it more (now) than ones cooked well done... ;b
Hi There,
Hotpot is not my cup of tea. But when I was younger I do eat more beef in medium rare out there. But after having that extremely delicious well done filet mignon in Sao Paulo in the late 1990s, I'm converted. I even taught myself how to grill well done steak.
T
Hi once more T --
It was suggested to you (by a waiter?) that you had filet mignon well done in Sao Paulo? Interesting if so! Anyway, different strokes for different folks, and well done for you but medium rare for me with regards to steaks!
BTW, have you been to Braza Churascaria here in Hong Kong? :)
Hi There,
That trip was quite a few firsts too:
1. My first long flight of a total of close to 40 hours flight time;
2. My first long business trip sent by my previous employer for a project;
3. My first hangover after a double Caipirinha. I did not know it was so potent back then;
4. My first filet mignon cooked well done, seemed to be done by a very capable but unknown chef of a street side open air restaurant;
I was informed by my colleagues before that dinner that Brazilians see cooking their meat as an art form very seriously, thus I decided to try it out, hence the 'Well Done' part. It seems a weird move at the time, but I have no regret.
As far as I could recall, the cut was not done with what we usually see in town in the shape of a circular piece. It was cut in a long piece of irregular shape, one end was about an inch thick while the other end was a bit thinner. It may seem difficult to believe, but the texture of the meat was consistent. All tender in the mouth.
Sort of a bit of a lifetime-ish stuff, would you say?
T
Hi one more time T --
Yup, your Sao Paulo visit does sound like it was quite the trip! The cut of meat sounds most irregular, as does the "well done" preference. At this point in my life, I think I'll stick to not having my steaks done that well; this not least since I don't want to be in agreement with Donald Trump even when it comes to how I want my steaks cooked! ;b
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