Puffer fish: Vietnamese people are terrified, in Japan it becomes a thousand dollar specialty
When many Vietnamese people think of puffer fish, they think of a fish that can be deadly if eaten, but under the talented hands of Japanese chefs, puffer fish has become a high-class seafood dish in luxury restaurants.
Always on the list of Japan's most expensive dishes, a serving of fugu sashimi can cost a family around $200 for 8 pieces when dining at a Michelin 3-star restaurant.
|
| Japanese puffer fish (also known as Fugu) is considered a delicacy by gourmets. |
Not only is it expensive, diners who order pufferfish sashimi also have to bet their lives if they want to enjoy the dish. Because just one milligram of this fish's poison can take the life of an adult man in less than an hour with a painful death.
So why is the pufferfish - one of the two most poisonous vertebrates on the planet - still present in Japanese culture, and contributing millions of dollars to the country's culinary industry every year?
|
| Each dish of puffer fish is a scientific feat of art of preparation and decoration. |
In fact, Japanese restaurants are only allowed to sell this fish if they are licensed. The Japanese government has enacted laws requiring that only certified people are allowed to slaughter and sell pufferfish.
Even if you are a chef at a Japanese restaurant, you cannot kill or prepare fugu without a government-issued “Fugu license.” This is an important certificate that allows a person to kill, prepare, and sell/serve fugu in Japan.
|
| Only licensed chefs are allowed to prepare this dish. |
To obtain this certificate, a skilled chef must also undergo 2 years of training, along with at least 2 years of experience handling puffer fish.
In addition, accompanying that process are countless super difficult theory tests that require students to achieve maximum scores.
It is also important to note that chefs do not learn how to “remove the poison,” but rather “where the poison is.” With pufferfish, the poison is concentrated in the intestines, internal organs, and skin of the fish, which must be discarded after cooking. They also need to avoid cutting into the toxic parts, such as the liver, as this can contaminate otherwise safe parts of the fish.
The arduous training process will last at least 4-5 years, but can also be up to 7, or even 10 years. At the end of the process, the chefs must undergo a final practice: successfully peeling and processing a pufferfish, under the supervision of experienced Fugu chefs. Only when they pass this challenge will they receive a certificate.
Because of the sophistication in training and preparing puffer fish in Japan, it is not surprising that the price of this fish is so expensive.
