Three-year traffic at the top of the list.
Awaji Island Drive for Winter Delicacies
You can taste fugu nabe even if you are alone
Take Prefectural Route 25 along the coast to the Uzu-no-oka Onaruto Bridge Memorial Museum near the Awaji Island Minami IC. The view from the hilltop is superb. We sat on the outdoor terrace watching the sea.
At Uzuno-oka, a restaurant with a spectacular view in the museum, three-year tiger puffer, a specialty of Awaji Island in winter, will be available from November 1.
Most pufferfish are cultivated for two years and weigh about 800 grams. On the other hand, Awajishima 3-year tiger puffer, which is raised for one year longer despite the risk of cannibalism, weighs about 1.2 kg and has plenty of meat, and is praised for its umami and chewiness, which are close to those of natural products," says head chef Kazuhito Mori.
The restaurant offers a winter-only "Mifuku nabe" with tesa, using Awaji Island 3-year tiger puffer fish, which can be enjoyed by a single person without a reservation.
This nabe is only available on Awaji, and it cannot be called "Mifuku-nabe" unless it meets seven conditions, including the use of 3-year-old tiger puffer fish, the inclusion of puffer fish skin and Awaji Island lettuce, and the use of homemade ponzu (Japanese citrus juice). It is said that only about a dozen or so restaurants on the island offer this dish.
In addition, the chef has created a soup stock of milt. The zosui (rice porridge) at the end of the meal, which concentrates the flavor, is especially popular. The restaurant also offers a popular dish using sea urchin from Yura, and this year they are planning to create a pufferfish hot pot with sea urchin broth.
Since the interview was conducted in October, I decided to give up on fugu (blowfish), but I heard that Awaji Island fresh Spanish mackerel on rice is recommended in the fall and winter, so I ordered it. Although people tend to think that Spanish mackerel is in season in spring, the cold weather makes the meat fatty, rich, and mellow. It was delicious, which explains why the restaurant calls it "the season on the other side.
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