201 330
JAPANESE
201
January14
Kushikatsu
(or kushiage)
What it is:
Skewered seafood, seasonal vegetables and
meat: lightly breaded, deep-fried and served piping hot. In
Japanese,
kushi
refers to the skewers and
katsu
to pieces of
meat. First served, they say, in the city of Osaka (previously
known as Naniwa).
Where to get it:
Han, Cuisine of Naniwa at Odeon Towers
6336 2466
What to order:
We’re not keen on deep-frying, for the usual
reasons, but this fine-dining version is worth making an
exception for – it’s not in the least bit oily or heavy. Chef
Seiichiro Arakawa presides over the wok, presenting an
array of delicacies straight from the heat: succulent prawn,
fat scallop, minced chestnut, cheese-stuffed tomato, coral
roe-topped salmon, tender beef, truffle-salt-dusted foie gras
and more. The
kushikatsu
is preceded by an exquisite array
of appetisers and
sashimi
, and followed by sushi, miso soup
and dessert ($160;
kushikatsu
dinners start from $120). Try
the
matcha
tea ice cream sandwich or a zingy grapefruit
sorbet and, of course, the delicious Janpan ($155 a bottle) –
Japanese champagne, get it? – a bubbly sake that’s around
16 percent alcohol by volume.