Musashi wrote on Mon, 23 Feb 2009 12:43:49 -0500:


> "James Silverton" > wrote in
> message ...
>> Hello All!
>>
>> I just enjoyed a lunch of take-out sashimi and thought I'd
>> look it up on Wikipedia. A phrase caught my attention: "a dipping
>> sauce (soy sauce with wasabi paste and thinly-sliced ginger
>> root or gari, and ponzu)" That doesn't fit with my tastes,
>> ponzu might work for some things as might tamari, which is
>> not mentioned, but not for all and putting gari in the
>> dipping sauce does not seen to show much understanding.
>>
> The above two sauces for dipping sashimi are the most common.
> Shoyu (soy sauce) and wasabi is obviously THE most common.
> Ponzu, usually with condiments including GRATED GINGER is
> another. I think the above reference to gari is a clear
> mistake as it's never used together with the shoyu.
> Certain dishes always call for Ponzu rather than wasabi-jouyu.
> (soy sauce & wasabi),
> such as all ultra-thin sliced sashimi called usu-zukuri. The
> most well known of these
> would be Hirame and Suzuki. Fugu is also served this way.
> Katsuo no Tataki is also always served with ponzu while the
> added condiments vary
> according to region.

> While Wasabi-jouyu (soy sauce & wasabi) is the most common
> dip, there are in fact
> perhaps a dozen or more other soy sauce & somethinng mixtures which
> one normally
> doesn't see, such as shouga-jouyu (soy sauice & ginger),
> negi-jouyu (soy sauce & scallions), etc.
> Depending on the region in Japan the local people may use a
> different dipping sauce.
> In Kagoshima, the southernost end of Kyushu, sashimi is
> usually eaten dipped in
> Karashi-jouyu (soy sauce & hot mustard) rather than wasabi.
> In Okinawa they use a miso sauce rather than soy sauce.

Thanks, very interesting indeed! I can't see any objection to grated
*fresh* ginger if you want to prepare a dipping sauce. It's certainly
used with soy sauce and other ingredients in Chinese stir-fry and fried
rice dishes. However, to me, a universal dipping sauce for all sorts of
fish in a mixed sashimi platter is not particularly attractive. There
are certain types of sashimi, like octopus, where a slice of lemon
served with it is appropriate, AFAIAC. I think I mentioned that tuna
with real shiso, dipped in shoyu is pleasant.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not