What makes dining on pufferfish so deadly is the presence of a class of neurotoxins known as tetrodotoxin in its organs. Being able to write this blog post, obviously meant that I'm more poisonous than the fish. Frankly, I was a little worried that I wouldn't survive the meal but seeing that there are so many diners, I guess there's nothing to worry about. The chefs may be certified safe but each individual's body may react differently to varying degrees of fugu meat's chemical profile. The preparation protocol is that all the poisonous organs that are removed must be deposited inside a plastic bag which is then sealed and placed into an air-tight container so that they don't mix with other wastes.Īt the end of the licensing programme, the apprentices have to go through a stringent certification exam which qualifies them as safe hands to eat fugu from.
The most poisonous parts of a pufferfish are the liver, ovaries, testicles, entrails and eyes, which the chefs must skillfully remove without contaminating the flesh of the fish. In order to serve fugu, chefs must go through a 2-year licensing course where they study and practice disarming the poisons from fugu for human consumption. So now that I've salivate all over death, what did it taste like? Was it memorable like a deep and passionate love affair, or a forgettable pleasure easily replaced by another? Read on if you want to find out. We had a very pleasant experience at Zuboraya although sitting on the floor to dine in authentic Japanese tatami style (with shoes off) made me wish I did more yoga. A meal course consisting of 6 dishes could range anything from S$100 - S$250 per person depending on the origin of the fish, chef's reputation and complementing ingredients. If the poison doesn't kill you, the bill would. Typically, a fugu feast doesn't come cheap. Zuboraya Dotonbori has a range of fugu dishes to choose from its ala carte menu as well as meal sets for 2 to 8 people. On closer inspection, the English name of this restaurant is Zuboraya Dotonbori. I didn't understand a word of the Japanese signboard but the fugu lantern was enough to hook and reel me in. Neither did we see the giant pufferfish lanterns, a sure sign that advertises fugu restaurants, in Kyoto or Nara so you can imagine the fireworks that went off in my gut when I sighted the ballooned fish hanging on a shop's facade in Osaka's glittering Dotonbori street! Would risk poisoning by biting into this forbidden fruit.Īlthough Tokyo has the highest number of fugu restaurants numbering around 3,000 throughout the city, we didn't come across any. There is no lack of safe for consumption fish species in the oceans, the Japanese I was hoping to get a taste of fugu during this Japan trip, notīecause I have a death wish, but I was curious to find out why, when And I have a soft spot for piglets, but that's another story. If I have my way, I would nickname it "durian fish", but "river piglet" befits the adorable and comical way the fish looks when it puffs up with water (in sea) or air (on land) when threatened. In Chinese, pufferfish is called 鰒鱼 fù yú and is often nicknamed 河豚 hé tún (meaning "river piglet"), so it is common to see these Chinese characters used in restaurant signages and menus in Japan. blowfish, globefish, balloonfish, and swellfish) and has its roots in a local term that means "swell up". That deadly fish dish is called fugu, a Japanese delicacy that both warns and warms the palate of any daredevil gastronome.įugu is the Japanese name for pufferfish (a.k.a. Japanese cuisine may have spread to major cities all over the world but there's one dish that remains tightly guarded within the home of the samurais.
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