MARKET DAY

Day 9 - I had the best field trip ever since I started my cooking sojourn 5 years ago. Sensie is tireless. She is at the Tsukiji Market before 7am on class days which means every day of the week since I arrived. I tagged along today. A big part of being a good home cook (or a chef for that matter which I am not) is the ability to spot the freshest ingredients, to design menus that capture seasonal flavors, to make the recipes work, and lastly to manage costs. I learned a lot, I mean 'a lot', from the 2-3 hours we spent at Tsukiji.

The cardinal rules, ones I adhere to at home, are essentially the same. You identify a vendor you have good experience with, you keep going back, you raise the game to a personal level, you give feedback on the good, the bad and the ugly, you ask for the best price, you do not nickel and dime to death, lastly you need to show you are a loyal customer first, and his loyalty will follow soon after. It works, at least for me it does in Wanchai, in Apleichau and even at the Parkview Park & Shop. Sensie did all of the above, she rules both the 'inner' and 'outer' markets, a darling to many vendors.

Knowing Apita in Taikooshing has the best imported Japanese groceries is one thing, testing brands with Sensei's seal or approval is the purpose of our market day. I will not bore you with details suffice to say that I now have quite an opening inventory of dried goods across the board, ones I was taught to use.

We bought a large chunk of Kaysuo (Bonito) from one of Sensei's sources for the Katsuo no Tataki dish. Check out the fresh Hokkaido crabs on display, even at Y10-25,000 or HK$750-1500 a piece they are still value-for-money. This whole scene brings our inner most smiles, it is just wonderful.

The saddest thing is ... Tsukiji now faces the last days of her existence since the end of WWII.  Moving her to another location means the end of a way of life, end of a chapter in history, and end of an entire generation, if not two, who grew up with the unique subculture. I have made a mental note to keep coming back, before she rides into the sunset which is a painful thought, even now.      

Yes, we cooked afterwards, menu to follow.