What is tsukudani? Popular Japanese preserved dish with more than 200 years of tradition
The father and son do not speak to each other. They do not need to. They barely look at each other as they go briskly, almost mechanically, from task to task. Beads of sweat glisten on their foreheads.
It is the same work they have been doing at their shop for years: cooking in big metal pots the ancient Japanese food tsukudani.
Tsukudani is preserved food invented long before the advent of modern refrigeration, dating back to the samurai Edo era more than 200 years ago.
Pieces of tuna, tiny shrimp, seaweed and other ingredients are simmered in a sweet syrup of soy sauce,
sake and sugar.
Tsukudani is made with seafood that is simmered in a sweet and savoury sauce. Photo: Shutterstock
The air in the shop is damp, pungent and sweet. Today, it is clam tsukudani: two pots from 6am to 7am, and two more from 7am to 8am. They will cook other items in the afternoon, depending on the orders that come in from restaurants and stores.
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Their morning starts at 5am. The father and son do not speak to each other. They do not need to. They barely look at each other as they go briskly, almost mechanically, from task to task. Beads of sweat glisten on their foreheads. It is the same work they have been doing at their shop for years: cooking in big metal pots the ancient Japanese food tsukudani. Tsukudani is preserved food invented long before the advent of modern refrigeration, dating back to the samurai Edo era more than 200 years ago. Pieces of tuna, tiny shrimp, seaweed and other ingredients are simmered in a sweet syrup of soy sauce, sake and sugar. Tsukudani is made with seafood that is simmered in a sweet and savoury sauce. Photo: Shutterstock The air in the shop is damp, pungent and sweet. Today, it is clam tsukudani: two pots from 6am to 7am, and two more from 7am to 8am. They will cook other items in the afternoon, depending on the orders that come in from restaurants and stores.
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