Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

Randomthought5678 t1_j6e06ef wrote

Reply to comment by Thedrunner2 in This Sashimi platter by PhillyPhresh

Something like this would probably be a large sashimi platter which would cost somewhere between 100 and 140 bucks depending where you go. Then again there's definitely some unusual items for my area items on there so it could be more.

I would share this with one of the person with a couple other nigiri pieces a la carte. Probably add some uni because it's delicious and an invasive species in California.

I've never had it come on such a utilitarian service though. Usually it comes on a fancy platter and they stage the fish with shredded daikon radish and shisho leaves. At some places it can get very ornate.

Does anybody know what the first fish on the second row is?

27

E_Snap t1_j6hfgp2 wrote

Uni forager here— hate to burst your bubble but the uni that you can get in restaurants is red urchin, not purple urchin. Purple urchin is the invasive species that is destroying kelp forests and eating away the coastal rock. It is much smaller than red urchin, which is a highly-sought-after and overfished find that is exported worldwide from San Diego. Red urchin has a more briny flavor and the gonads are far larger, whereas purple urchin has a really creamy (better) flavor. Unfortunately its gonads are so small that they are an enormous pain to clean, so sushi restaurant don’t use them.

Every time I go purple urchin foraging, I wind up getting home to clean them at like 6PM and eating at like 10 or later.

5

nancylafancy t1_j6hlzwq wrote

You forage it? That’s frikkin cool!!!

2

E_Snap t1_j6hnn6s wrote

Lol it’s almost like an extreme sport. You’re clinging for dear life to the edge of tide pool rocks where they meet the surf, working in the time between the waves swamping you, and trying to dig the urchins out of the sockets in the rock that they’ve eaten themselves into. Highly recommended. You do need a fishing license though.

2

Randomthought5678 t1_j6iddoo wrote

Have you ever heard of gooseneck barnacles? I've always wanted to go forwarding for them but it's pretty dangerous as well. Supposed to be one of the best flavors in the sea though.

2

nancylafancy t1_j6ler2d wrote

That would be pretty cool to watch! You should start a YouTube channel. Seriously!

1

Randomthought5678 t1_j6ibhku wrote

I'm not certain but when I get uni that comes in small little strips it's not the invasive species?

Usually uni come in pieces that are maybe an inch across but they started coming in much smaller quarter inch pieces. A serving used to be maybe one or two pieces now they come as many little ones?

1

E_Snap t1_j6jpsrp wrote

If the restaurant you’re going to specifically calls it “purple urchin,” then you can be sure they are going out of their way to acquire the invasive species. But there is no commercial market for that variety and they are not considered a delicacy commercially, so it would still be surprising to find.

2

Randomthought5678 t1_j6k3ytr wrote

Yup. It was a big cluster f*** of a dinner party and I don't remember what it said on the menu but I did comment on the pieces being smaller than regular uni. The waitress went into a pretty long description of why it was different while she served us an entire ecosystem.

Umi Sake House in Seattle which is the cat's meow and bougie enough to go to the extra steps.

1

Exciting-Meringue-85 t1_j6gt191 wrote

>Does anybody know what the first fish on the second row is?

From the dark back, the way those lines look on the silvery sides I'm thinking its a type of eel filet that is butterflied open. That one would be something that gets cooked before consumption though.

Really hard to tell without seeing the flesh side of the fish too, or the fillet not curled on it self like that.

3

Tronald_Dump69 t1_j6ha128 wrote

Looks like some sort if eel, the bones(?) resemble a snake. That's my guess at least.

1