Oita to Miyazaki

Most tourists come to Oita prefecture for onsen (hot spring). Not me. Oita is all about "Saba", which is mackerel. Saba is one of my favorite fish. Saba has a "fishy-ness" similar to that of sardines. But it's packed with good fish oil and umami.

The saba served at most restaurants is marinated in vinegar because saba deteriorates rather quickly. Vinegar helps to slow down the deterioration process with its acidity. Moreover, saba caries a parasite called Anisakis, which lives near organs. As soon as the fish dies, the parasites start moving into the flesh. In order to eat truly fresh saba sashimi, it has to be prepared from live fish.

There's a famous port in Oita that catches a famous saba, called "Seki Saba." The fast tide in the area where Seki saba is caught makes the flesh firmer. It is flavorful because of the plentiful plankton in the water.

The seki saba that I had was at Umibozu-Yochan, which is walking distance from Oita station. The fish was very firm so I knew it was very fresh. However, it was a bit too lean and not very fatty. Some sashimi (raw) fish is aged for a few days to create more umami (the protein is broken down by it's own enzymes into umami-amino acid). However, that technique is not an option for saba because the saba deteriorates quickly and the texture will turn mushy. I guess that's the tradeoff for fresh saba sashimi.

I also had another saba dish, called goma saba. This is actually a local dish in another prefecture, Fukuoka. It's a bit like poke. Saba sashimi is tossed in a sweet & salty soy based sauce.

This is the specialty of Oita, toriten. It's a chichen tempura. I already had this in Hakata but I had to try it again in Oita. I like karaage (Japanese fried chicken) better because the chicken is more well seasoned.

After the early saba dinner in Oita, I headed to Miyazaki. I arrived late, so I chose an izakaya (Japanese style tapas bar) adjacent to Miyazaki station, Rakui. I was welcomed with Otohshi (amuse bouche). There's a fee for otohshi, but this is another way to add a service fee since there's no tipping in Japan. These are very fancy presentations of otohshi, though.

I started from a fried local dish, mehikari. It's about the size of smelt. It's usually fried because then the whole fish can be eaten (the heads are removed).

This is "the" dish to have in Miyazaki. Although Miyazaki has a long coastline and can catch fresh seafood easily, the most popular ingredient in Miyazaki is chicken. Unlike other local dishes in various prefectures in Kyushu, this dish is relatively new. Fried chicken is soaked in sweet & sour soy-based sauce and served with tartar sauce. This can be eaten in any part of Japan nowadays but it originated in Miyazaki.

Another local chicken dish is chicken sumibi-yaki. Chicken thigh meat is grilled over charcoal. It's pretty well charred. Some restaurants serve pretty much blackened chicken. 

The chicken in Miyazaki was pretty tough but flavorful. Although wagyu beef is famous for its almost melting texture, Japanese interpret the rubbery/crunchy texture of some foods as a positive experience. It's always interesting to find that there's no universal standard for tasty foods.