.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

David @ Tokyo

Perspective from Japan on whaling and whale meat, a spot of gourmet news, and monthly updates of whale meat stockpile statistics

11/30/2006

 

Iwashi-yaki, the "sardine whale", DHA and EPA

Last night I dropped by a tiny local restaurant that has reasonably priced set meals. On the special menu was "iwashi-yaki".

Iwashi is a type of fish, which dictionaries seems to translate into either "sardine" or "anchovy". I had it once before, and having enjoyed on the previous opportunity, took up the chance once again.

650 yen - Tonsui (rice and miso soup also included)

As you can see from the picture, it's a small fish, apparently varying between 10 and 20 cms in length, and has long been a regular on Japanese menus. Lately however the prices are somewhat high and I've not seen it around so much.

It's also a really nice fish to eat as the bones are thin enough that you can just chew them down - and the fish itself tastes great. I prefer it to "samma" (saury).

Here's what was left of the fish once I was done:


Iwashi is said to be very nutritious, and packed with DHA and EPA.

The Japanese name for the Sei Whale, which the ICR includes in the lethal component of it's JARPN II research programme, is in fact "iwashi kujira", or "sardine whale". No need to guess where it got the name from.

JARPN II research is investigating (again for those literate in Japanese: here) fish consumption by this "sardine whale", the common minke and Bryde's whale, which all are apparently known to include types of iwashi amongst their prey species.

* * *

DHA hit the news headlines a few years ago when a British nutritionist, Michael Crawford, suggested that kids in Japan have higher levels of intelligence because they eat fish. I cannot confirm or deny higher intelligence, but it's probably true that they do eat more fish than I did back home as a kid.

DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (Eicosapentaenoic acid) are omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids. Apparently our bodies don't produce these for us, and the best way to get an intake is through eating fish, which is not a typical part of the western diet, hence Crawford's comments.

The whale meat marketing company, Geishoku Labo, is also using the DHA & EPA health angle (for those literate in Japanese: here), as whale meat is also known to be rich in these healthy acids, yet low in those nastier saturated fatty acids that aren't so good for us.

Labels: , ,


Comments: Post a Comment



<< Home

Archives

June 2004   July 2004   August 2004   September 2004   October 2004   November 2004   December 2004   January 2005   March 2005   April 2005   May 2005   June 2005   July 2005   August 2005   September 2005   October 2005   November 2005   December 2005   January 2006   February 2006   March 2006   April 2006   May 2006   June 2006   July 2006   August 2006   September 2006   October 2006   November 2006   December 2006   January 2007   February 2007   March 2007   April 2007   May 2007   June 2007   July 2007   August 2007   September 2007   October 2007   November 2007   December 2007   January 2008   February 2008   April 2008   May 2008   June 2008   July 2008   August 2008   September 2008   October 2008   November 2008   December 2008   January 2009   February 2009   March 2009   April 2009   May 2009   June 2009   July 2009   August 2009   September 2009   October 2009   November 2009   January 2010   February 2010   April 2010   May 2010   June 2010   July 2010   August 2010   September 2010   February 2011   March 2011   May 2013   June 2013  

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?