Thursday Sushi Thaw

The variety of sushi bulleted on the average menu rarely sums up the number of possibilities a chef can potentially churn out without a moments notice. If it was once alive, if it lived in an indiscriminate body of water, and if you can't die from eating it (though there are exceptions), it will likely be christened on a pillow of rice and consumed without a second thought by a considerable portion of the Japanese populace.

But not every society is so willing to resist its aversion to the more exotic types of raw seafood, and it is the purpose of this and future posts on what is to be known as "Thursday Sushi Thaw" to deice any apprehension by providing some basic information on the kinds of sushi that usually require a double-take from most Americans.

Today's suspect is one that many Americans would likely become enamored with were it not for its species of origin: the fresh water eel (seen above). Unagi, as it's nimbly listed on most western menus, plays on the taste buds through a collection of unique styles that more "fishy" selections like tuna or salmon simply can't achieve.

Its prime mode of operation lies in its protein-heavy savoriness. If tuna is the "chicken" of the sea, unagi is the aquatic "filet mignon". The taste can be described as a very light, delicate beef which manages to eschew any hint of the usual seafood notes. Sushi is normally prepared without ornamentation but the backbone of any unagi dish, and especially unagi sushi, is the symphonic inclusion of a plucky taro sauce glaze that adds a pinch of sweet and salty to your seafood steak. When these elements combine with vinegared rice, the product becomes a sushiphobe's best coping mechanism and a sushiphiles choice de jour.

You may still not be convinced enough to order $20 worth of eel, but you'll likely consider it after a taste.