I ADMIT it. I did it. I put my life on the line and let the tiny adventurous streak in me get the better of me. I ate stonefish, which is one of the most deadly fishes in the world, but I have to say I did it in style. I ate Okoze Sashimi (*translation: Stonefish Sashimi) at Traders Hotel Manila’s Kitsho Japanese Restaurant and Sake Bar, and it was prepared by Kitsho’s executive Japanese chef Masahiro Mizumoto, the only licensed Japanese executive chef in the Philippines to prepare and serve Fugu, commonly known as Puffer Fish or Butete in the vernacular language and the second most toxic fish in the world. I wouldn’t have eaten the stonefish if it weren’t Chef Masahiro who prepared it.
My encounter with the Okoze Sashimi actually took place back in February this year, when my husband Raff and I went to Kitsho to feature the restaurant’s then King Crab food promotion and do a shoot on King Crab dishes. Since Traders Hotel was quite a distance to travel from our place in Cainta, I requested Traders Hotel’s media consultant Lourdes Arrieta to ask Chef Masahiro to prepare other Japanese dishes as well for another feature, specifying seafood and desserts, and Chef Masahiro said yes. So, off we went to Traders that Monday. Kitsho was closed on that day, Monday being Chef Masahiro’s and the restaurant’s rest day. We were in the company of Traders Hotel’s communications manager Princes Anderle and media consultant Lourdes Arrieta, and Chef Masahiro serenely went to work on his dishes – the King Crab dishes first, and then the seafood and desserts next.
Chef Masahiro surprised us with a sushi boat which he filled with Okoze Sashimi, its meat thinly sliced and carefully laid out on a mat of twigs over ice in the sushi boat. He said it was Stonefish, and he said Stonefish was the most venomous fish in the world, with its dorsal area lined with 13 poison-equipped spines, each of which had two venom sacs. When not properly prepared, Stonefish, when eaten, can be fatal to humans, but it’s one of the most celebrated and notorious dishes in Japanese cuisine and people pay a high price just for a taste of it. He smiled serenely as he sliced the white, dense meat of the Stonefish, removing its poisonous fins and its skin and cleaning it thoroughly.
The moment of truth came when Raff finished shooting the Stonefish Sashimi. Chef Masahiro had the entire sushi boat laid out on the table right in front of us, and enjoined us to partake of it. Raff, never adventurous with his food, politely said no. I looked at Chef Masahiro, whose serene face seemed to be telling me that it was safe to eat, and he smiled again. Then he, understandingly, took a pair of chopsticks, picked up a piece or two of the Okoze Sashimi, and put them in his mouth and enjoyed it like regular sashimi. With a lot of things going on in my mind, struggles between ‘yes-I-should-try-it-at-least-once-in-my-life’ and ‘no-I-shouldn’t-take-such-a-risk-lest-I-pay-for-it-with-dear-life,’ I decided to trust him. I picked up my own pair of chopsticks, put a piece of Okoze Sashimi in my mouth, pretending that it was my favorite Salmon Sashimi, uttered a prayer and, well, – what d’you know? – actually enjoyed it. It had a sweet, light and fresh taste that was not fishy at all. I waited for my body to react. Chef Masahiro himself was still standing, talking sensibly and thinking properly. I waited a little bit more. And a little bit longer. Still no reaction. I was okay! I ate deadly Stonefish, and I was okay! I conquered the Stonefish – or, shall I say, my fear of eating the Stonefish? – on that day.
Well, you, too can take your own palate on a little adventure and dare to try the most deadly fish in the world, the Stonefish, at Traders Hotel Manila’s Kitsho Japanese Restaurant and Sake Bar, where it will be available until September 30, 2013. The Stonefish, and the Fugu, two of the most celebrated dishes in Japanese cuisine, are available at Kitsho, but reservations must be made several days in advance to give the restaurant ample time to source and bring in the exquisite Okoze (and Fugu) fresh and ready to be transformed into a Japanese gourmet sashimi. The exquisite taste of the Stonefish will definitely satisfy your taste for adventure and excitement.
This foodie delight starts at Php1,800++, although the price will vary depending on the size an weight of the fish.
So, I ask, are you ready for the Stonefish?
(Traders Hotel Manila is located at 3001 Roxas Blvd., Pasay City. For inquiries or reservations, call 708-4888.)
