Japanese Diet and the Story of the Fish Market

[Anonymous]

These are beautiful photographs of the Japanese fish market.
It has been shown that having Omega-3 in our diet combats the free radicals, acting as an
anti-oxidants for our bodies.
A few dermalogist highly recommend eating fish as well, especially salmon.
Thus we observe why Asians as a whole do not age a fast.

[Anonymous]

Tsukigi is by far the worlds preeminent fish market. New York's now moved Fulton St. market is also a wonderful fish market. Just going to either is a great lesson in marine and aquatic species diversity.

While both of these markets are great--each has its own particular culture. I think it would be interesting for studetns to look at some of the peculiarities of the Japanese fish market. For example--like all tools in Japan, the knives at the fish market are reveared--always kept sharp, never misued, and respectfully stored nightly. In general women are not allowed to trade in top quality tuna, as it is believed their hands are too warm blooded. The logic goes that in handing expensive fresh, raw fish for freshness, women's hand will ruin the fish abd give th femal grader the impression the fish is in some way off, and thereby lowering the cost of the product. I remember reading these two bits of information in two different National Geographic articles--one on the Giant Blue fin, and the other on Tsukigi itself.

Now while the Japanese fish market is interesting, the Hawaiian fish market in Honalulu is perhaps on of the worlds most exotic. Not only are the fish from a lovely tropical sea, but all fish trades are carried out in a fish-market only pidgin of Japanese, English, Hawaiian, and Portuguese. It would seem representatives of each of these smaller Hawaiian communities have been trading fish for long enough to have learned and barrowed enough terms from each other to form their own unique dialect. One day I'd love to go hear it.

As for fresh fish in LA...good luck. There are a couple of decent high end Japanese markets around that sell quality fish--I have an LA times article around somewhere--but for the most part selection is very limited. I personally like Pete the Fish--he sells fish from his truck at various farmer's markets around town--Cerritos on Saturday, and Alamitos Bay on Sundays. He always has good stuff from all over--nice Alaskan salmon, delectible Ventura sand dabs, a varied assortment of Hawaiian snappers and groupers, as well as your standard ahi, halibut, and hamachi (yellow tail). For the more adventerous there is always the Dorymen of New Port peir--available mid-morning on weekends. They deal strictly in locally caught fish: shark, sand dabs, rock fish, the occasional halibut, and petrale sole. As for the comercial places downtown--International Marine Products Ins is as cloe to Tsukigi as you'll find in LA, but you need a commercial wholesale tax stamp just to get in the door. Good luck, and happy quest for that fish.

Remember to choose your catch selection wisely. Monterey Bay Aquarium has good resources on sustainable fisheries and their products--check it out and keep our oceans alive and in a state where htey are healthy. That Bluefin was huge, and I'd love to have seen it--but due to their ultra-low numbers (hence the super high prices) I couldn't even bring myself to eating it and contributing even more to this marvelous species demise.[Edit by="chellmold on Jul 14, 1:11:19 AM"][/Edit]
[Edit by="chellmold on Jul 15, 1:38:40 AM"][/Edit]

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