Korea: Mystery sushi

How adventurous are you? Are you willing to eat the unknown, the mysterious, the...uh...crunchy? On this particular evening, I decided to take a leap of faith and purchase an unknown seafood platter at the local market... Living in Hwajeong, I had access to multiple varieties of fresh seafood and fresh markets where all sorts of delicacies from the oceans were made readily available...With so many options available, I felt I absolutely had to experiment and try a few new things, given the ready proximity to the seas that the Korean peninsula offered. There's a mixture of sweet and spicy chili-pepper paste that you will frequently find served alongside Korean raw fish that sets it apart from it's Japanese equivalent, where wasabi and soy sauce may be the regular choice (some fish varieties are served with grated ginger or garlic instead of the wasabi)... trust me, however, when I say that the Korean sauce is exceptionally tasty, with a balance between pungent spicy goodness and sweet, savory smoothness. It's an invigorating way to enjoy the fresh seafood, with the complex flavor profile of the sauce adding to the satisfaction you feel upon completion of your meal. I enjoy most presentations of raw fish, so long as the fish is of good quality. 

This fish was very fresh! It had a beautiful reflective skin and mild fishy flavor that was enjoyable...but I'm the kind of girl who enjoys a good mackerel from time to time, so strong oily fishes aren't something that bother me. I don't fully understand why they were sliced in this specific way, though, as it meant that many of the bites had tiny bones that could potentially revenge the fish's death by stabbing your mouth as you eat. Not that I can blame the vengeful fish spirits...given the size of the cross-sections, the fish themselves are likely not that large, to begin with. I ate a fair portion of it with soy sauce and wasabi before trying the bright red sweet and spicy sauce.  Like I said above, I appreciate most preparations for raw fish as long as the fish is good, but with all the bones to contend with in this batch I found the sweet-spicy chili sauce helped me finish the generous portion.  

Overall, it was pretty good. There's always the chance that my foolish self simply dove headfirst into it raw, when the preferred preparation for this specific fish would have been cooking... but as I don't know, I went for it and was pretty happy. The bones were mildly annoying, but when you're consuming the flesh of little beings sliced up whole you kind of have to expect some degree of anatomy to be involved. I know there are plenty of people out there who can't handle chicken or fish on the bone, and I respect that. The bones were certainly not my favorite part of this meal... 

Live and learn, and try new things!

Until next time~

🐟

XOXO,

NAU