I was a 'Salaryman' in Tokyo. Not long enough to suffer karōshi (death from overwork), but six months of working almost every day until midnight next to my Japanese colleagues who would choose napping over eating for lunch, had me thinking that karōshi was a real possibility.
You may have caught me sleeping on a stranger’s shoulder during the train ride to and from work on the Namboku Line, but for lunch and dinner, it was about sustenance, not shut-eye. I couldn’t leave the office until the Big Boss did, so a healthy, filling meal was the only way to stave off karōshi.
I initially followed many of my Japanese colleagues to 7-Eleven to grab an onigri (rice ball wrapped in nori) for a quick meal. Quick I thought, until I saw the queue. And quick I thought, before I tried to open an onigri the correct way. I realized soon after that the convenience store lifestyle wasn’t going to sustain me, or keep me sane.
What saved me? Tekkadon.
Just a few stores down from 7-Eleven, but what felt like miles, was a small shop selling various rice bowl dishes (donburi) – a bowl of Japanese rice with meat and veggies on top. They were all delicious, but I liked the simple Tekkadon with raw tuna, nori (seaweed), and scallions.
After six months of working every day since we opened the Season with Spice shop, many of those days until midnight (can’t leave until the Big Boss leaves – aka, Reese, my sweet wife), I couldn’t help of being reminded of my Salaryman days. So when I heard about a new online company called Fish for Sushi, which provides premium sashimi right to your door, I knew what to make for the boss to treat her for all her hard work. A bowl of Tekkadon.
Not a dish I thought I would be making in the middle of Minnesota, but our ‘super frozen’ tuna from Fish for Sushi came right to the door, still in its super frozen state from when it was caught, sliced, and frozen right on the ship it was pulled in from in Japan.
The boss was happy. I was happy. The tuna was amazingly fresh and delicious, just as I remembered it tasting in Tokyo. And this time spicier, with the addition of a few dashes of our Japanese Seven Spice (Shichimi Togarashi).
Life as a Minnesota Salaryman isn’t so bad with sashimi delivered to your door…
Tuna Sashimi Rice Bowl (Tekkadon)
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
4 servings of Japanese rice (uruchimai)
9oz of sashimi tuna (try yellowfin tuna from Fish for Sushi)
4 nori sheets – cut into strips
Season with Spice’s Japanese Seven Spice (Shichimi Togarashi)
Toasted Sesame Seeds
3-4 scallions – chopped
Dipping sauce:
Soy sauce
Wasabi
Method:
1. Defrost tuna in the refrigerator the night before, per instructions in video (above).
2. On the next day, start by cooking rice. While the rice is cooking, slice tuna, cut nori sheets, and chop scallions.
3. Fill each serving bowl with rice first. Then top one side with tuna slices. Sprinkle Japanese Seven Spice and toasted sesame seeds on tuna and rice. Then place nori and scallions on top of rice.
4. Serve with a side dish of soy sauce and wasabi.
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
4 servings of Japanese rice (uruchimai)
9oz of sashimi tuna (try yellowfin tuna from Fish for Sushi)
4 nori sheets – cut into strips
Season with Spice’s Japanese Seven Spice (Shichimi Togarashi)
Toasted Sesame Seeds
3-4 scallions – chopped
Dipping sauce:
Soy sauce
Wasabi
Method:
1. Defrost tuna in the refrigerator the night before, per instructions in video (above).
2. On the next day, start by cooking rice. While the rice is cooking, slice tuna, cut nori sheets, and chop scallions.
3. Fill each serving bowl with rice first. Then top one side with tuna slices. Sprinkle Japanese Seven Spice and toasted sesame seeds on tuna and rice. Then place nori and scallions on top of rice.
4. Serve with a side dish of soy sauce and wasabi.
