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Dropping by a soba shop when visiting a morning market in Tokyo is a must. — Pictures by CK Lim
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TOKYO, March 3 — Sounds inform us of where we are. The tweets and chirrups of birds and squirrels in our garden in the morning. The dull hum and rumble of motor vehicles on the road during rush hour. The rhythmic crashing of ocean waves upon a sandy beach.
When we hear the chatter of vendors advertising their wares, proclaiming how their respective offerings are the freshest and tastiest; when we hear the beeping of trucks, reversing slowly into loading bays to relieve themselves of their cargo; well, there’s a fair chance we are at a market.
Where are we?
We could be spending a pleasant morning at a market in Tokyo — be it the world famous Tsukiji Seafood Market or the Ameya-Yokocho market near the bustling Ueno station — ready to enjoy its myriad flavours.
There is nothing better way to begin our market visit than a bowl of soba noodles in piping hot soup. These soba shops open very early, while it’s still dark, to feed the hungry tradespeople and market vendors before they start their day.
You could have a plain bowl of soba, of course, but everyone who knows their stuff would order a bowl topped with perfectly-fried tempura, be it a prawn fritter or a crispy slab of sweet potato.
A hot bowl of soba and tempura (left). Wandering the streets of a morning market.Crispy batter melting into the hot broth, faster than you’d imagine, so every bite and every second counts. Even when the broth is far too hot; that is sort of the point, you see.
On hot summer mornings, some patrons opt for cold noodles or zaru soba. Dipping these buckwheat noodles in a dashi based sauce promises some salve from the sweltering heat. Every noisy slurp is a restorative act.
After finishing your noodles and saying “Gochisousama!” to the cook to thank them for a nourishing breakfast, it’s time to continue walking around the market. Wandering around, exploring different side alleys to check out hidden stalls — it’s part of the experience and the charm of a Japanese morning market.
Customers at a fried foods shop.Salarymen and students make a beeline for shops where they can have a quick meal before catching their trains; homemakers and retirees take it slow, making sure to look for the best deals before parting with precious cash.
Fresh, frozen or dried, there is an unbelievable assortment of seafood on display: Horse mackerel and dried cuttlefish. Salmon and trout. Seaweed and shrimp. Sea urchins and octopus. Mackerel pike and bonito. Lobsters and cuttlefish. Hairy crabs, flower crabs, snow crabs and more.
It’s not just raw produce. One of the most popular shops is the stall offering all manner of deep-fried seafood, meats and vegetables. You have fish balls and skewers of cuttlefish. Grilled crayfish. Light patties made with the meat of freshly harvested snow crabs. Deep-fried tentacles of baby octopi slathered generously with wasabi and Japanese mayonnaise.
Grilled crayfish (left) and octopus tentacles (right).Aside from the food choices, there are also shops offering a wide variety of Japanese kitchen tools and knives. Each handmade by an artisan. For the home chef inside each of us.
You may have heard of the famous tuna auction and consider waking up at an unearthly hour of 5am to watch it. Tens of thousands of tons of seafood from all around the world arrive early every morning to be auctioned off: from salmon and trout to lobsters and sea urchin. And, of course, the always expensive tuna.
Alas, the tuna auction has moved away from the historic Inner Market of the Tsukiji Seafood Market to the new Toyosu Market across the bay. No matter; there is still plenty to see... and to taste.
Slicing tuna at the market.For, after all that walking, you are famished again. Consider dropping by a sushi bar for some freshly made nigiri-sushi topped with a slab of fatty tuna to appease your mid-morning belly growls.
Yes, you can enjoy sushi or sashimi for breakfast!
Grab a seat at the counter and watch the sushi chef expertly roll and form pieces of vinegared rice and raw fish. An assorted platter would offer the most bang for your buck; toppings could include tuna, salmon, scallop, squid, red bream and even a rolled Japanese omelette (tamagoyaki).
A platter of sushi for a very Japanese morning market breakfast.For those who eschew meat and seafood, try the inari-zushi where a deep-fried tofu pouch (aburaage) is stuffed with vinegared sushi rice. Everything is fresh and delicious.
There’s nothing quite like fresh sashimi and sushi for one’s first — well, second — meal of the day. Hot soba and raw tuna: that’s what a morning at a Tokyo market tastes like, and it’s a memory one retains for a lifetime.
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