HITSUMABUSHI

barbecued eel on rice in a (o)hitsu bowl	-->		<--- dashi (a kind of soup)
			<--- yakumi ( seasoning ) minced leek(L), horseradish(C) ,dried laver(R)
chawan ( rice ball )	-->		<--- kimo-sui ( soup with eel liver )
		↑ <center> tsukemono ( Japanese pickles )

HITSUMABUSHI : A variety of UNADON (barbecued eel on rice with sweet soy sauce in a bowl )
It was thought up by the 3rd generation of the IBASHO eel food restaurant owners.
HITSU is a kind of utensil., in this case meaning a container or a big bowl keeping rice.
MABUSHI is noun form of "mabusu." The literal meaning of mabusu is to dust, but in this case,
it is to put small pieces of barbecued eel on rice.

< The way of eating Hitsumabushi >
The amount of rice in a (o)hitsu is almost four times of a small size rice bowl.
So, there are four steps in how hitsumabushi is eaten.
Divide rice in a o-hitsu into four portions

1st
Take one serving of rice from the big bowl to a smaller rice bowl
and simply eat the rice as it is (that is rice with barbecued eel flavored in sweet soy sauce).

2nd
Take the second serving of rice from the big bowl.
Then try it with half of the prepared seasonings.
These are minced asatsuki ( a kind of Japanese leek ), wasabi (horseradish)
and kizami-nori ( sliced dryed laver )

3rd
Take the third serving of rice from the big bowl, and have with hot soup poured over,
together with other remaining half of the prepared seasonings.

4th
Have the last serving of rice from the big bowl,
and eat your favorite way.

Atsuta Horaiken is one of the most popular Unagi restaurants. Recommended. Official website is here

Enjoy hitsumabushi !


Doyo no Ushi