A dinner prepared by HG/BSK’s Japanese daughter-in-law, the exquisite Maiko Sakamoto, is a trip into celestial realms. It is a meal, always, of varied tastes and textures. Every ingredient has integrity. Flavors seem to gain intensity as the meal progresses. HG always leaves the table feeling happy and nourished. Surprisingly, HG never seems stuffed despite eating a considerable amount of food. This was the case last night when daughter Victoria left her restaurant duties in Manhattan to travel to Brooklyn and experience EM’s hot pot dinner with HG/BSK, SJ/EM and their family. Superb dining that began with chunks of lightly pickled cucumber dotted with EM’s home-made hot sauce; buttery strips of sautéed mushrooms; sliced lotus root salad with a light mayonaise dressing and a pot of steamed Manila clams swimming in a fragrant sea sauce of sake and butter. Victoria is a Pescatarian. No, this doesn’t refer to a religious or sexual preference. It means Victoria is a vegetarian who shuns meat but will eat fish and shellfish. (I.B. Singer, the late Nobel Prize-winning Yiddish author, was a Pescatarian and justified the practice by noting: “Fish have no souls.”) BSK is allergic to crustaceans. EM based the hotpot around Victoria and BSK’s dietary restrictions and promptly created a bubbling kombu and bonito broth. The diners stirred a lush sesame based sauce into their bowls of broth (plus judicious amounts of ponzu and the aforementioned hot sauce). A succession of ingredients were cooked in the broth: Cabbage, bok choy, mushrooms, tofu and pieces of cod. As these items cooked, the broth gained intensity. HG swallowed mouthfuls (between many sips of a cloudy, delicious Nigori sake). Finally, when all the ingredients were finished, EM tossed in a package of high quality Udon noodles to finish the meal. Dessert was comprised of pastries purchased at the very traditional, Italian bakery, Court Pastry Shop on Court Street. Spectacular almond studded biscotti. Great conclusion to a memorable meal.
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