Decorative Condiment: Fresh Wasabi Root
This is one of the courses from the 9-course ($300/pp) kaiseki experience at Hashimoto and a series that Hashimoto kindly allowed me to take for the TorontoLife post as photographs of the kaseki dinner is normally not permitted.
Besides the nearly translucent slices of line-caught porgy, careful attention was placed on all other elements on this only sashimi course served at Hashimoto (an authentic traditional kaiseki, aka the only one known to exist in NA). The focus here is on the purity of the ingredients - using the best sourced locally and mainly from Japan (obviously for the cuisine) and the great skill/respect given to highlight and enhance the natural characteristics of each component. Kei (Hashimoto; Assistant Manager) was also careful to note that the fish served is always white, which represents both a purity in flavour and in the craft.
For those who are curious, porgy has this mildly sweet unadulterated fresh flavour and supple yet firm texture. The fish was served with pickled vegetables representing all seasons (for the photo - namely to make it timeless). My favourite were the fluffy soy-mirin bukudaikai (tree seeds), but other details included shimeji straw mushrooms (for fall) bundled together by suizenji-nori, daikon carrot flower (for spring), lightly pickled lotus root and fine shredded radish-daikon (for palate cleansing). It was a lovely interactive course. In fact DIY pairing was encouraged. Fresh grated wasabi (slight spice, creamy smooth) and house blended soy were the final finishes.