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Adored and endangered: the complex world of the Japanese eel
Consumed worldwide, eel is particularly popular in Asia, and perhaps nowhere more so than Japan, where it has been eaten on the archipelago for thousands of years.
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In this photo taken on April 16, 2021, Japanese chef Tsuyoshi Hachisuka prepares grilled eel before serving them to customers at his restaurant in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka prefecture. (AFP/Charly Triballeau)
T
suyoshi Hachisuka gently places skewered eel on a grill, preparing a much-loved Japanese delicacy that is now so endangered it commands eyewatering prices and the attention of international traffickers.
Consumed worldwide, eel is particularly popular in Asia, and perhaps nowhere more so than Japan, where remains found in tombs show it has been eaten on the archipelago for thousands of years.
Despite its enduring popularity, much about the eel remains a mystery. Precisely how it reproduces is unclear, and coaxing it to do so in captivity without intervention has proved unsuccessful so far.
Pressures on wild stocks ranging from pollution to overfishing mean supplies have dwindled dramatically in recent decades.
While the writhing snake-like creature is repellent to some, it is a mainstay of Japanese cuisine, and since the 17th century has most often been prepared "kabayaki"-style: skewered, grilled and basted in a mixture of soy sauce and mirin rice wine.
In central Japan's Shizuoka, 66-year-old Hachisuka's restaurant in Hamamatsu city has used the same basting sauce base for four decades.
"I adjust it as I go. It mustn't be too sweet or too salty," he told AFP.
