Eels, Unadon
One minute walk from Aomori station, along the main street, you’ll come across a bustling looking traditional restaurant called “Osanai”. We were surprised to even see a few foreign faces in there – although we shouldn’t have been given the restaurant’s popular reputation as a place to enjoy fresh seafood dishes.
When I first heard Eel was a common dish in Japan, nightmare images of British jellied-eels sprung to mind, which don’t look or taste particularly great. So when I discovered the Japanese equivalent, I was very much relieved to see it actually looked appetising, with the Eels marinated in a sweet, sticky sauce consisting of soy, sugar and mirin (sweet rice wine).
The dish is called Unagi, although the dish I ordered in Osanai was Unadon (the ‘don’ refers to the bowl of rice beneath). You’ll find the sweet tasting Unagi go down very well with a bowl of rice, which is why the dish is a popular food at home, as it’s relatively easy to prepare and often cheap.
Osanai’s Unadon came beautifully presented, with a bowl of miso soup and pickled vegetables. If you’re put off by the word ‘eel’ as I once was, don’t be! This isn’t a dish to be missed if you’re in Japan.
Where: Osanai
Address : 1-1-17, Shinmachi, Aomori-shi, Aomori,
