Image Credit to: openrice
Teppanyaki is a type of Japanese barbeque that uses a metal plate, which is known as teppan in Japanese to grill food dishes such as steak, shrimp, okonomiyaki, yakisoba, and monjayaki. This one-of-a-kind dining experience gives foodies a front-row seat as a chef prepares their meal right in front of them on a sizzling iron griddle.
In the restaurant, the food is usually cooked rapidly on a searingly hot grill plate on or near the table. Teppanyaki is often served with rice, egg and finely chopped vegetables cooked using the same teppan or simply enjoy it on its own.
A Full Course Teppanyaki Meal
The menu of a teppanyaki restaurant may differ between restaurants, but it mainly consists of a Western-style course meal starting with an appetiser, soup and salad. The appetiser greatly depends on the preference of the teppanyaki restaurant and may be either a seaweed salad or fresh marinated fish.
As for the soup, it may be the very traditional and common miso soup to vegetables or pumpkin soups depending on the season. Sometimes fresh sashimi will also be served to give some sensation to your taste buds.
Then the main course, whether seafood or meat will be served with rice. Sometimes the main dish will be served with a side dish which could be zucchini, mung bean sprouts, crispy garlic chips, or fried rice. The course will then end with dessert with coffee and tea.
What Is A Cuttlefish Teppanyaki?
The Japanese word “teppanyaki” is a combination of “teppan” which means iron plate and “yaki” which translate into grilled or pan-fried. Cuttlefish teppanyaki is prepared using fresh cuttlefish and side dishes including rice, mung bean sprouts and vegetables.
These ingredients are then cooked on a teppan, which literally means hot plate in Japanese. This dish is suitable for special occasions as well as regular dinner since it does not need a long preparation time.
History Of Teppanyaki
The creation of Teppanyaki is said to be by Shigeji Fujioka from the restaurant Misono, which is a restaurant chain in Japan. They claimed to start the trend to cook food on a teppan since 1945 and it became popular among American officers stationed in Japan after the war. This dish was more popular among tourists, who enjoyed watching the dish being cooked by the chef, as compared to the locals.
How is Teppanyaki Served?
Teppanyaki is usually made in front of the diner. The finished dish will be plated in front of you and you can dig in. The grill plate is usually heated with propane, with its temperature reaching up to 450 ° C. The chef will then cook the ingredients one by one according to your speed of eating.
Everything is prepared fresh in front of you from soup, salad, vegetables, rice and the side of your choice. A teppanyaki chef takes years to train before they can cook the perfect teppanyaki to serve customers.
Types Of Teppanyaki
Other than cuttlefish, this dish can also transform into seafood teppanyaki by adding in clams, mussels and shrimps. Other ingredients such as lobster tail, Kobe beef or scallops can also be cooked using this teppanyaki style.
Different varieties of beef such as rib-eye, New York or filet mignon are also available in various teppanyaki restaurants. Chicken and pork are also available for people that prefer not to have red meat.
Where To Find Cuttlefish Teppanyaki In Malaysia
Cuttlefish teppanyaki can be found in all big chain teppanyaki restaurants in Malaysia. It can also be found at some not so mainstream neighbourhood Japanese food stalls mainly selling teppanyaki.
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