Hatoshi

“Harumi”, a long-established traditional Japanese restaurant located in Kajiya town, Nagasaki, closed its doors in March 2019. It is also a registered tangible cultural property of Japan. On its final day of business, we visited Harumi and talked with the proprietress about the “Harumi” traditional Japanese restaurant philosophy, which dates back 92 years. The proprietress and the women of the cookroom also kindly taught us about the famous Nagasaki “Shippoku cuisine”. It was a precious experience. They told me that there had never been a male cook in Harumi before, and that I was to be the first and last. It made me feel nervous. “Hatoshi” is made by sandwiching minced seafood, such as shrimp, between slices of bread and deep-frying it. Of all the wonderful Shippoku dishes, this one was truly amazing. The reason being that, despite having worked for many years in various places and kitchens, this was the first time I had heard of adding sugar to minced shrimp. Upon asking why, I was informed that Nagasaki-style seasoning has a strong sweetness, and that Shippoku cuisine is served on a platter, thus seasoning is applied so that it can be eaten as is. Although I could agree with their reasoning, I was half in doubt until trying it. However when they gave me some, I was immediately captivated by the fluffy, slightly sweet minced shrimp and the exquisite taste of the bread. This is a recipe that should be passed on to future generations, thus I added it to this course.