A Saturday in Calgary: Izakaya Kaori

The table is ready for the hungry guests.

Saturday night, I was invited to hang out at Kaori's place for a dinner party of Shabu Shabu. It's a Japanese hotpot of kombu broth with a variety of fresh ingredients that are cooked at the table. I always love hotpot style dinners because of the social aspect of the whole experience. It's interactive and always different. The evening was abundant with great conversation with new friends.

The second donabe with crab and miso broth.

Shabu Shabu is named for the sound that's made when you take your meat and swish it around in the hot broth to cook it. It's a very healthy meal since all the ingredients are fresh and the broth is very simple.

Stirring up the Shabu Shabu broth.

I am always amazed how food can bring people together and create such a memorable experience. As a person, I am fairly quiet and laid back until food comes into the picture. When I cook for people, it's better than any funny anecdote or adventure story. It's not that I'm not much of a talker, it's just that some things don't need words.

Kaori presents, my first Gyu tataki.

I had seen the chefs at the restaurant make gyu tataki a million times before, so when Kaori asked if I could make it, I was happy to oblige. It's very simple to make. It's simply beef tenderloin, quickly seared and cut into thin slices. It's served cold with grated daikon with ponzu. The guests looked on as I prepared it with the confidence that I had done this a million times. Victory!

Hardly a dent...

Crab 'tamale' with sake.

After the big show, we saved the crab heads with the precious 'tamale'. The tamale is the yellow stuff that you find inside the crab head that some people throw away. Do yourself a favour and DON'T! It's brilliant. Japanese fishermen take this golden bounty and add sake, then drink the whole thing right from the shell.

Izakaya Kaori's success prompted us to plan again for another edition. Will it be Matsuri Kaori? Teppanyaki Kaori? Time will tell.