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Quote by Matt Goulding

“He's on to sashimi now, fanning and curling slices of snapper and fugu into white roses on his cutting board. Before Toshio can plate the slices, Shunichi reaches over and calmly replaces the serving plate his son has chosen with an Edo-era ceramic rectangle more to his liking. Three pieces of tempura- shrimp, eggplant, new onion- emerge hissing and golden from the black iron pot in the corner, and Toshio arranges them on small plates with wedges of Japanese lime. Before the tempura goes out, Shunichi sneaks in a few extra granules of salt while Toshio's not looking. By now Dad is shadowing his son's every move. As Toshio waves a thin plank of sea cucumber eggs over the charcoal fire, his dad leans gently over his shoulder. "Be careful. You don't want to cook it. You just want to release its aroma." Toshio places a fried silverfish spine on a craggy ceramic plate, tucks grated yuzu and sansho flowers into its ribs, then lays a sliver of the dried eggs over the top. The bones shatter like a potato chip, and the sea cucumber detonates in my mouth.”

Quote by Matt Goulding

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Rice, Noodle, Fish: Deep Travels Through Japan's Food Culture

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Matt Goulding

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“One of the recurring themes mentioned in this guide is the quality of well water in Kyoto. Their soft water is an essential ingredient in making many of their gastronomic creations exceptional. However, it takes people to recognise its importance and use the resource appropriately and responsibly. It requires care. It requires sensibility. The availability of their superior well water is happenstance, but the creative use of it is hardly an accident. It’s because of the crafts practised by the people.”

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