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Our Japanese reporter’s experience with crawfish in the US left him stunned

Katie Pask Aug 25, 2022
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Our reporter gets stuck into a seafood treat not usually found in Japan.

As an island country, Japan is home to some of the best seafood in the world. As well as the obvious, like sushi and takoyaki, Japan has a wide assortment of fishy delights. But despite being able to enjoy delicious seafood wherever you go, one thing that is not so common in Japan is crawfish (or crayfish, crawdaddies, mudbugs — whatever you want to call them).

So when the opportunity to eat some presented itself on a recent trip abroad, our Japanese-language reporter P.K Sanjun grabbed the chance. Pokémon GO was hosting a huge community event in Seattle and one of P.K’s friends living in the US had invited him over to attend it. In between all the catching and trading and battling, P.K’s friend asked him if he wanted to go to a crawfish restaurant with his wife and two kids.

Not just any crawfish restaurant, either; no, P.K’s first outing with crawfish would be at the impressively titled ‘Crawfish King‘, which specialises in Cajun cuisine. While P.K had heard of jambalaya, he wasn’t familiar with any other kind of Cajun food, so he didn’t really know what to expect.

P.K.’s English abilities don’t extend to crawfish menus, so he left all the ordering to his friend. He had no idea what was being ordered, so when the waiter arrived with their food, his jaw dropped to the floor.

A huge mountain of food had arrived! Piled up on the boat tray was an intense amount of seafood, like a crustacean castle. Instead of individual meals, P.K’s friend had ordered this huge tray of seafood to share between the five of them.

At a quick glance, P.K. could see some Alaskan King crab and some Dungeness crab (which was caught locally in Seattle), as well as crawfish, mussels, sausages and vegetables, all laid out on the boat tray.

More than anything though, was the overwhelming amount of garlic all over the food. So much garlic…

P.K. wasn’t really sure how to eat this abundance of seafood, but it seemed to be a free-for-all meal that you eat using your hands. So P.K. grabbed some of the Alaskan King crab and peeled off the shell.

The Alaskan King crab was delicious, thick and juicy. It was seasoned with a rich, spicy flavour which went well with the sweet crab meat.

What’s more, the vegetables had soaked up all the crab juice, which made them even more tasty! Corn on the cob, broccoli, and potatoes were all infinitely more delicious with the crab juice seasoning them!

It was finally time for P.K. to try some crawfish, so he grabbed some and peeled off the head.

The crawfish meat was delicious, with a spicy, briny taste. The slimy, gooey innards inside most shellfish was present in the crawfish; as he sucked them out, P.K. thought these innards were the most fragrant he’d ever had.

The gooey innards were also present in the Dungeness crab, and were also very delicious. They may look… questionable to some, but years of training as a SoraNews24 writer has taught P.K. not to judge food based on how it looks.

But if the flavour and portion-sizes weren’t enough to stun P.K., the price certainly was. As P.K hadn’t been involved in any of the ordering, he wasn’t sure just how much this mountain of seafood on a tray was going to set him back. He knew it was probably going to be pretty pricey though, especially with the addition of the tip, which is not expected in Japanese restaurants.

The tray of seafood cost a hefty US$250, and including drinks and tips their total came to around $400; not a cheap day out, but certainly a unique experience and good memory for P.K. And seeing as his friend was footing the bill, in the end it wasn’t a bad deal at all!

Maybe P.K. can spot his friend a slice or two of American Costco pizza to return the favour.

Reference: Crawfish King
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