Fugu cuisine is one of the dishes where you can enjoy traditional Japanese taste. Below, we will introduce three typical blowfish dishes.

Fugu sashimi (Tessa): Fugu sashimi is the royal road to fugu cuisine. It is also called "Tessa" as another name originating from Kansai. Because pufferfish meat has a lot of fiber, it is sliced ​​much thinner than regular sashimi. Generally, it is recommended to eat it with ponzu sauce.

Blanched pufferfish skin: Fugu skin is also popular because of its firm texture and flavor. The typical tiger puffer skin is made up of three layers: Shami skin, real skin, and body skin. It is common to quickly parboil the skin, soak it in ice water, and eat it with a special ponzu sauce made with green onions and grated radish1.

Fugu nabe (fugu chiri): This is a dish in which puffer fish fillets, bones, vegetables, etc. are simmered together in a clay pot using kelp soup stock. Ponzu sauce is commonly used as a dipping sauce, making it a recommended pufferfish dish to enjoy during the winter season.

These blowfish dishes are a popular winter tradition in Japan.