Food Review: Lunchtime With Takashi Yagihashi (And Cider Pairings)

Greetings readers! Summer is winding down here in Chicago, which means trying to find more indoor activities. This week, we were invited back to Macy's on State Street to review a lunch that chef Takashi created. We were so happy with the first round of lunch that we attended, we couldn't say no. For some basic info on Chef Takashi, his restaurants, and an earlier interview with him, please refer to this post: An Interview With Takashi Yagihashi All of the following recipes are in the cookbook titled "Takashi's Noodles."

For our appetizer, Chef Takashi created his version of shrimp shumai. This dish is normally enjoyed in Japanese culture as a snack or side dish. He also informed us that you can prepare shumai ahead of time and freeze them prior to cooking for a party or family gathering. They should hold up in the freezer for about a month. There are several ways to cook shumai: by frying, steaming, or baking them. These shumai were amazing! Usually when you find shumai on the menu, they come as a "envelope" with the filling concealed inside a wonton wrapper. Takashi's version is an open packet with the filling visible, which was a nice surprise. His shumai are packed with flavors of soy, ginger, and mustard. The flavors were all distinguishable and blended very well together. These shumai were cooked using a stove-top steamer set on top of a pan with boiling water and cooked very quickly. He served them with steamed bok choy.

Next up was the Chicken Yakitori. This is a very popular Japanese comfort food. These skewers are meant to be cooked very slowly to allow the meat and the sauce coating it to caramelize. Chef Takashi recommends making this dish for parties, picnics, or for watching football. They cook well on a stove-top grill or on an outdoor grill. You can even please the vegetarians by substituting tofu for the meat.  There are few words to describe how tender this chicken was. It literally fell off the skewer as Bailey was trying to eat it. The lemon and ginger juices that go into this sauce create a perfect flavor combination for comfort food, and the shiitake mushrooms add a very good savory contrast to the sweet sauce. This is a great Asian version of the good old meat and veggie skewer.  

Chef Takashi saved his best for last, Chicken Tatsuta-Age. This is his version of fried chicken, and we had heard stories about how tasty it was the last time we attended his cooking demonstration. This fried chicken is first marinated with traditional Japanese flavors and served with a savory asian slaw. Because the meat is marinated, it keeps very well as leftovers. You can also cut up the leftovers and turn it into a sandwich, this dish is very versatile! The asian slaw was very crisp and refreshing and added a nice crunchy side for the chicken. This dish is definitely not your grandma's fried chicken. It's bursting with bright flavors and the potato starch coating offers a really light alternative to the traditional American heavy batters. This also means that the coating for the chicken is gluten free. 

Throughout the demonstration, Chef Takashi was very personable and informative. He took the time to pass around some of the ingredients being used in the dishes, so that the crowd could touch, smell, and sample them. He also made sure that in between each dish anyone who had a question could ask it. If you are ever in the Chicago area, I highly recommend going to Macy's on State Street if there is a cooking demo happening. The chefs on their culinary council are amazing and it is a great opportunity to get some great tips and tricks from the professionals. 

Whew! Ok, so Hawke and I wanted to make some suggestions for cider that would go with these lovely dishes. The shrimp shumai has great flavor that would demand a light and crisp cider. You wouldn't want anything to overpower this dish. We think that Citizen Cider's Unified Press would be a good choice. You could also go with Uncle John's Draught Cider for this one. Both of these ciders are very crisp and clean without bold flavors that would clash.

For the Chicken Yakitori, you will want a cider that complements the bold flavor of the ginger and lemon. We would suggest Tieton Cider Works: Yakima Valley Dry Hopped Cider. This cider has an earthy taste that would offer a good contrast. The fact that it is a dryer cider could help contrast the acidity. If you wanted to add to the bold flavors, you could go with Woodchuck Private Reserve Belgian White. This cider has some hoppy-ness to it with a great burst of orange flavor. This cider is also only available in summer when all those great outdoor cookouts are happening.

Finally, for the Chicken Tatsuta-Age, you could go with a great ginger cider to really complement the great Asian flavors. We suggest Angry Orchard's Apple Ginger or Fox Barrel's Ginger and Black Currant Pear Cider.


Disclosure: I am a member of Everywhere Society and Everywhere provided me with the compensation for this post about Macy's Culinary Council. However, all thoughts and opinions expressed herein are my own.