Yamadaya has been serving puffer fish for over years. Their fugu is caught in southern Japan and airlifted alive to their Tokyo restaurants. In Haedomari Market the fugu is auctioned off using a bag and hidden hand signals. Each potential buyer puts their hand in the bag and makes their bid secretly, before a successful bidder is chosen.
When selling such a dangerous food, safety is paramount. In , a supermarket accidentally sold five packets of the fish that hadn't had the poisonous liver removed, and the town used its missile-alert system to warn residents. The tetrodotoxin found in fugu is more toxic than cyanide, and each year about 20 people are poisoned from badly prepared fish.
It takes a lot of skill and training to prepare the fish safely and know which parts are poisonous. The poisonous parts can vary by species, and hybrid species are appearing now that are even harder to tell apart. One of the hardest things to distinguish between can be the female fugu's ovaries, which are extremely toxic, and the male's testicles, which are a delicacy. The Japanese government tightly control who can prepare fugu, and chefs need to take an extensive exam before they're legally allowed to serve the fish.
This rigorous regulation means that while the fish can be lethal, far more people die from eating oysters than fugu each year. They are scaleless fish and usually have rough to spiky skin.
All have four teeth that are fused together into a beak-like form. The diet of the pufferfish includes mostly invertebrates and algae.
Large specimens will even crack open and eat clams, mussels, and shellfish with their hard beaks. Poisonous puffers are believed to synthesize their deadly toxin from the bacteria in the animals they eat. Some species of pufferfish are considered vulnerable due to pollution, habitat loss, and overfishing, but most populations are considered stable. All rights reserved.
Common Name: Pufferfish. Scientific Name: Tetraodontidae. Type: Fish. Diet: Carnivore. Group Name: School. Size: Up to 3 feet. Size relative to a teacup:. This photo was submitted to Your Shot, our photo community on Instagram.
Follow us on Instagram at natgeoyourshot or visit us at natgeo. Share Tweet Email. Go Further. Although routinely served at restaurants across Japan, their poison is so potent that chefs have to take a national written and practical examination just to be able to cook it.
At his Hagi Honjin Ryokan in seaside Hagi, Japan, the fish is used for sashimi , fugu chiri — fugu hotpot, not unlike shabu shabu —and even as garnish for sake: The charred fin, a tiny blackened thing, is steeped in a steaming hot mug of sake, which is then lit on fire tableside.
The fumes intensify the drinking experience, preserved by keeping a lid on the drink throughout the meal. The resulting concoction tastes ever so slightly of ocean, and makes the sake savory, almost broth-like. Make no mistake, however, it will knock you out. Fugu roe is also used to make tofu, resulting in a denser, starchier tofu than one might normally expect. Amazingly, it looks white just like standard tofu. And the price tag will usually tell you which is which.
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