Izu (Japan) (AFP)
Unthinkable to taste sushi without wasabi.
And yet many consumers are only familiar with its imitation, an artificially colored horseradish paste, but the pandemic is forcing Japanese producers to try to expand their customer base.
Green and pungent, this root grows in 12 to 18 months and is only produced in a handful of regions in Japan, as its cultivation requires very special conditions.
“The most important ingredient is pure water, plenty of it,” Yoshihiro Shioya told AFP, pulling a wasabi plant out of the sand.
"It is absolutely necessary that the temperature of this water remains between 10 and 15 degrees throughout the year".
150 km southwest of Tokyo, the mountains of the Izu Peninsula, where the family of this 62-year-old farmer has been cultivating wasabi for seven generations, provide an ideal environment, with abundant rainfall and volcanic soil favoring infiltrations.
"The water flows from the top of the mountain, arranged in terraces covered with layers of stones and sand, which filter and purify it," says Yasuaki Kohari, of the Izu agricultural cooperative.
The department of Shizuoka, that of the Izu peninsula, is also the natural cradle of wasabi, which has been used in Japanese cuisine for four centuries, appreciated and popularized, it is said, by the shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa ( 1543-1616), one of the historical unifiers of the archipelago.
Nearly half of the 550 tonnes of rhizomes - the underground stalk of wasabi - produced in Japan in 2019 came from Shizuoka, according to the agriculture ministry.
It is by grating this rhizome that we obtain the full-bodied condiment with antibacterial properties which enhances the taste of raw fish dishes or soba (buckwheat noodles).
- A weakened sector -
Due to the low production, almost all of Izu's wasabi is acquired by wholesalers in Tokyo and Osaka (western Japan), who resell them mainly to high-end restaurants.
Toshiya Matsushita, chef at an upscale sushi restaurant in Tokyo, wouldn't imagine using "fake" wasabi.
"It is floury on the palate and does not have too much taste," he says bluntly.
“The fresh wasabi, while concealing the smell of raw fish, enhances the taste. It is pungent, but with sweet notes,” he says.
"The taste, texture and spiciness are different depending on the way of grating" of each chef.
This requirement comes at a cost: Mr. Matsushita, who uses one root per day, grated as orders are made because the spiciness of the fresh wasabi evaporates in twenty minutes, says he spends the equivalent of more than 600 euros per day. month.
So most consumers, even in Japan, ignore the true flavor of wasabi.
The concentration of its outlets has also put its producers in difficulty because of the pandemic.
During the state of emergency in Japan in April-May, "restaurants closed completely," recalls farmer Yoshihiro Shioya.
Wholesalers, who were no longer receiving orders, asked producers to slow down their shipments.
The impact of the coronavirus continues.
"The restaurants have reopened, but they are welcoming fewer customers than before" and consumption is far from its pre-pandemic levels, explains Mr. Shioya.
- Salt and ice cream -
To diversify their customer base, wasabi producers sold part of it to supermarket chains in Japan.
Unusual consequence of the crisis, this allowed consumers to discover authentic wasabi.
The economic effects were limited, however, because "people are not used to buying such expensive products at the supermarket," adds Mr. Shioya.
To further popularize wasabi, the small business Yamamoto Foods, an hour's drive from the Izu plantations, has specialized in selling products made from the precious condiment.
"You can also eat the stems, flowers, leaves" of wasabi, explains Mayumi Yasumori, shop manager at Yamamoto Foods.
The company uses these parts of the wasabi to make sauces, shavings to sprinkle on rice, salt, mayonnaise and even ice cream.
"We want to make it known that wasabi is not only an extra in the kitchen, but can also have the main role," argues Ms. Yasumori.
© 2020 AFP