Yakitori is grilled chicken on skewer and is the best accompaniment to Japanese sake. Here in Mie, it is a different story.
Local people are not familiar with chicken meat on skewers, or in fact, many of them come cross with Yakitori once they start to work/study at remote from their hometown. What they are familiar with at the hometown is Tori-Yakiniku.
Classic image of Yakitori
A word “tori” means chicken and “yaki” or “yakiniku” means grilled or to grill. So Yaki-tori and Tori-Yakiniku seem to be similar on literal base, with “yaki” and “tori” are placed on inversed order with each other, which is rather confusing even for Japanese people. But “Tori-Yakiniku” is quite different from what you expect from the previous knowledge of Yakitori.
This is what you call “Tori-Yakiniku”.
“Tori-Yakiniku” is typically grilled on metal net.
Although Yakitori is normally flavored with soy source or salt, Tori-Yakiniku is mainly Miso-based. This brings the great taste and flavor together with burst amount of SMOKE! Meat is served as being marinated in rather thick Miso-based marinade. This marinade is different from restaurant to restaurant with the secrete recipe at each place.
Hinedori on the left and ordinary chicken on the right.
Kimo (Liver) in miso.
Kawa (Skin) with salt.
Another characteristic of Tori-Yakiniku is that they use what they call “hine-dori”, which is meat of hen who become too old to lay egg. Because of the age of hen, meat is a little bit hard and chewy, but the more you chew hine-dori, more taste and flavor flower within your mouse. If you are Sake lover, why not try “hine-dori” which is a perfect partner of sake. Take one piece of it in your mouth and chew it slowly and carefully but hard with taking time. Then you can enjoy delicious and rich taste you have not experienced before!
A restaurant called “きまっちゃん (Kimacchan) ” where we tried Tori-Yakiniku.
Menus of different parts of meat in Kimacchan
From the left to right, Kawa (skin) salt 400 en, Kimo (Liver) (miso) 450 en, chicken soup for 2 to 3 servings 450 en, Hinedori (miso) 450 en, Hinedori (salt) 450 en, Wakadori (chicken) (miso) 460 en, and Wakadori (chicken) (salt) 460 en.