Meat Pro Morita Shares Horse Sashimi Carpaccio and the "Ultimate Pork Sauté" Tenderized with Enzymes

Morita introduced the first dish as "something you can make in seconds." Since sakura-niku (horse meat) was being sold locally, he said he would turn it into carpaccio. According to Morita, carpaccio was originally a beef dish born in Venice, Italy, and in Japan it became a fish dish when Chef Ochiai popularized it. Morita's view is that since it was originally a meat dish, he would make it with horse meat. He also said that Ukiha has plenty of fruit, and since fruit is easy to come by at home in autumn, he hoped viewers would try making it themselves.

While Morita thinly sliced the horse sashimi, the host prepared the vegetables. The cherry tomatoes have their stems removed and are cut in half. Morita explained that tomatoes are rich in "glutamic acid," which makes them delicious. The lettuce is roughly torn and soaked in water.

The corn was near the end of its season, and Morita said that if you don't have any, you can leave it out or use canned corn. This particular corn had a high sugar content and was a variety that can be eaten raw. The host tasted it too and was surprised, saying, "This alone could be a salad." In between, they toasted with local Ukiha sake. Both pointed to its strong rice aroma and clean taste, and the host attributed this to the quality of Ukiha's water.

Morita said any dressing you have at home will do. This time he added a little Kyushu soy sauce to a Chinese-style dressing. According to Morita, just a little of the soy sauce's harshness and umami is enough to pull it together. The host also noted that Ukiha soy sauce has a strong flavor.

Chill the plate until it's ice cold. Use the soaked lettuce as a base, building a mound that's high at the back and low at the front. Next, add onion that has been soaked in water. The host remarked that the onions from this area are sweet with no sharpness at all, perhaps because of the good water.

Cut Shine Muscat grapes into thirds with the skin on. Seedless grapes leave a texture on the surface, so peel them before using. Add the tomatoes, then lightly crush the corn and scatter it over. Layer the horse sashimi on top and scatter the grapes. Finally, lightly drizzle on the dressing and it's done. Morita named it "Horse sashimi carpaccio, salad-style with plenty of seasonal fruit."

Eating it with the grapes, the host kept repeating "so good." They also said they had never thought of putting grapes in a salad. On the pairing with sake, Morita explained that sake tends to bring out the aroma of the grapes. Morita's assessment was that it harmonizes whether paired with the corn, the onion, or the grapes. The grapes had been put in the freezer for a while to chill them thoroughly.

Alternatives were also offered in case the ingredients aren't available. For fruit, peaches or persimmons work well, and persimmons pair nicely because they have umami. If you don't like horse meat, kelp-cured sea bream or flounder works too. For beef, roast beef is fine, and for pork, roast pork. Morita said he hoped it would be a dish that takes home cooking up a level.

The second dish is a pork dish that Morita "wanted to make properly." He first explained how to choose pork loin at the supermarket. Within a single loin, the central eye of meat gets smaller toward the ends. Since it can be hard at home to make the sinewy parts tender, he said cooking is easier if you choose a section with a large eye from the start.

For the white fat, choose fat that is as white as possible and not yellowed. When the host checked whether yellow means it has oxidized, Morita said yes. He said it's also important to choose meat that isn't leaking drip (meat juices). The meat that day had a little moisture coming out, but Morita considered that to be moisture from sitting, and judged its freshness to be quite good.

The pork is two slices totaling 200 g. Finely chop 20 g of maitake, about one-tenth of that weight. Grate about 5 g of ginger. According to Morita, ginger contains an enzyme that tenderizes meat, and it also pairs well with pork. He said that's why shogayaki (ginger pork) works: it removes the gamey smell while making the meat tender.

Next comes Asian pear. Morita said pear also contains an enzyme that tenderizes meat, and gave Korean bulgogi as an example. Korean meat originally isn't all that tender, so pear is squeezed over it to tenderize it. His explanation was that Korean barbecue sauce contains pear juice. Add maitake to that, Morita said, and any meat will become tender. He especially recommends it because pork at home is often thick and can't be cooked through. Grate the pear and combine it with the ginger. The amount should be enough to cover the pork, and he said about two wedges is sufficient.

Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the maitake. This draws moisture out of the mushrooms. According to Morita, this liquid contains an enzyme called protease that tenderizes meat, and with this alone, any meat will become tender.

Here's how to wrap it. Spread half the salted maitake on a sheet of aluminum foil. Brush the pear and ginger juice evenly over the pork, and place it brushed side down on top of the maitake. Brush the juice on the other side as well, top with the remaining maitake, then fold the foil to seal it as tightly as possible. According to Morita, the enzymes work better without air. He also said the mushroom aroma transfers to the pork, and even the sinewy parts become meltingly tender.

What Morita used here was the fish grill in the kitchen. Rather than grilling the meat, he set it on low heat to slowly warm the inside. According to Morita, this is the same idea as a keep-warm function: the enzymes work best at around 50°C and are deactivated above 70°C. The inside of the grill reaches about sauna temperature, and once it has warmed to about hot-bath temperature in a minute or so, turn off the heat. After that, just leave it, and it will stay warm; he said about 10 minutes is enough.

Simply marinating it would also work, but this time he used this method to save time. Morita explained that the ginger will be used in the sauce later anyway, and the maitake gets cooked along with the meat, so nothing goes to waste. When the host asked whether a toaster oven would also work, Morita said it would be fine.

To test whether the same method would also tenderize the thick pork for tonkatsu that was in the fridge, Morita had secretly prepped some while the host was filming the first half. That one had been marinating for over 15 minutes and was ready to cook at any time.

While waiting, make garlic oil. A rough guide is one clove of garlic per slice of pork, but Morita used more because he loves garlic. Use 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Just crush the garlic, and he said splitting it in half helps release the aroma. Don't rush; cook it slowly over low heat.

The side is large figs bought in Ukiha. Morita remarked that they were big enough that in a restaurant, they alone could serve as a main dish. Morita's view is that figs, like tomatoes, are delicious eaten either cold or warm, and while many people have probably never had warm figs, they're quite good.

To make it, heat 2 tablespoons of sugar in a frying pan, and when it starts to melt, add 20 g of butter to make a caramel. Add the figs, trimmed of their stems and quartered, sear them on the sides as well, and coat them all over.

After 10 minutes, the foil was opened, and the pork had become "fluffy." It is seared in the garlic oil with the maitake still stuck to the surface. The thick pork was cooked alongside it, and it too had become so tender that it jiggled when lifted.

Morita instructed not to be timid and to cook it thoroughly. Cook the thin pork for about 2 minutes total, then take it out and let it rest. After resting, the thick pork is seared once more. He said the blackened bits on the surface are just maitake stuck to it and come right off. It's done when chopsticks go in anywhere.

For the sauce, combine 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of chuno sauce (or oyster sauce), and a little olive oil. Pour it into the frying pan with a bit of pork fat still in it, return both the thin and thick pork to coat them, then turn off the heat and let them absorb it all. The thin pork cut easily with a knife, and the cross section was moist. Lay lettuce on the plate, place the meat on top, and add the caramelized figs. At some point Morita had also cooked rice, and the dish was served with rice that had a light crispy crust.

Eating the thin pork, the host said it was tender with strong umami, and remarked that the Ukiha soy sauce suited it. Morita responded that it's the rice that completes everything.

The thick pork was about as thick as a thumb, and Morita said it was a thickness you rarely see. The host called it a pork steak and, on its tenderness, remarked, "The maitake enzyme is amazing." The sauce was also well received.

The biggest reaction was to the caramelized figs. The host kept saying "this is insane" and said that with ice cream on the side, it would be a top-class dessert. Morita explained that figs don't go with rice but do go with pork.

Finally, Morita went over the key points. Whether it's pork or chicken, meat is generally more delicious when it's thick. Warming it in the fish grill gives it a little cooking first, like sous vide, and if you sear it from that state, even thick meat cooks through nicely.

He used maitake and pear for the enzymes, but said either one alone is fine. However, Morita added that the maitake has the stronger effect, and if you use only pear, a longer marinating time will make it tender. This way, even thick meat can be cut with a knife, and even steak-thick cuts can be bitten through easily. Morita closed by saying he hopes people will definitely try it at home.