Kushiyaki — The Art of Skewered Grilling

Origin

Japan-wide — yakitori formalised in Meiji era; kushikatsu from Osaka (Shinsekai area)

Description

Kushiyaki (串焼き, skewered grilling) is the broader category of Japanese skewer cooking that encompasses yakitori (chicken), kushikatsu/kushiage (breaded and deep-fried skewers from Osaka), and regional variants. The common element is that food is threaded onto thin bamboo or metal skewers and cooked over direct heat — charcoal (binchotan), gas, or wood fire. Yakitori (literally 'grilled bird') has developed into a sophisticated cuisine with dozens of specific chicken cuts (skin/kawa, cartilage/nankotsu, heart/hatsu, gizzard/sunagimo, neck/seseri, tail/bôchô, liver/kimo, knee cartilage, oyster/sori) each requiring different cooking times, temperatures, and sauce treatment. Kushikatsu (Osaka) applies the same skewer format to breaded-and-deep-fried preparations — pork, onion, shrimp, asparagus, quail egg, lotus root. A key Osaka kushikatsu rule is never double-dipping in the shared sauce.

III

The Thread

—Both Japanese yakitori/kushiyaki and Turkish şiş kebab represent sophisticated skewered grilling cultures that go far beyond simple meat-on-stick — both have developed specific cuts, marinades, sauces, and service rituals Turkish

—Korean and Japanese grilled skewer traditions share the same Northeast Asian charcoal-grilling culture — Korean tends toward marinated cuts; Japanese tends toward minimal seasoning with excellent ingredient quality Korean

Flavour Context

Binchotan smoke and char create a distinctly Japanese grilled character — slightly smoky, caramelised tare with juicy meat or perfectly crisp skin; the brevity of cooking (seconds to minutes) preserves maximum natural flavour

Pillars V — VII

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