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1
Place serving plates in the freezer for a minimum of 30 minutes before service. The plate must be cold to the touch at the moment of plating; warmth at this stage undermines every subsequent step.
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2
CERTIFIED RAW METHOD ONLY — to be executed solely with certified jidori chicken from a licensed raw-consumption producer. Trim the breast or thigh of any sinew. Wrap tightly in cling film and chill at 0–2 °C until the moment of slicing; the flesh must feel firm and almost rigid under the fingers.
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3
This is where the dish lives or dies: slice the chilled chicken paper-thin, strictly against the grain, working with a single-bevel knife in one drawing motion per slice. Each slice must be translucent and lie flat without tearing. Thick or torn slices render both the texture and the safety rationale of the preparation void. Return slices immediately to chill if not plating within seconds.
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4
Arrange the slices on the frozen plate. Scatter finely sliced negi over the surface. Grate wasabi root to order directly onto the plate; freshly grated wasabi releases volatile heat compounds that are integral to the preparation. The wasabi should appear pale green and moist, never dry.
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5
Serve soy sauce in a small dipping vessel alongside. The chicken is dipped slice by slice; the combination of raw chicken sweetness, wasabi heat, and soy umami is tasted together. The flesh must taste clean, sweet, and cold with no off-note of any kind — any doubt at the palate means the chicken must not be served.
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6
SAFE HOME APPROXIMATION (PASTEURISED METHOD): Bring a poaching bath to exactly 66 °C, verified with a probe thermometer. Submerge the chicken and hold at 66 °C for 20 minutes without deviation; the interior will remain faintly pink. Remove, slice paper-thin against the grain while still slightly warm, and plate immediately on the chilled plate with negi, fresh-grated wasabi, soy sauce, and halved sudachi or kabosu. The flesh should feel yielding but not soft, with no opacity at the centre.