Hiyayakko: Silk and Shadows
Cold tofu, hot sesame, cool as a temple garden in July
Hiyayakko is what you eat when Kyoto's heat turns the city into a kiln and your appetite into a whisper. Cold silken tofu, aged tamari, fresh shiso from the garden plot behind the shop — this is kaiseki without showing off. No fire, no fuss, just the best of what summer offers.
How to Cook It
- 01
Toast the sesame
Dry-pan a heavy skillet over medium heat. Pour in white sesame seeds and stir constantly for 2–3 minutes until fragrant and faintly golden. Tip onto a cool plate. This happens fast; one moment of inattention and you've burnt them.
~3 min - 02
Make crispy shallots
Peel and thinly slice shallots into rings. Heat neutral oil in a deep pan to 160°C (use a thermometer if you have one; otherwise, a wooden spoon handle should sizzle gently). Fry shallots in small batches until golden and crispy, about 4–5 minutes per batch. Drain on paper towel and season lightly with salt while still warm.
~8 min - 03
Slice the ginger
With young ginger, no need to peel. Use a mandoline or very sharp knife to cut paper-thin slices. Drop into iced water for 5 minutes — they'll curl slightly and lose a touch of harshness. Drain and pat dry.
~5 min - 04
Prepare spring onion and shiso
Slice spring onion on the bias into thin rings. Stack shiso leaves, roll tightly, and slice into fine ribbons. Set both aside; shiso in particular is best sliced moments before plating to hold its colour and scent.
~3 min - 05
Chill everything
Place four shallow bowls in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Just before serving, fill each with iced water or crushed ice to chill the tofu the moment it hits the plate.
~30 min - 06
Plate and dress
Drain your silken tofu and use a spoon to gently divide it into one bowl per person — no need to cube it; let the spoon's edge do the work. Drizzle tamari over the top. Arrange ginger slices, spring onion, shiso ribbons, crispy shallots, and toasted sesame over the surface. Serve on a bed of ice or in bowls chilled to numbbing cold. This dish lives and dies by its temperature.
~3 min
“This is restraint. Four bowls. Cold tofu naked at the centre, then dressed with precision — ginger scattered, shiso artful but not fussy, crispy shallots on top so they stay crisp, a careful sprinkle of sesame. Tamari pooled around the tofu, not drowned in it. The whole thing should sit on ice or in a pre-chilled bowl. The cold is the point. Your eye should rest on the tofu first, then notice the layers.”
First spoon: shock of cold, silk that dissolves before you chew, hit of umami from tamari, then the floral heat of young ginger and the green whisper of shiso. Midway: crispy shallot crunch, toasted sesame nuttiness, spring onion brightness cutting through the richness of the soy. Finish: clean, cool, herbaceous — your palate feels rinsed and ready for what's next.
White wine's acidity lifts the tofu's delicate sweetness; sake's mineral edge complements the umami without competing
Crisp carbonation cuts through sesame richness; dry finish mirrors the shiso's herbal bite
Toasted grain flavour echoes sesame; cold and cleansing, the traditional Kyoto summer partner
- ·Buy tofu the morning you serve it; every hour in the fridge drains its delicacy
- ·Young ginger can be eaten skin-on; older stored ginger needs peeling — know your source
- ·Crispy shallots absorb moisture like a sponge; fry them last, plate them first, or keep them in a separate ramekin and let guests scatter them
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