Negitoro

Negitoro (Japanese: ネギトロ) is minced raw tuna in Japanese cuisine. It is typically made from toro (the fatty parts of tuna), and served with negi (green onion).^[1][2][3] In addition to being an ingredient to sushi of various types,^{[4][1][5][6][7][8]} they are used as a rice bowl topping, forming negitorodon.^[9]

Negitoro

Negitoro (raw minced tuna) on sushi, with negi
Type	Sushi, donburi
Place of origin	Japan
Main ingredients	Raw tuna, negi
Media: Negitoro

Origin

Negitoro-don

Negitoro rolls may have originated in 1964, at a sushi restaurant in the Minowa neighborhood of Tokyo. Chefs at Kintaro Sushi initially prepared them for consumption at staff meals, and they were later offered to customers. After a positive reception, the main location of Kintaro (in Asakusa) added them to its menu.^[10]

Another theory credits chef Hiromasa Sasaki with their invention, of the Ginza restaurant Sushi Sasaki.^[1]

Etymology

Negitoro in gunkanmaki

Multiple hypotheses exist.

Combination of green onion and toro part of tuna

Negitoro is so named because it is a combination of negi (green onion) and toro, which is the fatty parts of tuna.^[11] Since the 1980s, with the appearance of new toro sushi combined with pungent vegetables,^[12] the well-matched taste and combination of toro, green onion and nori seaweed have become popular.^[13]

Toro referring to something other than part of tuna

One of the restaurants hypothesized as the origin of the dish claims the dish was so named based on mugitoro [ja], a dish that was popular around the place at the time.^[10]

Negi referring to something other than green onion

In the field of construction in Japan, digging soil from the ground to constructing building is termed negiru (Japanese: 根切る), and it was hypothesized that the term adopted into negiru (Japanese: ねぎる) or negitoru (Japanese: ねぎ取る) to refer to meat being scraped.^[7][1][2] Tuna fishing groups support the hypothesis.^[2] However, dictionary editors question the hypothesis, claiming there is no verifiable usage of the verb form of the adopted word negitoru (Japanese: ねぎ取る), and thus the hypothesis cannot be sustained.^[14]

It has been suggested the negitoru origin hypothesis emerged after the 2000s,^[7][1] and until the 1990s the mainstream hypothesis on the origin of the negitoro dish was that the term is a combination of negi (green onion) and toro (fatty tuna).^[11][13]

Mass-market product

Negitoro at a supermarket

Negitoro sold to the mass market and distributed into retail channels like supermarkets is mass-produced in fish factories. They use lean meat of various fishes, including, for example, yellowfin tuna, marlin, bigeye tuna, and albacore, then adding additives like vegetable oil, shortening, lard, antioxidants, and condiments.^[15][16] Dedicated fat products for the purpose of negitoro manufacturing have also been produced.^[17]

Japanese consumer groups and magazines have raised concerns about such practices being possibly misleading and raising potential health concerns.^[18][16][15] However, there are also claims that unprocessed tuna mash is not popular.^{[19][clarification needed]}

Gallery

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  On kaisen-don
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  On rice and soba
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  In makizushi
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  Kaiten sushi