The Kamogawa Food Detectives

Asuka watched nervously as Nagare transferred a series of tiny plates, each smaller than the palm of his hand, onto the lacquer tray in front of her. ‘These are so pretty!’ she found herself blurting out. ‘Oh, they’re a real mix. Antiques, old Western plates, some by modern artisans . . .’

‘Okayama? But the stew is from when he lived on that island near Hiroshima!’ ‘Oh, I’ll go there too. But the first port of call is definitely Okayama,’ said Nagare, pointing to the city on the map. ‘If you say so! Bring me back some kibi-dango dumplings, would you?’ said Koishi, patting her father on the shoulder.

Suyako dipped her first piece of tonkatsu in the ponzu sauce, then brought it to her mouth. She chewed carefully on it a few times. Then her face broke into a gentle smile. ‘Delicious.’ The word wasn’t addressed to anyone in particular, but seemed to burst from her mouth. For her second piece, she chose the spicy sauce. This time, before taking a b

‘The sauces are quite subtle too, don’t you think? As his wife, you must have guessed the secret ingredient right away.’ ‘Bitter orange?’ asked Suyako, looking up. ‘That’s right. Seems he used Yamaguchi oranges. Boiled them into a jam for the sweet sauce, mixed the rind with red chilli pepper for the spicy one, and squeezed their juice into the pon

‘I think she really did want to eat that Katsuden tonkatsu with him one last time,’ said Nagare, a tender expression on his face. ‘You know, sit down with his ashes and tell him how good it tasted. That was what she meant when she told us she wanted him to eat it.’

‘Can I ask you something?’ said Asuka, looking Nagare in the eye as she stood up. ‘Of course,’ said Nagare, returning her gaze. ‘Why do you think I remember that spaghetti in particular, out of all the other dishes I ate with Grandad?’ ‘Well, this is just a guess, but . . .’ Nagare paused and took a breath. ‘I wonder if this trip was the first time

‘As you’ll have noticed, the tonkatsu at Katsuden had a distinctive batter. It’s so soft that you might imagine Denjiro used fresh breadcrumbs rather than the usual dried ones, but then they still have quite a crunch. It turns out he actually sourced his breadcrumbs specially from a local bakery.’ Nagare placed a tray full of breadcrumbs on the tab

The moment Tomomi tasted the dish, he involuntarily closed his eyes. That sweetness of the egg, mingling with the slight bitterness of the tiny sardines. The nutty aroma of the sesame oil . . . it was all just like back in the day. Tomomi leaned forward and, in a slight breach of etiquette, hovered his chopsticks back and forth over the various dis

‘I’m just glad I spotted your advert in Gourmet Monthly,’ said Tomomi, breaking into a smile. ‘But that doesn’t even give our location, or any contact details!’ said Nagare, smiling. ‘All it says is Kamogawa Diner – Kamogawa Detective Agency – We Find Your Food. People go up and down the Kamogawa river looking for us.’ ‘Plus you don’t even have a s

‘From top left,’ began Nagare, tucking the tray under his arm, ‘Miyajima oysters, simmered Kurama-style, miso-glazed baked butterburs with millet cake, bracken and bamboo shoot stew, chargrilled moroko, breast of Kyoto-reared chicken with a wasabi dressing, and vinegared Wakasa mackerel wrapped in pickled Shogoin turnip. In the bottom right you hav