Poultry cut: where it is, price, recipes
Nankotsu (cartilage)
Cartilage: yagen from the tip of the breastbone, or hiza from the knee. Salt-grilled it crunches between the teeth; deep-fried, it is a standard izakaya beer snack.
- Grilled
$6/ lb
- Where it sits
- Breast. Every breast hides a tenderloin, the small muscle along the breastbone that peels away by hand.
- Tenderness
- 1/5
- Flavor
- 3/5
- Marbling
- 1/5
- Price
- $6 / lb ·
- Actual size
- ~3 cm
Compared with its neighbors
Compared with Mune (breast), Nankotsu (cartilage) is less tender (1/5 vs 4/5), more flavorful (3/5 vs 2/5) and costs $5 a pound less.
Compared with Sasami (tenderloin), Nankotsu (cartilage) is less tender (1/5 vs 5/5), more flavorful (3/5 vs 2/5) and costs $3 a pound less.
| Cut | Tenderness | Flavor | Marbling | Price | How to cook it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nankotsu (cartilage) | 1/5 | 3/5 | 1/5 | $6 / lb | Grilled |
| Mune (breast) | 4/5 | 2/5 | 1/5 | $11 / lb | Grilled, Poached |
| Sasami (tenderloin) | 5/5 | 2/5 | 1/5 | $9 / lb | Grilled, Poached |
