John Daub: So here we are in Yonezawa.
Welcome to the processing plant.
This is where they decide what is the standard.
Is this an A5? A4?
What is the grade?
We're going to be taking you, in this episode,
from the farm all the way to the table.
What make this the best wagyu steak in Japan?
[Intro music]
Irrashaimase! (Welcome!)
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu! (Pleased to meet you!)
Peter von Gomm: ONLY in JAPAN
John: Winter in Yonezawa means snow.
A lot of it.
But that doesn't slow
people down much up here in
Japan's northern prefecture: Yamagata.
The average temperature in winter is below zero.
I drove from the station to the
Yonezawa Meat Processing Plant to get
a look how wagyu beef here was graded.
To see how they judged the quality through the marbling.
Yonezawa is generally considered
one of the three most famous beef brands
in Japan, with Kobe and Matsuzaka,
so they take their branding seriously here.
Approximately three thousand
kuroge wagyu will be branded as
Yonezawa beef annually.
It's here at the inspection that the branding is decided.
Staff: We are checking the marbled part of the steak meat.
John: Why did you make the cut here?
Staff: We cut all in the same spot.
For judging the meat, it's the best spot
for an accurate reading on the whole.
John: The beef inspectors have to first decide
the yield: A, B, or C decided by the ratio
of meat compared to the actual carcass weight.
Then the marbling is graded through the
BMS or "Beef Marbling Standard" score from 1 to 12.
The BMS score determines the
grading score on a scale of 1 to 5.
You can see as the marbling or fat gets more
intense the number increases.
Better, even, marbling impacts
juiciness, tenderness, flavor, and texture
which leads to an overall eating experience.
The highest rank for Japanese wagyu beef is A5 and
only A4 and A5 rank beef will obtain the
coveted Yonezawa beef brand.
The rest are branded as Yamagata beef
which is still exceptional.
Staff: This one is A3.
We also have A2 ranked beef here.
John: A2 is still a pretty good
looking cut of steak.
Leaner.
Staff: This one is A2.
John: You really can't see much marbling, can you?
Staff: The color of the meat is quite strong.
This one is A3.
John: A3 just misses the cut but you can see
it has excellent balance of
red akami (meat) and fat.
This looks so delicious!
Staff: This one is A4.
John: The A4 marbling is well balanced.
This is my favorite.
Enough red meat to give it a good
chew mixing with the fat in the mouth.
A5 is intense.
The marbling is balanced between
the red akami meat making it look pink.
So from A2 to A5, can you see the difference?
The fat content of kuroke wagyu in Japan
is said to be different than other beef.
The fat, it's lighter more of an olive oil consistency
There's research showing it's high
in monounsaturated fatty acids,
Omega 3 and 6, which are essential
fatty acids said to lower cholesterol.
There does seem to be some legitimate health
benefits in that A5 marbling, but I do
believe in eating meat in moderation.
Wow, look at that marbling!
Intense marbling.
This was the highest level of marbling
I could find on this day.
The A5 stamp is Japan's highest rank and
here it gets the "Yonezawa Gyu" stamp too.
The GI, or geographical indicator, stamp
is a certificate from the
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries in Japan.
Yonezawa beef is registered as a
representative beef brand of Japan.
There were a lot of A5 ranked "Yonezawa Gyu" today.
For Yonezawa area ranchers,
that A5 ranking is a big deal.
It's rare to buy an entire beef carcass
so the Yonezawa Meat Processing Plant
will separate it into sections which is
more useful for distributors.
This can be a pretty labor-intensive job
using specialized tools and knives.
Cleaning and removing the parts is done
with a lot of precision here because
they know this is Yonezawa beef, a top
brand representing their region.
After separation the beef is put into
bags and placed on a clamshell vacuum
shrink wrapper.
The meat is then dipped in hot water to
tighten the wrap around the beef.
The ice water freezing that process for a
well-protected and preserved block of meat.
They're labeled and ready to go to the
restaurants or distribution centers.
Let's follow the blocks of "kata rosu" or
"ribu rosu" (ribeye) to a distribution center.
This is the Sato Chikusan Processing Center
in Yonezawa where a variety of
beef cuts are packaged for restaurants
and consumers around Japan.
Each area on the floor processes the cuts
of wagyu beef for a specific way to eat it.
This is "kata rosu" or chuck eye roll,
a cut near the neck.
These thin slices will be perfect for sukiyaki.
This cut of "sankaku bara" or chuck rib
will make excellent yakiniku.
This "uchi momo" or top round has
incredibly well balanced marbling and
has a special purpose.
Can you guess what they're doing?
That's a heart-shaped steak.
Don't worry, nothing is wasted.
This will be used for yakiniku or another dish.
This is Yonezawa sirloin steak.
The workers are quite skilled at getting
the cuts even.
These will be sent to supermarkets and
restaurants.
This sliced beef is "ude" or shoulder clad
mixed with "momo niku" or thigh.
Any side cuts get sliced into pieces for
yakiniku grilling.
Large cuts come in like this for
processing to the consumer.
Large restaurants may have their own meat
lockers like this too.
Generally wagyu is aged for about a
month before it gets to the
market meat aisle.
This is a chunk of "ribu rosu" or rib loins.
I'm guessing that's about Y80,000 ($700) ...
Staff: Ah, a little more than that.
John: The meat is packaged for gifts here sent
to premium supermarkets around Japan.
Sato-san runs down some of the history of
Yonezawa beef which makes it different
and special to other brands.
Sato: Within Yamagata, there's the Yamagata beef brand,
the Yonezawa brand is the Okitama region
Three cities and five towns.
Cattle are raised within this region.
So what's so special about Yonezawa beef's taste?
The cattle here are raised for 32 months
So why this long, 32 months?
The taste of the oils increases.
It gets sweeter.
When you eat it, you can really taste the "amami" sweetness.
This is a difference with other wagyu beef brands.
John: The Yonezawa brand became famous in 1875 when
resident English teacher Charles Henry Dallas ate
the local beef and loved it.
When his term ended, he bought one as a
souvenir for his friends.
Sato: He took a Yonezawa cattle to Yokohama
(where there was a foreign settlement)
There, the Yonezawa brand's reputation really spread.
John: So what about the prices at the
butcher shop and restaurant?
They operate a shop and restaurant by
Yonezawa Station.
This thinly cut "momo" or top round is for
sukiyaki or shabu-shabu.
These special boneless short rib cuts or "tokujo karubi"
are 1,380 yen for 100 grams or
about 12 dollars for a quarter pound.
Yonezawa sirloin steak 1,850 yen for 100 grams or
about 16 dollars for a quarter pound.
"Misuji" or brisket steaks are 1,480 yen per 100 grams or
about 13 dollars for a quarter pound.
These burgers are about 3 dollars and 50 cents each.
They make only 30 a day.
Let me know in the comments
what you think of the prices here.
This sukiyaki or "gyu nabe" course is 3700 yen.
120 grams of A5 graded rib eye
slices of Yonezawa wagyu beef.
Look at that beautifully marbled,
thinly sliced beef.
Soy sauce, sugar, and mirin are in that
sukiyaki hot pot soup.
Sukiyaki is one of the best ways to eat
premium wagyu beef.
The fat melting into the salty
soy sweet soup of vegetables and tofu.
It's eaten with a little raw egg.
The meat dipped in it which adds an
incredible richness.
She's telling me to put
the raw egg in the bowl and mix it.
This is the sukiyaki dipping sauce,
just a fresh raw egg.
The meat cooks pretty fast.
Coat it in that raw egg and enjoy.
Sukiyaki is maybe the best winter food.
Of course there's shabu-shabu and
of course there's nabe mono and there's all
these other really delicious soups but
sukiyaki with wagyu.
You can't do any better than this.
It's true, but with Yonezawa beef in
Yonezawa you can't go wrong no matter
how you eat it.
Before we head to the farm,
where exactly is Yonezawa?
It's in the northern part
of Japan called Tohoku.
Yamagata Prefecture is on the Sea of Japan side.
A 75-minute Shinkansen ride from Tokyo Station.
Yonezawa is an old castle town where
Uesugi Shrine can be visited.
You can still feel the Edo era here.
Pulling away you can see why the city
has some of the best beef in Japan.
The area is fertile, fresh water and air,
fair summers, chilly winters.
It's a city surrounded by nature.
Let's head to the Tanaka ranch.
The snow is still coming down strong.
There are 1,250 cattle here.
This is where they live sheltered from the
subzero temperature and snow.
Entering into the cow house I quickly
noticed there isn't much smell.
Not like what you'd think.
Today it's quiet, just the hum of the fans.
You'll see each cow has a 10 digit
number which can be traced on the
Japan wagyu database, tracing its family
lineage through several generations.
Tanaka-san guided me around the cow house.
This heifer is nearing her 32-month mark.
Here's a baby warmed by heat lamps.
The calves are super cute and super curious
when visitors come.
You won't find its mom far away.
Wagyu cows are shy.
They lead stress-free lives here.
I came to learn that they also
love to be groomed and even cheek massaged.
Make friends with one, you may
make friends with them all.
Here in Yonezawa they eat a diet
of hay, rice, straw, and corn.
Tanaka-san is also using the manure for
biofuel here.
Between the domes you can see the
process taking place through these
little windows.
Anaerobic bacteria is added to the excrement.
This digestion creating heat
making methane gas or biomethane.
That's a magical poo.
Being able to harness this organic
material to create biofuel removes
greenhouse gases from the environment
and creates renewable energy.
A good investment.
This is the biogas digestate turned into
compost fertilizer for use to grow produce.
It truly seems like nothing is wasted.
Tanaka: Recently, we recognize there is a lot of CO2
created from raising cattle.
With this environmental problem, we thought
we want to raise cattle that makes our neighbors happy.
John: Finally I head to a restaurant famous
for serving Yonezawa beef in different ways.
Wow this is an amazing spread of
different kind of foods with "Yonezawa gyu,"
Yonezawa beef.
We have here a shabu-shabu.
Look how thinly sliced that beef is.
Obviously if you look at the marbling it
is an A5 ranked beef.
Also we have some sushi here
that is A5 ranked.
We're going to be putting this meal together.
There's other ways to eat including
steak, yakiniku, sukiyaki.
I'm gonna eat what's in front of me.
Right now, there is a pot of boiling water
which is shabu-shabu so
let's go dig into that right now.
You can see that it's very thinly sliced,
beautifully marbled, beef.
And it's cut thin because in shabu-shabu
it cooks super fast when you put it in
the hot water like this.
Usually you'll get some dipping sauces
for shabu-shabu, sesame and ponzu.
I usually favor the sesame.
A little richer than the ponzu but whichever
one you pick make sure that none of it drips
down the side of your mouth.
Heaven.
Paradise.
This steak is cooked rare,
pink, not red, from the marbling.
It's super tender.
Very little tension in the bite.
Flavors exploding with each chew.
One bite is enough for me to take a time out.
Savor it for a moment longer.
Sushi, an interesting way to enjoy
wagyu in Japan.
It's not raw, just slightly cook to melt
the fats a bit.
It's really pleasant to have both meat
and rice in one bite.
Mmmm.
Very tender.
I like it with the rice but
I think... I think I'm gonna have to go
with the shabu-shabu.
[Laughs]
This is really good. This is really good.
An overall meal that is a must for
Japanese cuisine fanatics and meat
lovers like myself.
Traveling the country to eat
is one of the delights Japan
offers visitors.
All four seasons offering special foods.
But here in Yonezawa the beef can
be enjoyed year round.
Thank you for watching this episode
on Yonezawa beef.
I hope you enjoyed it.
This is my ride back, the Shinkansen back to Tokyo.
If you enjoyed it consider
subscribing to the ONLY in JAPAN channel
for another adventure to all the corners of Japan.
Mata ne! (See you again!)