Online supermarket Crisp now sells Japanese fish dishes from Hokkai Kitchen

What a delicious collaboration! Online supermarket Crisp (known for the most delicious bake-at-home croissants) has been selling fish dishes from the highly acclaimed Japanese fish restaurant Hokkai Kitchen since today (February 1, 2024). The Hokkai range at Crisp consists of Japanese delicacies that make it incredibly easy to put the most delicious Japanese dishes on the table at home.

Hokkai Kitchen is a well-kept secret among lovers of Japanese cuisine. No exaggeration: this may well be the best Japanese restaurant in the Netherlands. Tucked away on an industrial estate in IJmuiden, don’t expect absurd dishes such as stamppot sushi or, even more banal: frikandel sushi. No, here the most delicious dishes are made with the best-quality fresh fish.

Hokkai Kitchen

It’s no wonder the food at Hokkai Kitchen is so unbelievably good. Hokkai owner Marinus Noordenbos went to Japan at the age of 18 and fell in love with the country and its food culture. He met his wife there and became a fishmonger. As an ambassador for Japanese cuisine and craftsmanship, it became his life’s work to bring Japanese fish preparations to the Netherlands. He recruited chef Kuniyoshi Ohtawara to run the kitchen. A stroke of genius, because Mr. Ohtawara comes from the Okura Hotel Amsterdam, which means star quality.

Every day, fish for the restaurant is prepared at the port of IJmuiden. The Japanese chef selects the most beautiful fish to slice into sashimi and turn into sushi.

Japanese products

Besides being a top restaurant, Hokkai is also known as the company that supplies fish to the Japanese expat community in Europe. Hokkai is one of the few companies in the Netherlands able to purchase and process entire tuna. Every week, thousands of expats order the taste of home from Hokkai. These are exactly the products you can find at online supermarket Crisp from today. For example, a rich selection of frozen-at-sea fish, straight from the ocean: from fish fillets and sashimi to kakiage (savory tempura snacks) and panko-coated shrimp. What else can you expect to find in the Crisp app?

• Hokkai salmon (or mackerel) in miso: incredibly fresh, lightly grilled fish with a deep, umami-rich flavor. After 7 minutes in the oven, it’s ready to eat.
• Hokkai Sake Teriyaki: an absolute salmon classic with a lightly sweet sauce, which, combined with fresh vegetables and rice, makes an authentic Japanese main course.
• Hokkai Aji Sashimi: Dutch-caught horse mackerel that retains its pure freshness through shock-freezing. Tip: mix the fish with some freshly grated ginger, chopped spring onions and soy sauce, and taste the umami in every bite.

Divine soy sauce

The app also features sauces, such as the organic Hokkai Kioke soy sauce. It is made by a small-scale company that lets the sauce mature in wooden barrels (‘kiokes’). Maturing in these kiokes creates a more intense flavor—very different from industrially produced soy sauces. The Hokkai miso paste comes from a nineteenth-century factory in the Japanese countryside. Also highly recommended!

Hokkai Valentine’s menu at Crisp

Alongside the Hokkai products, chef Ohtawara is also serving a Valentine’s menu in the Crisp app. If you can’t reel in your potential sweetheart with these brilliant fish dishes, we don’t know what will.

Read also: 

• The acclaimed Asian restaurant Taiko impresses with every bite
• The best Thai restaurants in Amsterdam
• Stocking your Japanese pantry is easy