Chef Shin Tsujimura
Nobu New York
New York Jets

Spicy Seafood Soup
Dashi
One 3-inch strip kombu
1 ounce bonito flakes
Seafood Soup
1 cup chopped bok choy
1/2 small corn cob
2 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 small sea eel fillets, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 razor clams
2 large mussels
2 asari clams (see Note)
2 ounces cleaned squid, thinly sliced
One 5-ounce skinless sea bass fillet, bones removed and cut into chunks
2 tablespoons light soy sauce, or to taste
2 tablespoons sake
1 teaspoon chile-garlic sauce
Salt
Fresh cilantro leaves


Make the Dashi:
Lightly wipe the kombu with a dry cloth to remove the white powder. Place in a medium saucepan with 1 quart water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Remove the kombu and discard. Return the water to a boil, add the bonito flakes, and remove from the heat. Let stand for 3 minutes, then strain through a cheesecloth-lined sieve into a bowl and return the stock to the saucepan. Discard the bonito flakes.
Make the Seafood Soup:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. One ingredient at a time, blanch the bok choy, corn, shrimp, and eel for 1 to 2 minutes, until just cooked, removing with a slotted spoon to a bowl and letting the water return to a boil after each ingredient has cooked.
Remove the meat from the razor clams and thinly slice. Discard the shells. Rinse the mussels and asari clams well.
Bring the dashi back to a boil. Add the razor clams, mussels, asari clams, squid, and sea bass and return to a boil. Cover the pot, lower the heat, and cook until the clams open and the squid and sea bass are cooked through, about 5 minutes. Add the soy sauce, sake, chile-garlic sauce, and salt to taste. Ladle the soup into 2 bowls, dividing the ingredients equally. Garnish with cilantro and serve immediately.
Note: Asari clams, also known as Manila clams, are a sweet, tender variety grown in the Pacific Northwest. If not available, littleneck clams can be substituted.