An Encounter With Blowfish, Part Two

So finally the chance to eat blowfish was upon us once again. And this time it was no joke—the blowfish was available and about to make its dangerous journey into my tummy. I can’t say I was nervous—I knew I was in good hands. My expectations were tempered by the stories circulating my office—“it doesn’t have any flavor, really,” my one coworker said. Flavor or not, I was there for at least one thing—foodie street cred. And thus our adventure began.

Out came a small hunk of white fish which Suzuki began slicing not too thinly and not too thickly. Topped with a mysterious orange sauce and chopped baby scallions, it really didn’t look intimidating at all. Don’t poisonous things usually look poisonous? I guess that was a good sign.



My fellow foodie and I braced ourselves and, with a quick dip of soy, took what could have been our last bites. (Am I being sufficiently dramatic about this experience? No?? Just wait.) I’d been fairly warned—the taste was… rather absent all together. I’d also been warned about a tingling sensation in the throat… but that was absent too. Did I just ingest a piece of blowfish without tasting or feeling a thing?


I looked over at my friend, who was freaking out way more than me. “My throat is tingling!” she said, but I still felt nothing. “Maybe my lips are a little numb,” I thought, and realized that blowfish toxins would never make my lip numb. It’s not how it works. And so the psychosomatic symptoms came on. Half an hour later I thought maybe my throat was closing up. Could exhaustion be a side effect of blowfish?

Two days later I’m still alive, and still wondering what all the fuss is all about. But at least I met my match—and won! Any other takes better get in line fast—blowfish season only lasts two more weeks!